ok, Who got in with low GRE scores?

[Darth.Vegan]

So my practice GRE scores are all over the place and I take the real thing tomorrow. I will talk about these in terms of the old scale just because it's easier. My practices have ranged from 1200 on the low end to 1320 on the high end. I did the ETS power prep test yesterday and got a V:158 Q:150 which is a 1210 on the old scale. My verbal score is fine although I am capable of higher having scored as high as 163-165 on a Barron's practice test, but the quant really has me concerned because it's under 50th percentile (47th to be exact). I actually know how to do most of the problems, but I make stupid mistakes on questions I should get right and have trouble keeping all the different math concepts straight in my head. I have a mediocre (3.2 GPA) from community college with about 34 credits, and a great GPA (3.94) from a mid-ranked flagship state research school in the state of Hawaii :-), haha. I also have 2 years of research experience including a paid research position and independent research experience.I also took social stats last semester and got an A+, I am hoping ad com's will take that as a better predictor of my potential as a quantitative sociologist. I am hoping for a top 30 sociology program. We'll see what happens I guess. I will definitely post on this thread after the application season is over with an update!

[Seatbelt Blue]

I'm sort of the reverse. My GREs were through the roof - 170 Verbal, 151 Quant (I know that one's average), and 5.5 writing - while my undergrad GPA is pretty mediocre. I got in at Seton Hall, with applications still pending at BC and Fordham. Here's hoping -- BC is my first choice.

I think what made me competitive at Seton Hall, and this would apply both ways I think, was that I had a personal interview and was able to demonstrate my passion for the field. Further, I took the time to forthrightly explain my poor undergraduate performance, which boils down to me being a dumb kid who took a while to figure out that he need to work at college. Further, I was in a second program after my undergrad where I performed very well.

I think really the personal interview is a great opportunity to be honest with the people who determine your fate. You put on your best suit and tell them "Look, I'm a good candidate, even if the numbers don't entirely show that. I care about the field. I'm willing to put in the work. I may have some weaknesses but my strengths overcome that. So the question is whether you want to work with me for the next two or three years, and man, I think that you do."

[Darth.Vegan]

So I ended up with a 1280 on the old scale. My V score was 163 (650) and my Q score was 150 (630). I don't know about AW yet but it doesn't really matter much. Those scores are 91st percentile and 43rd percentile respectively. I am still hoping that my A+ in stats last semester will buffer the low quant score a bit, we'll see what happens.

[dcare]

I am debating taking the GRE again. I went in blind. Never opened a book to study or took any kind of practice test. I also have unmedicated ADHD so that didn't help. About 5 minutes into the second section I couldn't pay attention anymore and I just wanted to leave so I started clicking anything to get through. I ended up getting V 147 (410) and Q 146 (560). I talked to the coordinator of the program I want to get into and she said they are fine because my GPA was high enough and that the most important part is going to be my SOP. Hopefully thats enough. I just don't want to waste the money on retaking the GREs only to have a repeat of last time. We shall see what happens.

[Darth.Vegan]

I have unmedicated ADD as well, and had the same problem on one of my practice tests. I would strongly suggest retaking to at least break 1000.

[dcare]

I have unmedicated ADD as well, and had the same problem on one of my practice tests. I would strongly suggest retaking to at least break 1000.

I think I might. I'm going to try to get more frequent breaks, maybe every 10 minutes and maybe allow to have coffee with me. I've been self medicating with caffeine because I don't have health insurance and can't get medication.

[Darth.Vegan]

I think I might. I'm going to try to get more frequent breaks, maybe every 10 minutes and maybe allow to have coffee with me. I've been self medicating with caffeine because I don't have health insurance and can't get medication.

You know, if you can at least get a legit diagnosis, you can get accommodations including a few more breaks and 1.5 or double time.

[midnight]

I took the GRE in July 2011 with unmedicated ADHD as well. (I'm now medicated.)

I'm interested to see if there's a difference in my test anxiety levels between last time and when I try again next month.

I had the urge to flee during the test, too, especially during the quant section (my weakness) but also during the longer reading comp passages.

I think the GRE's format has changed for the better, so I really hope to have a better overall testing experience on my second try.

[Darth.Vegan]

With diagnosed ADHD you should be able to get a disability accommodation that will give you more time.

[midnight]

With diagnosed ADHD you should be able to get a disability accommodation that will give you more time.

Thanks. I know about disability accommodations, but I'd rather not do that.

Quite honestly my test insecurity and poor performance mostly had to do with my being woefully unprepared for the quant section, not feeling crunched for time. While I'm sure my ADHD didn't help the situation, it wasn't the reason I bombed the quant.

Also it seems like the new GRE format has much shorter reading sections. Even with my ADHD and the longer readings last time, I scored 630 verbal, so I think I'll be fine.

