Should I retake my GRE?

[pt256]

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Hi all,

I took the GRE last year and scored a 150V (46th percentile), 152Q (45th percentile), 4.0W (57th percentile). Not sure if the numbers matter more or the percentiles, and I'm trying to decide on whether I should retake it or not (which would have to be home testing due to COVID-19). My overall GPA is not great (3.4) and prereq GPA probably around 3.1-3.3 depending on the school- So, having a competitive GRE would definitely help, but any feedback would be appreciated.

 

[grizzlywalker]

I think you should be good if you're smart with the schools you apply to. I had very similar stats to you and I got into a school

 

[lilak8]

If your GRE score meets the minimum requirements for the schools you’re applying to, then you should be all set. All the schools are looking for from your GRE score is to see if you are able to take a standardized exam. I wouldn’t spend more money or time on the GRE and would probably focus on other things that may help your application!

 

[MartialArtDPT]

I'm with the majority here- once you hit 150/150/4, there are usually other things you can optimize that will be better uses of your time and money. That's not to say it's never a good move- just that it's not the first thing I'd be looking at.

 

[pt256]

I think you should be good if you're smart with the schools you apply to. I had very similar stats to you and I got into a school

Thanks! Would you mind if I asked what school you got into? Or what type of schools I should be focusing more on? I try to just look for schools with lower average GPAs, but otherwise I'm not sure what criteria would be helpful to pay attention to.

 

[grizzlywalker]

Thanks! Would you mind if I asked what school you got into? Or what type of schools I should be focusing more on? I try to just look for schools with lower average GPAs, but otherwise I'm not sure what criteria would be helpful to pay attention to.

I got into Murphy Deming, and I was waitlisted at a big state school. I think it's GRE cutoff was 150/150/3.5, so I just made it. I had a 3.2 cGPA too. I think the key is to have a well rounded application, because I had a few thousand hours across multiple settings for my observation hours.

 

[ya1]

Depends on the schools where you are applying. Check with their average students GRE and GPAs.
Take practice tests before you register for GRE. If you improve your score only by 1 or 2 points, I would say do not bother. If you can bring it up to high 150s-160, then it may be worth considering to retake it.

 

[Canibuyaname]

All good advice. If you are flexible in where you are willing to attend PT school, there are many programs which do not require the GRE, as part of their admission criteria (Doctorate of Physical Therapy Programs GRE Requirements), however with these schools it may be even more important for the rest of your application to stand out. If you are set on going to a school which requires the GRE, I suggest a few things: Study every day, especially leading up to the test for at least a couple of hours in one consecutive session; this isn't necessarily a good general study habit, but its the only way to get your brain used to being focused for the 3hrs necessary during the actual test: Whatever study tool you use (I used Kaplan w/ the online practice), focus more on improving upon your strengths rather than improving your weaknesses: Many schools determine their cut-off based on the percentile, not the raw score, and remember, scoring just one point better in either section bumps up your percentile by 4 percentiles respectively. You don't need a miracle to make your test more competitive, so I say go for it!!! To get your foot in the door with any school, your application needs to look as good as possible, which leads me to my final bit of advice: CRUSH THE INTERVIEW!!! From experience, the interview has a huge weight on admission's decision.

 

[kippermr]

Hi all,

I took the GRE last year and scored a 150V (46th percentile), 152Q (45th percentile), 4.0W (57th percentile). Not sure if the numbers matter more or the percentiles, and I'm trying to decide on whether I should retake it or not (which would have to be home testing due to COVID-19). My overall GPA is not great (3.4) and prereq GPA probably around 3.1-3.3 depending on the school- So, having a competitive GRE would definitely help, but any feedback would be appreciated.

Wow, I got your exact same scores, but my overall GPA is a 3.1 and my prerequisite gpa is a 3.8. I was debating whether to retake my GRE or not, since my overall GPA is so low. One of the schools I visited told me that they will look at whichever GPA is lowest and rank me based on that, so that was enough to get me rethinking my summer plans and decide whether or not it's worth taking the GRE again. However, if that doesn't work out, I'm going to apply to the schools whose averages in GRE scores are similar to mine.

 

[kippermr]

Also I don't know which schools you're interested in applying to, but I know a few that don't believe the GRE is a good predictor of grad school success. For example, I live in California near Western University of Health Sciences and all they look at in terms of GRE is the writing score (3.5+). I find it helpful to make an excel sheet of the differing requirements/ averages for each school.