GRE Scores for foreign applicants

[gulcik]

I wonder what is the minimum GRE total for foreign students to get admission from let's say top 50 Political Science Departments, not top ten. Although I do well in Toefl, my GRE verbal is low. In total I have got 1250. Is it adequate for those whose native language is not English? Or should I study to improve my score? What would you recommend?

[plisar]

That information is not helpful for us. What did you get on the Q and the V separately? How about the AW?

[PoliSci Guy]

I have heard, but have no idea if it's true, that admissions committees do not differentiate between US and international Ph.D. applicants when it comes to the GRE. The idea is that at such a high level there are equal expectations for skill and capabilities. Again, I have no idea if this is true or not.

[ztrooop]

Formal/Quant oriented programs like NYU and Rochester don't care about foreigners' GRE verbal.

But you definitely need a good TOEFL score and 800 or close on GRE math, I believe.

[gulcik]

Verbal 530

Quan. 720

AW. 3.5

Toefl writing27, total 104. Second language Germany (advanced).

3 years work experience as expert in Ministry of Defence which is directly related with my academic interest.

Contiuning PhD GPA 3.88, undergraduate GPA 2.90. My undergraduate GPA is low, however it is a good score in my university. I got a very low GPA in freshman year, but it increased steadily.

Thanks

[plisar]

It really depends, even for lower ranked schools, those numbers could be low. The bet is to try to apply and see what happens!

[Luckige]

I can speak for my experience as an international applicant, hope it helps.

I had a low Verbal (530) and 800Q, but that did not stop me from being accepted in a top-5. However, I had a strong writing sample (according to one member of the adcom) and a good TOEFL (109). Not to mention the LORs, that I am sure helped. Perhaps, most importantly, my SOP describes someone very involved with quantitative methods.

In retrospect, I should have put more effort to achieve a 650+ score on Verbal. Things would have gone much more smoothly and now I would have a better rate of acceptance (30% so far).

[gulcik]

Thanks for all your comments. It is helpful

[harlem]

I am a foreign student in a top 5 PhD program (IR), and my GRE scores were Verbal: 740, Quant: 620, Analytical Writing: 6

All I would say is that, to those with high-end verbal skills but lacking a little on the quantitative side - don't give up hope!

But that being said, be sure to try and make yourselves known to faculty before applying, as I did.

Hope this helps!

[rustytrix]

I am a foreign student in a top 5 PhD program (IR), and my GRE scores were Verbal: 740, Quant: 620, Analytical Writing: 6

All I would say is that, to those with high-end verbal skills but lacking a little on the quantitative side - don't give up hope!

But that being said, be sure to try and make yourselves known to faculty before applying, as I did.

Hope this helps!

could you give us some ideas on how you go about getting in touch with prospective faculty