[Darth.Vegan]

630 verbal is above 85th percentile, great job! I had trouble with quant too. Good thing most soc programs don't value quant scores all that much. Schools in the top 10 average 157 on quant and schools in the top 20 average 151, but you see much higher verbal scores!

[Chai_latte]

My Q + V scores were great, but my writing score was terrible. There was no way that I was going to retake the exam (I tested in mid-July, right before the format change). So, I told my LOR profs. I still had some of my old lab write-ups and they had held onto my larger reports.

Even though I'm in a quantitative field, I asked my profs to talk about my writing ability. I had written killer SOPs and I didn't want their authenticity to be questioned by adcomms.

Moral of the story: you're not dead on arrival if your scores aren't 100% shiny.

[rockbender]

I've never talked to anyone (including professors at top 10 programs) who said that schools actually care about the AW score.

I thought that AW score would be the least important one as well, but I'm not sure that is always the case. I talked to my current advisor (at top 20 school in my field) about the GREs and whether or not they are important, and he said that the only score that he looks at for prospective students is the AW score. I'm in a science field, so the AW scores are often lower than, say, the Q scores. People tend to underestimate the importance of writing, but science, after all, is "publish or perish" and the ability to communicate your work in writing is essential. My advisor says that the AW score is much better predictor of success in graduate school than the Q or V scores.

So that's a different perspective... One other professor in the dept seconded this opinion, but I didn't get to talk to him long enough to hear his reasoning. Besides those two, no one else that I have asked has mentioned the AW score in particular. My take is that most schools don't care about AW scores, but some care a lot (I guess my school?). Probably best would be to talk to someone at the school to which you are applying to see what their take on AW scores is.

Edited October 30, 2012 by rockbender

[midnight]

I thought that AW score would be the least important one as well, but I'm not sure that is always the case. I talked to my current advisor (at top 20 school in my field) about the GREs and whether or not they are important, and he said that the only score that he looks at for prospective students is the AW score. I'm in a science field, so the AW scores are often lower than, say, the Q scores. People tend to underestimate the importance of writing, but science, after all, is "publish or perish" and the ability to communicate your work in writing is essential. My advisor says that the AW score is much better predictor of success in graduate school than the Q or V scores.

Taking AW into consideration makes sense to me. I was surprised to learn that so many schools mostly disregard it.

I mean, I don't think AW should be a be-all and end-all, and there are definite flaws in that portion of the GRE. However, effective written communication is important in any field, and it seems like many STEM students shy away from writing or only care about raw data even though writing is an essential part of the academic (and professional!) world.

I think the large amount of science writing that appears in the GRE's reading comprehension passages indicates that those in the science field need to be capable writers.

Edited October 30, 2012 by midnight streetlight

[Darth.Vegan]

I have excellent written communication skills, at least according to every faculty member I have had the pleasure of taking a course with. However, I never write anything in 30 minutes and got a bit flustered by my question on the AW section. I ended up with a AW score of 4. I am definitely capable of better as I got a voucher for the ETS score it now! program and was able to get an AW score of 5 in the "replicate test conditions" mode. I chalk up my slightly lower score to test anxiety and a question that threw me off. I literally ran out of time on my first essay. That said, I've been told that 4 is more than adequate and considering most programs hardly consider it, I shouldn't have any problems.

[midnight]

Oh yeah, I think that two of the biggest AW flaws are the entirely artificial setting and arbitrary timeframe given for it.

I majored in English and never had to write essays off the top of my head within 30 minutes. Some of my finals required essay responses, but I was responding to material that had been discussed during the semester, not brand-new information.

Anyway, I decided to take the AW with a grain of salt and just made sure to write as much as I could in a standard essay format. I scored a 5.0 with very little preparation; I mostly made sure that I understood the main difference between the Issue and the Argument tasks since I have no doubt some people score 3.0 or lower by giving their personal opinions in the Argument essay instead of breaking down, questioning, and offering improvements for the argument.

[lifesgood]

You know, if you can at least get a legit diagnosis, you can get accommodations including a few more breaks and 1.5 or double time.

In theory, yes.  I have had doctor-diagnosed ADHD since second grade.  In high school and college I received accommodations.  Both the SAT and ACT gave me time and 1/2, and I figured that with my doctor's help I would get extended time for the GRE. 

 

I started in July to get the documentation to the GRE's  services for students with disabilities people, and they are totally inept.  One would tell me something, then when my doctor sent that, another employee said that wasn't what they wanted.  I canceled a test date in October.  Finally, my doctor gave up and refused to send anything else to them.  Desperate, I switched doctors, but there was not time for them to run their own tests and get their documentation to GRE in time for their "doctor" to evaluate it and approve the accommodations for a December test date.  In short, GRE services for students with disabilities are a farce.  They are inflexible, unreasonable, and one hand doesn't know what the other is doing.  Someone, somewhere needs to establish a second graduate school test to give these idiots competition to force them to straighten up.

 

Good luck to you!