Applicant seeking serious advice

[holysmokes]

Hello gradcafe Political Science community,

I will be graduating this December from a well-respected regional university (consistently rated best state public university) with a dual B.A. (two degrees rather than one double) in history and political science.

I have a 3.73 GPA, 3.78 Major GPA, and 4 state level conference presentations. I am also currently co-authoring a project with a senior professor in my political science department that I hope will be published in a leading political science journal (this professor has mentored many successful students and co-author papers that have been published in perspectives, J.O.P. etc...) I am most interested in critical/continental political theory as well as contemporary Latin American politics. I have a very focused S.O.P. and very strong L.O.R's from tenured faculty members.

The problem: I have taken the GRE twice, 1st attempt: 600Q, 570V, 2nd attempt: 560Q, 560V. Will these scores absolutely sink me?

These are the current schools I am considering:

UChicago, Northwestern, UC Berkeley, UCLA, Johns Hopkins, UVA, UMass Amherst, UConn, Rutgers, CUNY, UC Irvine, UC Santa Cruz, Maryland, UPenn, and Temple.

I'm really hoping these scores won't automatically disqualify me from contention at all of these places. Please let me know what you all think.

[IRdreams]

I was told that a top schools that generally a 700 math/verbal is a common cutoff, so this may be a problem for UChicago, specifically. From what I've been told, schools frequently have a line at which they won't read applications, but once you've crossed that threshold, no one really cares about the GRE. There are some exceptions. I remember reading a paper by Gary King about Harvard's admission process and he strongly emphasized a high math score as something that department looks for and I suspect that Stanford and Rutgers do as well.

[Penelope Higgins]

As a faculty member with grad admissions experiences at a school much like some of the ones on your list, I think your GRE scores will give you trouble at the first 4-5 schools on your list, which are the most competitive. You should have a decent chance (at the other schools if your letters and personal statement are as strong as you make them sound.

[Clay Made]

Are you going for a PhD? If so, are you aware of the best MA in PoliSci programs?

[holysmokes]

Yeah, i've considered masters programs. I'm interested in Virginia Tech in this regard, but i'd honestly rather just go through with the Ph.D.

Thanks folks for the help, do you think it would be worth it to take the new format GRE? 3 strikes I suppose.

[kaykaykay]

As PH said before, your GRE scores seem to be kind of low for the first 4 schools. I do not know about Hopkins , UPenn and Maryland, maybe ok (?) and I think your GRE points are fine for the rest of them. If you feel like you can do better and you want to go to a top 25ish school you may want to retake it.

[IRdreams]

I was told that a top schools that generally a 700 math/verbal is a common cutoff, so this may be a problem for UChicago, specifically. From what I've been told, schools frequently have a line at which they won't read applications, but once you've crossed that threshold, no one really cares about the GRE. There are some exceptions. I remember reading a paper by Gary King about Harvard's admission process and he strongly emphasized a high math score as something that department looks for and I suspect that Stanford and Rutgers do as well.

Actually, when I said Rutgers I was thinking Rochester. Ignore my late night drivel.

[Penelope Higgins]

Actually, when I said Rutgers I was thinking Rochester. Ignore my late night drivel.

I wondered about that, but figured you might know something I was unaware of...

[holysmokes]

Thanks once again for the feedback. I'm thinking there may be some ambiguity over arbitrary (or justified depending on your perspective) cut-offs this cycle due to the new format. Maybe it's just wishful thinking.

Would taking it a third time, after a Kaplan class this time perhaps, be advisable? I've heard this was frowned upon.

Part of me just wants to be done with this test though, i'm pretty sure i'll never run into a slope formula working on a project on Foucault. Just a hoop to jump through I guess.

[IRdreams]

I wondered about that, but figured you might know something I was unaware of...

Nope...just the late night ICPSR crazies.

[IRdreams]

Thanks once again for the feedback. I'm thinking there may be some ambiguity over arbitrary (or justified depending on your perspective) cut-offs this cycle due to the new format. Maybe it's just wishful thinking.

Would taking it a third time, after a Kaplan class this time perhaps, be advisable? I've heard this was frowned upon.

Part of me just wants to be done with this test though, i'm pretty sure i'll never run into a sloope formula working on a project on Foucault. Just a hoop to jump through I guess.

So if you are more theory inclined, I suspect your verbal score will be an issue at the top schools on your list. Moreover, even with the new exam, your scores aren't really in the range where they could take advantage of the ambiguity. You are also then betting on adcomms not knowing their business, which I generally think is a losing proposition. Sadly, it is a hoop. But sometimes when someone tells us to jump, all we can ask is how high.