Good Quantitative, Bad Verbal and AW

[poissonpilote]

Hey all,

I'm a French student applying for Computer Science PhDs for Fall '10.

Just got my GRE results:

Quantitative: 780

Verbal: 590

AW: 4.5

I'm really disappointed by the Verbal and AW. Sure I'm a foreign student, but I revised these goddamn words and I lived in the US for a part of my childhood, so I'd have expected better.

How bad is it going to look on my applications?

Also, I have a question concerning the percentiles. Are they calculated against EVERYONE who takes the GRE, or just the people from our session, or just the people who take the GRE all over the world at the same date? In my session, as we were in France, we were only 5 examinees. As a result, here are my percentiles:

Q: 89

V: 84

AW: 63

I feel they are a bit off. What's up with that?

Thanks guys

Edited December 14, 2009 by poissonpilote

[alexis]

No, they're not off, those percentiles sound about right. Yes, your scores are compared with everyone who has taken the GRE (in the past 5 years I believe). This allows the admissions committee to compare you to all applicants. 590 verbal really isn't bad at all. In a way, you actually did "better" on that than on your quant, since you're in a higher percentile. The GRE is just weird like that; the quant is easier to ace. (Though I am surprised you're only in the 80th percentile with a 780 quant, unless the test percentages have been updated lately. In October, I was in the 78th percentile with a score of 730, so things must have changed.)

I can't imagine computer science programs caring that much about your verbal or AW scores. Your verbal is good anyway, and it's generally accepted that the AW isn't the best measure of writing ability, and 4.5 isn't bad either. For CS, I would think that they'll just be happy to see that 780 quant. In my humble opinion, you don't have anything to worry about. Your GRE scores are good!

Edited December 14, 2009 by alexis

[poissonpilote]

Oops, my Q percentile is 89, not 80- typo, sorry.

Thanks a lot for your input, alexis

[jacib]

Oops, my Q percentile is 89, not 80- typo, sorry.

Thanks a lot for your input, alexis

Yeah, my father is a sociologist and emailed a lot of his colleagues for me about GRE scores. Granted, sociology is different from Computer science, but one colleague (at an Ivy league University) said, "We have not always ruled people out on low GREs. But generally people have at least around 630-650 in each. Sometimes verbal is a little higher and math a little lower. Foreign students often get by with lower verbal because they have higher math." One guy at a top ten public university said, "The percentiles have changed a lot over the years. I would say anything over the 90th percentile (just don't remember what the most recent numbers are) is considered a good score; below 70ath is a bad score" and then added "Then there's the third part, and I have no idea how to weight the [analytical writing]. Personally, i ignore it but look very closely at the essay and personal statement as well as the writing sample the student turns in."

Finally another professor at a different top ten public university listed the averages for 2008 and 2009 admitted students (2009 scores were on average 25 points higher in each section) but then added, "Of course, what really matters is the writing sample and statement of purpose."

[poissonpilote]

Jacib, thanks a lot for the info I guess most of it would apply to CS as well.

(Although in CS, we do not have any writing sample to hand in)

[NeuroNerd86]

for CS verbal doesn't really matter much from what I know. And your scores are actually very solid, so I wouldn't worry too much.