GRE Subject - Should I send the score?

[arienandthesun]

Hi all,

I hope you can help me. I am a master's student in CS and applying for PhD this year. Last year I also applied but I got rejected from all. My current school is in top 20 but I think this does not change anything.

So this year I took GRE Subject Computer Science again and got 740 with 55%. (just called an hour ago)

My current GPA is 3.3

My General GRE is V 320 Q 800 A 4.5

TOEFL is 105

Please share me your ideas whether sending my GRE subject score will increase/decrease my chance.

[rokxal]

Programs have different averages for their admitted students so it helps to know which ones you're applying to.

[seunghwane]

If that's a 55 percentile, I don't think that's a good score in any standardized test, so DEFINITELY not.

[arienandthesun]

Thanks a lot for the answers. After talking to my friends, I also decided not to send it to anywhere.

[frankdux]

are you gonna take it over? or is there anywhere you can apply that does not require it?

i took the math GRE and i think i bombed it. i dont know yet and i don't wanna pay the $12 to find out cause i'll just get it in the mail next week.

thankfully 6 of my 10 Applied Math applications didn't require it.

[arienandthesun]

I cannot take it again since the next one is in april. luckily not many schools require it but they "highly recommend" it. I don't think I will send. I paid $12 because deadlines are soon.

It looks like I am an average person and I don't think I have a chance this year...again...I just learned my grade from a course I took this semester and it is not cheering me up. Do you think admission committee is obsessed about numbers? I feel like my only hope is a good SOP write now... :roll:

[timuralp]

The CS GRE is nonsense. Most professors at most schools will tell you exactly that. There is a reason why top schools like MIT and UIUC do not require it (or any GREs I believe). When I took the test it was theory/architecture heavy. I'm sorry, neither of these has much to do with what I'm studying now. The test does not measure you research capacity in any area, nor does it really measure your knowledge. Personally, I wouldn't worry about the GRE, assuming all your other stuff is in order. I think I got an abysmal score similar to yours and was still picking between four schools for grad school: UIUC, Michigan, Wisconsin, and UMass - all of which funded me and are in the top 15 (UMass in systems should be in top 15). Anyway, don't stress out over that as much. Solid coursework and good research experience are much more important than GRE.