GRE again?

[MinnesotaHappy]

So I ended up taking my GRE a little later, because I got married this past fall. I just got my official scores back today and am trying to decide whether or not to take it again before the applications are due January 1st. Here are my stats:

GPA currently in Bachelor's completion program for SLPA: 3.63
GPA for Associate's degree in Early Childhood Development: 3.32
GRE scores: V: 148 Q: 149 W: 4.0

I have a strong "experiences" background; I'm currently in a year long SLPA internship, I have over 50 observation/shadowing hours with SLPs, I currently volunteer at both an Autism Center and with an Aphasia Support Group, I've directed children's choirs, I started off college as a voice performance major, and I've nannied for 9 years.

I have seen a lot of posts on here for people trying for years to get into a program, and I've tried to stack my stats against everyone else but I seem to be in the very "average" range. I know my GRE scores aren't terrific (I am not a great test taker), but I know they aren't terrible either, and I know it's kind of the same with my GPA. It seems that most of the schools look at "the whole picture", so I'm hoping I have that on my side?

I guess I'm just looking for any advice on how to approach this because I haven't seemed to find anyone on this site yet whose stats line up with mine so I can refer to that. I'm honestly torn as to whether or not to bother taking the GRE again. Any advice welcome!

[Southwestspeechie]

Hello!

I guess some of this depends on what schools you are applying to. Your scores are very close to the 150 mark, so that's good. If you think you can increase your verbal score to hitting higher in the 150s-160s and you can increase your quantitative to the 150s as well, then it is worth retaking. But only you know how much studying you could fit in between your due date and now to have a larger increase in scores. When I retook the GRE my verbal stayed the same (157) and my quant only went up 3 points! Yet, even with that small increase in quant I was happy. 

If you take it again, you will most likely do a little better just based on the fact that you already took the test once. If you decide to retake it, you could try magoosh for a week for free to see which areas you are struggling in the most, and concentrate your time studying on those.

 Other than that it sounds like you have a lot of really great experience so use that to your advantage in your statement of purpose! 

Good luck to you, I know how annoying the GRE is! 

[jpiccolo]

I'd retake it however at this point the bigger concern is having time to take it and get scores reported in only a couple weeks. 

[AlwaysaFalcon]

I had about the same scores as you for the gre after taking the test 3 times. I would say save your money. Your gpa is good and will make up for the gre, plus you have great experience!

 

[Crimson Wife]

I retook the GRE to try & increase my quant and AW scores. I bought Magoosh and the McGraw-Hill Conquering the Math GRE book that Magoosh recommends. Total waste of money because I only increased a single point on the quant & stayed the same on AW. Not enough to make any difference in my applications.

[futureSLPhopefullylol]

5 hours ago, Crimson Wife said:

I retook the GRE to try & increase my quant and AW scores. I bought Magoosh and the McGraw-Hill Conquering the Math GRE book that Magoosh recommends. Total waste of money because I only increased a single point on the quant & stayed the same on AW. Not enough to make any difference in my applications.

Everyone has a different experience. Magoosh raised my score significantly (10+ points).

[CBG321]

Definitely retake it, you need to score better than a combined 300 especially with a more average GPA.  

 

Study hard and and you can do it!  Also maybe look into less competitive schools just in case the scores don't improve much, a 300 is not terribly high either...

 

[ScienceGeek]

From my understanding, it takes a few weeks for your scores to come in and then be sent to your respected departments. You may be okay to retake it if you've already started studying at the time you submitted this question, but less than a month's worth of studying won't likely significantly improve your scores. I would opt not to retake it since it is a lot of money and effort. If I were you, I'd spend my time writing a killer and focused SOP. You have plenty of experience and a good GPA