Retake GRE for top stat schools?

[BatsuGame]

Just finished taking the GRE today, unofficially scoring 164 in both quant and verbal. I decided to take the GRE on about two weeks' notice, so I know I can improve those scores a bit, but I'm wondering whether or not it's worth it.

I'm a domestic white male, who graduated from UIC this spring with a degree in Statistical Theory and a 4.0 GPA, though I spent my first two years at a community college. (I'm 32, if that matters.) Coursework includes the calculus track, real analysis, (applied) linear algebra, probability, advanced probability models, statistical theory, and statistical programming (R with some SAS). I also graduated from UIC's Honors College, which included a semester tutoring in the math center and an independent research Capstone project (under the supervision of a faculty member). I won a couple scholarships through the math department as well. I've locked down at least two recommendation letters from faculty (including my Honors Capstone fellow), and I probably wouldn't have too much trouble getting another if necessary.

I'm looking to do a PhD, and from what I can tell from lurking these forums, it seems like the above should get me in somewhere. But I'm wondering if it's enough to get me into one of the top programs, and, if so, whether taking the time and money to improve my quant score will be worth it.

[edward130603]

yes, retake. 164 is <90th percentile

[BatsuGame]

2 hours ago, edward130603 said:

yes, retake. 164 is <90th percentile

So, you believe the rest of my profile is strong enough that retaking the test is worth it? 

[Robbentheking]

On 5/23/2017 at 5:34 PM, BatsuGame said:

So, you believe the rest of my profile is strong enough that retaking the test is worth it? 

I think so. If you barely prepared for the test, you should not too painfully be able to increase the quant a few valuable points. 

Getting into a PhD at "top schools" may be challenging depending on your definition of top schools, but I think you have a place somewhere for sure. 

[StatsG0d]

I actually think a 164 is sufficient to get into schools in the 10-20 range (at least from my experience it works). If you're looking top-10 then maybe retake it.

[BatsuGame]

Update for anyone interested: I ended up retaking it and scored a 163 V/166 Q. Not sure if that'll wind up being worth the time/money, but better than nothing.

[JohnKim]

You have a total score of 328, given that you have 164 for Quant and another 164 for Vocab. There are a lot of Universities that accepts that score, however it is not an assurance that they are part of the top.

Although, you can always check the top Universities GRE Score requirement. This way you can know your target score.