Grad School Admittance/ Retake the GRE?

[JJ610]

Hi, 

 

I was wondering if anyone could enlighten me on what my chances are of being admitted to grad school. 

 

I'm applying for PhD programs in Evolutionary Biology/Anthropology, Biopsychology, and/or Animal Behavior. I graduated from a state university with degrees in Biochemistry and Zoology. I only have a 3.22 GPA (I had a pretty full plate: I was working full-time while I was a student, took 15-18 credits per semester, and had several organization/volunteer activities.) I have field experience in Kenya, 2 years of research experience in a lab, an internship at the Smithsonian, and an internship at a wildlife sanctuary.

 

Here's the thing: In addition to my terrible GPA, I also have terrible GRE scores. (I am an awful test taker with horrible test anxiety.) I only scored 157 Verbal, 161 Quant, and 5.0 AWA. 

 

I'd like to apply to Duke, Emory, UChicago, UC Davis, UC San Diego, UMaryland, UWisconsin, and WUSTL. Do you think I have any chance, or should I aim lower? 

[Lisa44201]

I'm not sure your GRE scores are horrible, as such (though you might want to talk to a counselor about strategies to reduce your test-taking anxiety, especially if you're going on to grad school).

 

Not knowing much about your area of expertise, can you apply to a few Master's programs, too? I'd also suggest applying to a wide range of PhD programs, just because.

[socialequity]

@JJF10 - your CV sounds great; your GPA is not bad nor are your GRE scores. You could email the programs to see if they feel you are competitive enough, but it sounds like you are and you should apply to where you want to go! If it doesn't work out this year, you can re-apply next year!

[socialequity]

And I agree with Lisa - applying to a wide ranging (on the ranking list) is a good idea anyway!!

[JJ610]

Thanks you two! I appreciate your advice! That makes sense to apply to a wide range of schools on the ranking list. There are very few Master's programs for my field, and most schools recommend applying to the PhD program anyway for funding reasons.