Oct. 15th Lit Subject Test - scores are ready!

[TripWillis]

Temporarily unavailable again. Last time it was no dice, but maybe this time...

[TripWillis]

No dice again. Damnit.

[indalomena]

eh hem....early modern

well... but early modern is a problematic term as well.

I took the November test and I thought it was fine, you October people were clearly quite unlucky! Though echoing what others have said, congratulations for a good set of scores!! I scored incredibly low in my practice tests and I have no idea why, as I thought they went really well! (Maybe I just can't count.)

good luck to those still waiting.

[Rupert Pupkin]

Scores are still not up, but I was able to see mine on an application status page (Texas). So if a school you are applying to has a similar page, maybe you can get your score for free as well.

I made a 580. Not as good as the rest of you guys, but something I am completely satisfied with based on my performance on practice tests. I'm hopeful my 580 is good enough to make this component a non-issue.

[againstourfaces]

I don't understand why people are suggesting there is a difference between the October tests and the November tests, isn't it all a matter of perception? What am I missing here? I took the October test (it was my second time) and felt it was a lot easier than anything I came across before. Besides, there are probably about a half dozen or so tests circulating.

[TripWillis]

Hey, wouldn't it be great if they posted these scores online? I realize it takes it takes a while to feed a scantron in a machine and then have some automaton enter the data, but this is getting silly.

[HunkyDory]

Broke down and paid for the scores by phone after my mother told me she'd pay the $12.

650, 84th percentile.

I'm satsified--I know they're weighted so low in the process that that score is golden.

[rawera]

I told a prof my scores. He said "great job, now forget about it all together."

Judging from the rhetoric of dept sites alone (not sure if this is a valid method or not), test scores are de-emphasized quite a bit.

[user_name]

i got a receipt for a program i sent my general score to (paying the extraneous fee) but since i chose not to send my subject, it wasn't on there. i did send both scores to another program the next day, but haven't gotten the receipt. wonder if it's the mail or if they'd actually hold it.

[TripWillis]

i got a receipt for a program i sent my general score to (paying the extraneous fee) but since i chose not to send my subject, it wasn't on there. i did send both scores to another program the next day, but haven't gotten the receipt. wonder if it's the mail or if they'd actually hold it.

I could totally see those bastards doing that. Wait, how long did it take for your receipt to come? I ordered ASRs on Monday.

[Timshel]

I was hoping the subject would be up today, a week early, like the general were. Boo.

[TripWillis]

haha so I've noticed that they filled in the bottom line of the subject test score boxes, but no scores yet. Oh boy... I'm in deep. Too much obsession...

[TripWillis]

Finally got mine in the mail today. It was about as terrible as I expected.

The most amazing thing is that I never, ever improved my score. I got the same score on both of my practice tests that I ultimately got on the real test. With all the studying I did, that just freaking kills me...

Edited November 20, 2011 by TripWillis

[sentientcabbage]

Figured I'd weigh in with a somewhat different perspective here! I got a 720, which is the 97th percentile. I spent too long studying for the test, obviously (the payoff really is too low; I believe the test is functionally pass-fail), though of course am proud of the result.

What I want to emphasize, though, is that now I won't be applying to programs for the upcoming season. Poor prioritization of my time and issues arising in other areas of my life made it so that I just can't make a finely-tuned SOP and writing sample before the early deadlines.

Even those of you who are disappointed in your scores have A LOT to be proud of, and I hope that you don't let self-recrimination get you too down when you're still persevering over one of the most arduous and demoralizing trials I've ever encountered.

So good luck in this application season, everyone! And cut yourselves some slack! Maybe I'll meet you in 2013.

[BurningShips]

I scored a 690 in the 93%. Now it is time to refine the more important parts anyway (it is a shame how much we all panic about the test knowing that it is only useful to survive the cutoff line). Good luck to everyone finishing their apps. Let us meet back up after they are sent in to celebrate (and panic).

[user_name]

620 in the 76th percentile.

not bad given i wasn't the best undergrad student and concentrated in creative writing, not lit.

bad considering i want to get a PhD in literature.

[clairecate]

Thought I'd weigh in just for comparison's sake. 630, 79th percentile, like the OP. I'm genuinely shocked at how high it is to be completely honest. I never scored over 45th percentile on ANY of the practice tests and was the first person out of the room after laughing and giving up on test day. Guess most of my guesses were more educated than I thought.

So are we still going with the consensus that anything over 600 is considered acceptable? Or 75th%+? Broadly speaking, what do we think is the cut-off?

[TripWillis]

Well, UC: Davis' website says that "most successful applicants score above a 500 on the subject test, but this is not a minimum."

So, I'm going with that... I kind of... have to go with that... for my sake...