Graduate applicants who are juggling many obligations might be inclined to cram for the Graduate Record Exam or GRE. Achieving a high score on this graduate school entrance exam, however, is challenging without serious preparation, experts caution.
The Educational Testing Service, sometimes known as ETS, developed and delivered the GRE General Test, a standardized examination that assesses a student's general academic preparedness for graduate study. A GRE Subject Test, which evaluates technical expertise in a particular field like physics, psychology, or mathematics, may be required by some graduate programs.
The GRE topic tests are exams that assess a person's knowledge of a specific field of study, such as physics or psychology. These tests are content-based and meant for students who have specialized in or conducted extensive research on the subject. For example, a graduate school applicant may take a math subject test to showcase their quantitative abilities to graduate programs in disciplines like computer science or economics, where such abilities are crucial.
GRE scores are accepted for many graduate programs, including master's, doctoral, and professional degree programs in a variety of academic specialties, from the liberal arts to technical fields.
Business schools now frequently accept GRE scores in place of the GMAT, the conventional business school entry exam.
More than 100 law schools certified by the American Bar Association now accept the GRE in place of the traditional law school entrance exam for admission.
In most locations worldwide, the fee for taking the GRE general test is $220. However, in Australia, it is $228 and in China, it is $231.30. Despite the upcoming changes to reduce the length of the test, the cost for GRE Subject Tests remains the same at $150 in all locations.
Most physical test centers worldwide offer GRE general test appointments throughout the year, but availability is on a first-come, first-served basis. ETS provides the option for at-home testing with the flexibility to schedule exams on any day or time.
To register for a GRE subject test, you can only do so online or through the mail. However, for the GRE general test, you can register for the GRE test online, by mail, or over the phone. It's possible to take the general test up to five times in 12 months, with a 21-day waiting period between each attempt.
The weight given to GRE scores while applying to graduate programs varies significantly between different schools and departments within an organization. The importance of a GRE score might range from a minor admission requirement to a key selection factor. The portions of the GRE that must be completed are Verbal Reasoning, Analytical Writing, and Quantitative Reasoning. The current score ranges for the verbal and quantitative sections are 130–170, with one-point increments. A scale of 0 to 6 points, in half-point increments, is used to grade the GRE Analytical Writing component.
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Results of the GRE are accessible through candidates' ETS accounts. ETS will email them when their results are ready. A formal "Institution Score Report" from ETS will also be given to the recipients of the scores.
10-15 days following the test date, a student's GRE results will be accessible on their ETS account. The official score report for the student is accessible through their ETS account and is solely meant for viewing. It includes :
Your raw scores are computed by the ETS before the GRE score is determined. The number of questions you most likely answered correctly on the GRE is your raw score. There are 40 questions in each of the verbal and quantitative categories. For instance, if you properly answered each of the 40 questions, your raw score is probably going to be 40. This raw score is then transformed through a process known as equating into a scaled value, which ranges from 130 to 170. ETS has not disclosed the precise process for changing your unscaled scores to GRE-scaled scores.
The process is determined by your responses to the questions, which are scored based on their difficulty. This is because the GRE is a computer-adaptive test that considers the difficulty level of each question in the Quant and Verbal sections. Therefore, certain questions may carry more weight than others.
The two tasks for the Analytical Writing portion are graded by a single professional rater and an e-rater, a computer program created by the ETS. The final score is calculated as the average of these two results. The ETS sends a second trained rater to review the essays if there are any inconsistencies between the scores and averages of the results provided by both human raters.
Within 10 to 15 days following the test date, you will have access to your official GRE score record in your ETS account. When the reports are ready, ETS will email you to let you know.
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There are two ways to view the GRE scores –
When taking the GRE in person, students can choose to see an unofficial report of their performance. While they cannot check their Analytical Writing score, they can view their Verbal Reasoning and Quantitative Reasoning scores.
To view their official GRE scores, students need to create an account on ETS.org. They will be required to provide basic personal information like their name, mailing address, and phone number, along with a username and password. If they take the computerized test, they will receive an email after 10-15 days with information on accessing their scores through their ETS account. For those who took the paper test, results will be available after five weeks. Students will receive an email notification when their scores can be viewed on their ETS account.
