Can I be admitted in Ph.D. program in the U.S.?

[socioorsocio]

Hello, guys!

I'm an applicant admiring Sociology Ph.D. program in fall 2020 term. International student from Asia. Targeting top 20 programs.

I wonder my TOEFL and GRE score will tackle my admission :(.

Most schools require TOEFL 100 as a minimum and I got 103. My GRE score is V-162 Q-168 AW-3.5.

I'm not sure about the process of admission, so I'm worried about my AW score and TOEFL score make me cut-off in a long-list.

If it does, I think about retaking GRE for other programs accepting applications until January. Should I retake TOEFL and GRE?

FYI, I published 5 papers in MA (three in Chinese, and two in English), have two years of research experience (UG GPA 3.8 / MA GPA 3.9). 

Research interest is collective action and social networks, UNC and NYU is priority of my choice. Polishing my SoP until the deadline.

Any comments are welcome! Thank you and hope you have a good luck!!

[limonchello]

Short reply since no one else has replied to you:

You should be okay. Your TOEFL is low, but it's enough I think. It might be useful to email other Chinese students in programs you're interested in to get an idea of their scores.

 In terms of the GRE, those are pretty great scores so I think they will really help your low writing score. Most programs don't have raw-cut-offs and look at applications more holistically. You could retake the GRE and really practice the writing portion, but I'd say go ahead and apply now with your current score to December cut offs. 

[socio1251]

I think your GRE writing score should be okay if you are aiming for quantitative programs (based on your descriptions). What about your TOEFL speaking section? The only possibility of the cut-off is the speaking score (over 24 or 26) for some schools. 

[youcandothis]

On 12/8/2019 at 11:37 PM, socioorsocio said:

Hello, guys!

I'm an applicant admiring Sociology Ph.D. program in fall 2020 term. International student from Asia. Targeting top 20 programs.

I wonder my TOEFL and GRE score will tackle my admission :(.

Most schools require TOEFL 100 as a minimum and I got 103. My GRE score is V-162 Q-168 AW-3.5.

I'm not sure about the process of admission, so I'm worried about my AW score and TOEFL score make me cut-off in a long-list.

If it does, I think about retaking GRE for other programs accepting applications until January. Should I retake TOEFL and GRE?

FYI, I published 5 papers in MA (three in Chinese, and two in English), have two years of research experience (UG GPA 3.8 / MA GPA 3.9). 

Research interest is collective action and social networks, UNC and NYU is priority of my choice. Polishing my SoP until the deadline.

Any comments are welcome! Thank you and hope you have a good luck!!

As long as you met the minimum requirement you should be fine. Your AW is a little low but can be saved with your sop & writing sample.

[vince2020]

Not so sure about the AW score. The majority of social network pieces I’ve read are ethnographies so my opinion is biased - but 3.5 seems a little low. You have nothing to worry about though, like others said, if you’re aiming for programs w strong quant focus you should be fine. For TOEFL, what’s your speaking scores? If it’s 25+ you should do alright.

[sociopolitic]

9 hours ago, vince2020 said:

Not so sure about the AW score. The majority of social network pieces I’ve read are ethnographies so my opinion is biased - but 3.5 seems a little low. You have nothing to worry about though, like others said, if you’re aiming for programs w strong quant focus you should be fine. For TOEFL, what’s your speaking scores? If it’s 25+ you should do alright.

Social network theory was actually initially developed by a physicist and his very mathematically-inclined sociology students. It doesn’t sound to me like OP wants to be an ethnographer

To OP: Your GRE scores are generally excellent and provided that your SOP and writing sample are clearly written and you applied to enough programs with strong fit, you’ll probably get at least an offer or two. Your publications will (hopefully) do great things for your chances, too. 

Edited February 7, 2020 by sociopolitic