GRE requirements

[speechpathologystudent099]

I was wondering if anyone knew if it would be worth applying to a school if I got a 149 Q and a 150 V on my GRE. I took it 3 times and my score didn't improve but I have an overall GPA of a 3.8 and lots of experience. I was interested in applying to Northeastern but their website says they have a GRE requirement of a 150 Q and a 152 V. My scores are close but obviously I still didn't meet the requirement, so I'm just wondering if my application would even be considered or if it would be filtered out. I was considering emailing the department but I didn't want to already start off on the wrong foot by saying I didn't meet the requirements if that makes any sense. 

[cnice98]

I think you should definitely should still apply, especially if you are really passionate about becoming a speech pathologist!! Most schools want you to have a 300 combined and you are literally only one point below so that is not bad at all. I too am feeling a little discouraged because I didn't meet the minimum writing score, but have decided to choose to be positive while finishing my applications so that I can put my best foot forward. When searching for school that I wanted to apply to, if the school listed a required minimum score (opposed to an average score), I contacted the department, told them my situation, and asked if if my application would still be taken into account if I did not meet the minimum. One school said that I would undermine my acceptance into the program and in another said that they would still look at my application. It sounds like you have put so much work into the GRE with taking it 3 times. Don't give up now just because it is one point below! The GRE is just one part of the application and it sounds like you are a really well rounded applicant. 

[Monochrome Spring]

You should email the graduate admissions secretary to see if that is a hard cutoff or a recommended score. It will not set you off on the wrong foot to ask, but it will waste your time and money if you don't ask and find out afterward that it was a hard cutoff.

[MassSLPwannabe]

I have the opposite but same position.. I am also interested in Northeastern, and I have a high GRE score, but below the required GPA. I emailed somebody from Northeastern and they said that they would still consider the application

[futurespeechpath1]

I think you should always still apply! Think of your application as a stool if one leg is shorter than the others then the others will balance it out!

[samiamslp]

In case you haven't submitted yet, please apply! 149 is not a bad score, especially for the quant portion. Northeastern also looks at the whole application, not just at your scores, so as long as you really sell it in your personal statement, you definitely have a shot!

Also sidenote, if you have any questions about living in Boston for grad school, feel free to ask me about that as well?

[thespeechblog.com]

On 12/20/2019 at 9:28 AM, speechpathologystudent099 said:

I was wondering if anyone knew if it would be worth applying to a school if I got a 149 Q and a 150 V on my GRE. I took it 3 times and my score didn't improve but I have an overall GPA of a 3.8 and lots of experience. I was interested in applying to Northeastern but their website says they have a GRE requirement of a 150 Q and a 152 V. My scores are close but obviously I still didn't meet the requirement, so I'm just wondering if my application would even be considered or if it would be filtered out. I was considering emailing the department but I didn't want to already start off on the wrong foot by saying I didn't meet the requirements if that makes any sense. 

If they list that as a "minimum requirement," I'm guessing your application would be filtered out. 

The best way to know for sure if it is a requirement (vs an average or something), would be to contact the program directly. 

[amanda_rensch]

I did not get the GRE scores I was hoping for either. I took the exam twice and my score only improved 3 points and my writing improved by 0.5 points. Most schools do not have hard cut-offs for GRE because they would rather see a well rounded student. I applied to everywhere just to see where I would get in! Even if my GRE scores didn't align! I think the things that stand out in an application are...

- Research Experience

- Clinical Experience

- Rigor of coursework

- Volunteer Experience

- Extracurriculars

- Involvement in NSSLHA or other speech pathology clubs

 

I know in undergraduate admissions, I have heard directly that rigor of coursework and the difficulty of the school, affects how you are judged. For example, a 3.4 at Harvard is probably a lot harder to receive than a 3.8 at a community college, and admissions know this. I think they take that into more consideration than the GRE, but yet again, I am not on the admissions committee and graduate schools admissions may be different!

[amanda_rensch]

On 12/23/2019 at 4:56 PM, MassSLPwannabe said:

I have the opposite but same position.. I am also interested in Northeastern, and I have a high GRE score, but below the required GPA. I emailed somebody from Northeastern and they said that they would still consider the application

I think that was a very smart thing to do! You never know what they are looking for in admissions and even though your GPA is below what they "require", you could be the perfect candidate!