Each student obtains three GRE scores: one for Quantitative Reasoning (math), one for GRE Verbal Reasoning, and one for Analytical Writing (the essays). These scores appear on their score report. The GRE test score range is as follows:
Verbal Reasoning |
130–170, in 1-point increments |
Quantitative Reasoning |
130–170, in one-point increment |
Analytical Writing |
0–6, in half-point increment |
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Your university of choice will affect your ability to achieve a respectable GRE score. First, you must comprehend the typical GRE score range for the college you want to attend. A good GRE score for you can then be determined. To determine a valid GRE score, additional elements must be taken into account.
The GRE score ranges from 130 to 170 on a one-point scale for both the verbal and quantitative portions combined. For analytical writing, the scale is 0-6, with half-point increments. On the other hand, each topic test yields a score that ranges from 200 to 990 in 10-point increments.
ETS performance statistics reveal that the average GRE score for verbal reasoning is 153.66, for analytical writing it is 3.60, and for quantitative reasoning, it is 150.37. This results in a total score of 303 (45th Percentile). Meanwhile, the average GRE score for chemistry is 689, mathematics is 664, physics is 714, and psychology is 619. Therefore, a score higher than the subject average is considered a great GRE score.
Do you want to know what is the range of good GRE scores?
What is a good GRE score? |
Below Average Score |
Average GRE score |
Good GRE Score |
Excellent GRE Score |
GRE Percentile |
25th Percentile |
50th Percentile |
75th Percentile |
90th Percentile |
GRE Scores |
292 |
300+ |
318 |
329 |
Here it is –
Once you qualify for the GRE test, the ETS will keep it valid only for 5 years.
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For your better understanding here is the list of top universities and the GRE scores accepted by them –
University Name |
Verbal |
Quantitative |
Writing |
Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) |
158 |
159 |
5.3 |
Stanford University |
159 |
158 |
4.8 |
University of California, Berkeley |
153 – 156 |
167 |
4.5 |
University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) |
155 |
167 |
5 |
University of Virginia |
163 |
166 |
4.5 |
University of Michigan – Ann Arbor |
160 |
167 |
5 |
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill |
158 |
160 |
4.5 |
Georgia Institute of Technology |
158 |
167 |
4.3 |
University of California San Diego |
162 |
160 |
5.5 |
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign |
155 |
165 |
4 |
University of Wisconsin – Madison |
163 |
163 |
4.5 |
University of Washington |
156 |
167 |
4 |
The Pennsylvania State University |
150 |
165 |
3 |
University of Florida (UFL) |
154 |
165 |
3 |
The University of Texas, Austin |
155 |
165 |
4 |
The Ohio State University |
156 |
165 |
4 |
California Institute of Technology |
160 |
157 |
5 |
Duke University |
160 |
160 |
4.5 |
The University of Chicago |
158 |
167 |
4 |
Northwestern University |
160 |
160 |
5 |
Washington University in St. Louis |
161 |
160 |
5 |
Johns Hopkins University |
163 |
164 |
4.8 |
Rice University |
160 |
167 |
5 |
Emory University |
153 |
163 |
4.0-6.0 |
University of Notre Dame |
165 |
165 |
5.3 |
Vanderbilt University |
157 |
166 |
4.8 |
William & Mary |
158 |
160 |
4.5 |
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The GRE General test can only be taken again after 21 days (3 weeks) and a maximum of five (5) times per year (365 days) after your initial attempt. You can choose which test results to submit to the educational institution using the new ScoreSelect function that ETS introduced.
10–15 days following your exam date, your official GRE General exam results will be accessible in your ETS account. When ETS is ready, they will send you an email. Additionally, ETS will deliver an official Institution Score Report to the people you named on test day.
Yes. The GRE can be canceled or rescheduled through email, fax, phone, etc. Nevertheless, there is a $50 cost to start the procedure.
Both 169 and 170 are 99th percentile verbal scores, which means they are in the top 1%. A 170 on the Quant section of the GRE is barely the 97th percentile!
In general, the GRE's quantitative section is simpler than the GMAT's (plus you get to use a calculator). While the GMAT includes more logical reasoning problems, the GRE section often contains more geometry questions. Contrarily, the GMAT's verbal component typically uses terminology that is more challenging than the GRE's.
In general, a 340 on the GRE at Harvard is the highest possible score, and a 260 is the lowest.