Strange Results

[dinosaur.fight]

So, in my practice tests (Barrons, Kaplan, PowerPrep) I was receiving 450-520q and 640-690v. On the actual test I received a 620q and 540v. Because I scored so much higher in the quantitative than I was expecting I'm unsure if I'll be retaking it.

[graddamn]

If the practice tests were paper tests as I'd guess they were, the questions are all weighted equally. But in the computer based GRE, the first ten or so questions carry the most weight, so if you plan to retake you should spend more time on those questions. That might explain the discrepancy.... (Wish I'd realized the weighting of questions before I took the GRE)

[blankets]

I'm asking about which score to report. I'm applying to mostly public universities for a Ph.D. in Political Science

My first GRE I got 660V(94%), 710Q(73%), 5AW(81%)

2nd time I got 670V(95%), 740Q(80%), 4AW(41%)

Most schools seem to more or less require that only one exam date be used when reporting scores. While the 4AW on the second date is very ugly, the second date is a 1410 which looks better than a 1370. What do y'all think? When it asks for a registration number for your GRE that constrains you to one exam date, right?

[piccgeek]

Most schools seem to more or less require that only one exam date be used when reporting scores. While the 4AW on the second date is very ugly, the second date is a 1410 which looks better than a 1370. What do y'all think? When it asks for a registration number for your GRE that constrains you to one exam date, right?

I'm not absolutely sure...but I THINK that they'll send all your scores no matter what. That was my experience, anyway...possibly I don't know how to navigate the crazy ETS system properly.

[alexis]

blankets, I'm fairly certain they get sent all scores, so it doesn't really matter. If the application only allows one entry, perhaps put the most recent, but those are unofficial results, so they're going to be looking at both anyway on the official score report. Rarely is there a set published policy on how they look at them (only the recent one? an average?), and since the AW is so funky anyway, I don't think this is an issue for you.

Edited December 15, 2009 by alexis

[hinesaj]

Back to the original poster. I had a really similar experiences, was scoring really well on practice tests--including the powerprep, and the CBTs that some test prep companies now provide--but when I took the actual test my verbal score was much lower. I'm of the belief that your verbal score can fluctuate up to 100 points or so on test day, because vocabulary isn't really a skill set like math is. Sure you can know origins of roots, etc and be equipped to deal with some words that you don't know, but oftentimes even that can backfire. No one can know all of the GRE vocabulary, and on test day you could either get a test that features mostly words you know, or mostly ones you don't, significantly changing your score. I opted to take the test again and got a score in my practice test range the second time.

All of that to say: if you really feel like your score isn't representative of what you can do on the GRE (based on practice test performance) opt to retake it. Chances are you'll do much better.

[dinosaur.fight]

Back to the original poster. I had a really similar experiences, was scoring really well on practice tests--including the powerprep, and the CBTs that some test prep companies now provide--but when I took the actual test my verbal score was much lower. I'm of the belief that your verbal score can fluctuate up to 100 points or so on test day, because vocabulary isn't really a skill set like math is. Sure you can know origins of roots, etc and be equipped to deal with some words that you don't know, but oftentimes even that can backfire. No one can know all of the GRE vocabulary, and on test day you could either get a test that features mostly words you know, or mostly ones you don't, significantly changing your score. I opted to take the test again and got a score in my practice test range the second time.

All of that to say: if you really feel like your score isn't representative of what you can do on the GRE (based on practice test performance) opt to retake it. Chances are you'll do much better.

yeah, I really feel like I can improve my verbal score. However, I'm nervous my quantitative score was a fluke and I would not do as well if I took it again. hrfmph!

[EverHopeful]

yeah, I really feel like I can improve my verbal score. However, I'm nervous my quantitative score was a fluke and I would not do as well if I took it again. hrfmph!

That is almost identical to my situation. In the end, I decided not to retake it. I don't think I can make lightening strike twice with my quantitative score, which is more important for the programs I am applying to.

[Liesje]

I dealt with the same issue - applying to PhD programs now, and am using my GRE score from a few years ago on my MA applications. I know I could've done much better on the V and AW if I had retaken, but there's no way I could even come close to my previous Q score without significant studying. AFAIK some schools use the overall number for incoming funding offers. My overall was almost certain to decrease, and my V should already be good enough, though it may be a wash at top schools instead of the highlight it could be if I had taken it again. Oh well, if I don't get any offers I like it's time to redo the whole package for next year.

I should say, I'm applying in English, so the Q score is only relevant to certain funding packages at certain schools, I think

Edited December 19, 2009 by Liesje

[carpecc]

dinosaur.fight, I had a similar situation. I was scoring about 640q and 650v on the practice tests.

I think it says somewhere in the prep materials that you're supposed to get a lot of sleep, avoid too much coffee and not make any drastic changes to your life in the days leading up the GRE. I kind of messed this up. The days before my test I started a new job, got very little sleep, flew to another country to take the test, didn't get to my hotel till 3:00am, got probably three hours of real sleep and then loaded up on coffee before the test.

I went in with that coffee fueled daze that you usually have after pulling an all nighter, pretty sure that I was not in ideal form. So the AWA came up first and I got a dream topic--something that related directly to my work which I had written about extensively before. I spent 5 min making an outline within the AWA screen then began writing my essay. I was able to pull out all sorts of crazy detailed examples and pumped out a ton of words. In the last 5 min I reviewed, was pleased with my work but then realize I hadn't deleted my notes and outline at the beginning. There was 7 seconds left. Crap. I frantically scrolled up to delete my notes, highlighted the section, and then as I frantically mashed backspace I got the "This section is over, you must continue to the new section" box. Damn. I hope my string explicatives didn't bother the other testers.

The analysis went OK, the math didn't seem to go to well, my coffee high was starting to run out and concentration became difficult. I worked through, and then my heart sank as the questions became easier. Crap. I had no confidence in my answers and everything took about twice as long to complete as it felt like it should. At the end, with five min left, I realized I still had ten questions to complete. Well I just made it fast, guessing widely on the questions that looked time intensive, and making educated guesses with as little calculation as possible for the other ones. I felt pretty destroyed after this section.

By the time the verbal section came around I was really starting to feel the lack of sleep. Reading passages were usually my forte, but the inability to concentrate meant I had to read stuff over and over again. Gut instincts, which are so important for this section, felt really dulled. I pulled though, sure I at least did better than I did on the math.

Then it comes to that screen "In the next screen you will have the option to keep or delete your scores." I pressed "Next."

Then I was given the choice to keep or delete them. I was pretty tempted to chuck the scores, but since it was already Nov, I knew I didn't have time to retake. So I selected "Keep."

The next screen was almost taunting "Are SURE you want to keep your scores?" It was almost as if it was saying "dude, we've seen your scores and well...maybe you should think about re-taking, if you know what I mean." F&%# it, I'm keeping this for better or worse no matter how bad my quant score is.

The results? 730q and 590v. Holy crap! Like I said I was testing at about 640q and 650v. This quant score was higher than my best practice test (700) and the verbal was lower than my worse practice test (610). So in short, my practice tests did had nothing to do with my final score. I ended up getting a 5.5awa, so the notes at the beginning didn't seem to take me down.