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About Jay Cutts
Expertise
Preparation for LSAT, GRE, MCAT, GMAT. Personal statements, letters of recommendation, graduate application process, practice tests.
No Questions about Undergrad Admissions Please (unless you are planning to go to law, business, medical or grad school eventually).
Note that I change private questions to public so they are available to others. If you have something that is truly private, let me know.
Experience
Over 18 years full time graduate entrance exam prep with over 1500 students nationally and internationally.
Education/Credentials
BA, Linguistics with Honors and Distinction, University of Michigan
MA, Special Education with an Emphasis in Learning Disabilities and Giftedness, with Honors, University of New Mexico
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You are here: Experts > Education > Graduate School > Help with College & Grad School Applications > low GRE Scores and Grad Admission
Expert: Jay Cutts - 10/27/2009
Question
Greetings,
I am applying to several very competitive English PhD programs in December, but I did not do well on the GRE Exam: 520 Verbal, 280 Math, 3,3 Analytical.
I already have an MFA in Creative Writing in English, and I had to do graduate work 12 hrs- 4 literature courses at the graduate level for that degree, and I graduated my program with a 4.0 GPA.
I graduated undergrad with a degree in English (Creative Writing), and I had a GPA of 3.72 and major GPA 3.8.
Do you think my application even has a chance?
Answer
Hi, Nate.
For an English program they will probably not care much about the math section of the GRE, I'm assuming. In case they do, it's relatively easy to improve significantly on the math section with some expert guidance. I've had many students who have made a couple hundred points improvement.
Most likely, though, your less than great performance on the math will not even be a factor.
Your GPA is strong, so the main concern will be your verbal GRE score. 520 is not a terrible score but I would suspect they are looking for a score in the mid 600's for the PhD program. It would be good to confirm this with them. Some programs don't really care about your score at all but require that you take the test anyway.
To be more competitive it would help to increase that GRE Verbal score. After that, you will need to make sure the rest of your application is a strong as possible. If you are applying to a writing based program, your portfolio can outweigh the other factors. However, if they take only a limited number of applicants, the GRE may give them an excuse for weeding you out, even if your portfolio is decent.
If I were coaching you on admissions, I'd suggest getting a better idea of what the program looks at and what scores you need on the GRE. Then I'd suggest working on the GRE, your portfolio and your personal statement.
As far as improving on the Verbal section of the GRE, it is doable. I've been teaching it for nearly 19 years. There are certain hidden patterns to the section. As a result, when you are down to two possibilities, there are specific reasons why one of them must be correct and the other is dead wrong. I teach strategies to help you see clearly which answer must be right.
It's not unlikely that you could make 150 points improvement on the Verbal, given some time and expert guidance.
You are welcome to call me to go over your plans. You can find my contact info, as well as other free materials to help you with your personal statement and application, at http://www.cuttsreviews.com
Hope that helps.
Regards,
Jay
Jay Cutts
Cutts Graduate Reviews
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