Old/New GRE Retake

[Jdealla]

Hi All,

 

I took the old GRE in Nov. of 2010; for someone applying to History programs, I did fine, or so I think: 650 Verbal (163 est. current score), 640 Quant ( 151 est. current score), and 4.5 AW (ok, I did not-so-fine on this one). I have some time from now until application due dates in Nov. and Dec. to retake it, but really, I'd like to not retake it and spend that time on more important pieces of the application, like a new writing sample, program research, developing research ideas, new SOPs, etc. I work full-time, so the many months between February and November may deceive; my free time is limited.

 

Did any of you retake the GRE because you took the old format test? Advice and opinions from those who didn't are welcome, too.

 

Thank you to everyone.

Edited February 4, 2014 by Jdealla

[Loric]

God, you have a lot of time. I wouldn't give any of those things more than 90 days worth of attention, so you can theoretically do it all.

 

I did the old test too - 2009 - and i suspect i'd be "teh suck" on the new test because I'm not used to academia and most certainly not for that type of test. Take a practice test and see if it's reasonable to get a "better" score.

Edited February 4, 2014 by Loric

[Jdealla]

Thanks Loric,

 

I suppose I do have a bit of time, but you know, I'd rather not spend my limited free time studying for a test, a standardized test, if I don't have to. After 9 or so hours in the office, I usually run low on fuel for my intellect, and I'd rather burn that little bit I have left for important things, things that I enjoy, things that will help me both in graduate school and in life: reading and writing.

 

I should have stated this in the question, but I'm really wondering about how schools may view the old score, if they'll even accept it, actually. Most program pages I've looked at don't mention it.

Edited February 5, 2014 by Jdealla

[ἠφανισμένος]

Loric's advice should be taken with many grains of salt.  

 

My guess is that 650V could be higher for history, and if you've only taken it once, you could probably boost your score with a little studying.  I think humanities programs aren't too concerned about the quant score, except insofar as it makes you competitive for university-wide fellowships, or about the analytical writing score, as long as it's not abysmal.  You could try asking in the history subforum for more discipline-specific answers, though.

 

Depending on when you took the old test, you might be running up against the five-year rule for GRE scores.

[allysekn]

Yes, I would look at whether your scores will even be available next year. GRE has something about it in their FAQs. I took mine Aug 2010 and got accepted to a humanities PhD program this year...so I wouldn't worry so much whether schools are taking it or not. My assumption is they just use the conversion to the new test to compare to other applicants.

That being said, I have heard the new verbal is easier....

[thedig13]

A professor once openly told me that his department looks at the GRE only if the rest of the application is suspect. If the writing sample is high-quality, you don't really need the GRE to know that the writer is a good writer. If it's low-quality on the other hand, then the GRE is used to determine whether or not the bad writing sample was a fluke or if it's indicative of your ability. Of course, if your writing sample is bad, you probably won't get admitted no matter how you did on the GRE.

 

I've also heard two other interesting things that might be relevant to you:

1. Most of the universities that place a high premium on GRE scores tend to be mid-quality programs that feel the need to overcompensate by bringing in students with big numbers, thereby "proving" that they're relevant. Upper-tier programs typically know that they're upper-tier, and tend to focus on the more meaningful parts of the application (i.e.: writing sample, SOP, LORs, fit).

2. Most universities look at GRE percentiles rather than raw scores, so the distinction between the old and the new system is relatively meaningless.

 

Also, from personal experience, I can tell you that some light studying can go a long way in getting a good GRE score. I took the GRE in November 2013. To prepare myself, I bought two books (Princeton Review and Barron's) with practice exams, procrastinated until a week before the test, then crammed like crazy. The diagnostic test I took a week beforehand suggested that I'd get about 160V/155Q, but, when test time came around, I improved significantly (6-8 raw points) in both categories. Long story short, if you didn't study for your first test (or only studied a tiny bit), and if you want to try again for a better score, you wouldn't have to sacrifice 3 hours per day to get results. If you're taking the test in October 2014, studying once a week (2-3 hours at a time) will probably improve your score a lot.

 

If you're concerned solely about a gap between new/old format, I wouldn't bother retaking it. If you're looking to bump up your score, that's another story.

Edited March 12, 2014 by thedig13