Retaking the GRE

[Monochrome Spring]

For those of you that decided to retake the GRE or GRE subject tests, what motivated you to do so? Did you have a specific cutoff in mind for if you would retake or not (80%, 90%, etc)? Did you just want to see if you could do better with a little more studying, but you were content with your score?

 

I took the GRE Biology subject test last weekend, and I'm fairly certain that my score in ecology/evolution will be in the range that I want. But I'm also pretty sure that the molecular section will bring down my overall by a lot. I haven't taken any of my major courses in micro topics yet, and I won't have before application season rolls around.

 

I know that the GRE isn't a huge factor in admissions, and that your major's section matters the most, but what would be the motivation for retaking in that case? Would it be worth it to look over the areas that I'm weak in and retake it in fall? Or should I be content about my own section's score and move on?

[free_radical]

I retook the GRE...because my scores expired after working a few years in industry   .

 

Ok, more serious answer: Whether or not it's worth it to retake the GRE Biology test probably depends on your specific situation.  For example, the general impression I've gotten is that Physics programs swear by the Physics GRE, and if you want to get into a top 10 you had better score at least 90 percentile (disclaimer: I'm not a physics student myself, this is just the impression I get).  Other fields, it seems like it doesn't matter as much.  I'm sure you know better than I do how important it it in your specific field...but I'd say take a look at all the programs you're planning to apply to and see if their websites say anything about an average GRE score.  If you're on a the low side of average, then perhaps it would be worth it to retake it.  

[Monochrome Spring]

Thanks for your advise. I think I'm going to retake it. As a second year undergraduate, I haven't taken many of the courses that prepare me for the subject test, so I underestimated the test. I got my score back for biology 750 (76%), and while that's a decent score all things considered, I think I can score much higher in fall, once I study the material I did poorly on.