V167 Q162 AW4. 5 do I retake?

[Sdeaune]

Hello, first time poster, let me know if I'm doing something wrong. 

Question is the title. I feel I could definitely improve my writing score but is it worth it? 

I'm still researching schools but I'm interested in international environmental policy. I'm not dead set on a top ten school, but I want to go somewhere reasonable. My undergraduate was a 3.5 in an unrelated field (telecommunications) and I've been teaching English abroad in Korea and Japan for three years.

Honestly feeling a little lost so any advice would be helpful. Thanks in advance. 

[animadelmondo]

Hi sdeaune,

First time poster - and I actually have the same question as you do. I'm interested in the top schools in the Environmental Sciences field, and I'm not sure whether to retake the GRE or not.

My V and Q scores are a touch below yours, which makes me think that if you're thinking about it, then maybe I should retake them  I would feel more confident if I had the scores that you did, so maybe you're ok! I can't say for certain, since I'm interested in a different field than you are.

Maybe that helps....

Edited August 10, 2017 by animadelmondo

[fuzzylogician]

To my knowledge the AW score is the least important of the GRE scores. As long as you are submitting strong and well-written essays, and you have LORs that can say you're a good writer, I would expect that things should be fine. There are many other more important components of the application to worry about. Disclaimer: I am not an expert in your field(s) and I don't sit on the admissions committees of the schools you'll apply to; but I did apply with a 4.5 AW score and ended up doing perfectly fine. 

[JohnKim]

Hi there,

Your AW score of 4.5 is actually pretty good. Based on ETS Score Level Description:

Scores 5 and 4.5

Provides generally thoughtful analysis of complex ideas; develops and supports main points with logically sound reasons and/or well-chosen examples; is generally focused and well organized; uses sentence variety and vocabulary to convey meaning clearly; demonstrates good control of sentence structure and language usage, but may have minor errors that do not interfere with meaning.

How about checking for Universities that matches your GRE Score and apply into it? Let's not be hasty here, but to be honest, your score is doing pretty well.