newtothegame

I retook the GRE today and got an identified Verbal section. What a relief not to have to guess whether or not the section will count toward the final score

I took the GRE on June 3 of this year and the experimental section was last for me. It was math and I decided to skip it. I am taking the test again this Sunday and hoping it will be the same situation.

I got a 670V 440Q and hope that I will be able to pull that score up with tutoring. I am going for poli sci but not with an interest in quant heavy subfields. Can you afford to work with a tutor? I realize this initial post was last year so if you did retake the exam, let us know how you did. Give the rest of us in the same boat some hope

Thanks for all the replies. I will be retaking the test next month. Time to hire a private tutor. Considering this is the last time I will have to take one of the darned exams, I will give it my best shot. I have read up on many of the programs I am interested and contacted their admissions people. Most say that I should take retake the exam. Anybody have any suggestions for websites to study? I need a tutor but can't afford to break the bank hiring one for endless hours. Suggestions appreciated. By the way, I'm not a troll. I am a Harvard student genuinely interested in raising my score. To those of you that are actually offering genuine help, thank you. Expat, try to let the paranoia go when offering advice on these boads. Your "sneaking suspicion" couldn't be farther from the mark. Good luck to all on the applications!

I am in nearly the same boat. Your verbal score is awesome and much harder to achieve than a great score on the quant section. I am thinking about taking the exam again but really don't want to. In the end, I may not because I will have decided to let my scores stand and the rest of my application speak for itself. If you have other stuff going for you - good school, good GPA, underrepresented minority, strong LOR's and essays - the score may not hold you back. Just something to think about.

Thank you for the replies. I took the exam yesterday and did not do well, just as I feared. I scored a 670V and 440Q. After having a panic attack, I spoke to admissions folks and my academic advisor here at Harvard. They set my mind at ease about the test. They said the verbal score is great. The math is extremely low but faculty reviewing the application may take that to mean that I haven't done any math in a very long time. That goes to the poster who talked about the math portion being teachable. I believe it is but I also don't know if I could do much better. As of this point, I do not plan to take the exam again. My advisor said that I should if I wanted to do so but that I shouldn't be anxious about it. If my AW score comes back low, then he said I really must retake it. If I get a 5 or 6, then the choice is mine. I think I will wait to see the AW score and spend the rest of summer working on my SOP. Good luck to all going through this rigamorole!

Here's an insider tip for all of you applying to Harvard. You can start out in the MTS program which does not require the GRE and move over to the MDiv later with no formal application process. I know because I am a student there now and I did it. Yes, I was admitted with NO GRE SCORE. Good luck

I go to HDS now. Please do not stress yourself out. I did not submit GRE scores and was admitted. The admissions folks here are very thorough and truly consider your whole application. Focus on putting together a good personal statement. Try for a strong finish at your current school. Make sure to contact a current student before citing any professors you want to work with because we are experiencing a lot of turnover right now. Good luck!

Anybody here bomb the GRE and still get in to a top 10 school? More specifically, anybody get scores of less than 600Q and 700V and still make the cut at places like Harvard and MIT? I attend one of those institutions now and the admissions rep I spoke to said that other parts of my application can make up for deficiencies in my score but I am left wondering how this works in the poli sci world. I'm taking the test next week so please let me know what your experience has been. Thanks