Just took GRE -- how are my scores?

[edgirl]

Hi folks,

I'm new here and would really appreciate any feedback! I'm planning to apply to doctoral programs in ed policy (or, just possibly, ed research) for fall 2013. In preparation for that, I took the GRE yesterday. While I don't have the writing score back yet (duh), I know that my verbal was 170 and my quant was 161. Obviously, I am happy with that verbal score, but I'm curious about the quant score -- is it in the ballpark for doctoral admission to policy and/or research programs?

Also, I felt like I tanked the first essay but recovered in the second. I'm not holding out great hopes for my writing score, so I'm also curious if y'all have any feedback on how heavily GSE admissions peeps seem to weigh it, relative both to the other section scores and to the app as a whole.

Thanks!

EdGirl

[Dizzi]

Sounds like they won't hurt you, but I'm not familiar with the new scales. What were your percentile ranks on each section?

[edgirl]

Hey Dizzi,

Thanks for the reply! On the new scale, percentile ranks are V 99 and Q 86. If it helps, the concordance on ETS equates my scores to a V 800 and Q 770.

Again, really appreciate the feedback!

[psychgurl]

I'm not in education...but a 1570 on the old scale is an insanely high score. You'll be totally fine.

[Dizzi]

That's outstanding, for any field. I actually got the same score, but with the V/Q reversed. As I've said elsewhere, though, I feel like the GRE is one of those things that can only hurt you; i.e., a bad score will hurt you, but a high score won't necessarily do anything special for you, at least at the most competitive schools. I was told the admissions committee had a hard time deciding whether or not to take me... :/

[Dizzi]

Just as an aside, ffr - the point of the GRE is that it's norm-referenced, so regardless of the score numbers, the percentile ranks are supposed to be comparable between revisions.

[PhDreams]

That's outstanding, for any field. I actually got the same score, but with the V/Q reversed. As I've said elsewhere, though, I feel like the GRE is one of those things that can only hurt you; i.e., a bad score will hurt you, but a high score won't necessarily do anything special for you, at least at the most competitive schools. I was told the admissions committee had a hard time deciding whether or not to take me... :/

Oh no! How did you find that out??? I really wish I could ask what made the admissions committee admit me? I'd love to know!

And I think you're right, a high score, especially in Ed is not going to be what gets you in. Most schools look for well rounded students. But the OP should be happy because their app is shaping up quite nicely!!

Good luck!!!!

[Dizzi]

The EdD cohort is pretty small (28 last fall), and the final decisions are made by the full doctoral faculty, not just the program-specific faculty. So all of the faculty on the committee basically know the "story" behind every admit. I happened to know a few of those faculty members, who filled me in after I enrolled (though they were mum during the process, of course).

[edgirl]

Thanks for the feedback, all! I realize the GRE in and of itself is but one piece in holistic review, but since I'm leaning toward somewhat quantitative fields like ed research, I just wondered whether the Q score would be in the ballpark. Now, on to focusing on the bigger picture!

[SeriousSillyPutty]

My score on the new test was Verbal=164 and Quant=162, with writing of 4.5.

I got into a PhD in Science & Mathematics Education (at WashU in St. Louis), and part of the Math & Science path is that you have to focus on quantitative research methods. In the interview, they didn't say anything that would at all suggest that quant score wouldn't be sufficient for doing a quantitative strand, so I wouldn't worry.

And, like others said, Education programs seem more focused on experience. I think WashU was receptive to me because I was using what I'd experienced in the working world as the motivation for the type of research I want to do. (Of course, I only applied to one school, so this is hardly a controlled experiment!)

[edgirl]

On 4/12/2012 at 9:48 PM, SeriousSillyPutty said:

My score on the new test was Verbal=164 and Quant=162, with writing of 4.5.

I got into a PhD in Science & Mathematics Education (at WashU in St. Louis), and part of the Math & Science path is that you have to focus on quantitative research methods. In the interview, they didn't say anything that would at all suggest that quant score wouldn't be sufficient for doing a quantitative strand, so I wouldn't worry.

And, like others said, Education programs seem more focused on experience. I think Was U was receptive to me because I was using what I'd experienced in the working world as the motivation for the type of research I want to do. (Of course, I only applied to one school, so this is hardly a controlled experiment!)

Thanks!