The GRE is the test of choice for thousands of universities abroad, whether you’re looking into STEM programs or even some management ones. This computer-adaptive test assesses your Quantitative and Verbal reasoning to pin your place among thousands of applications. Did you know? Every year about 80,000 students take the GRE from India alone, that’s quite a bit of competition, and you need a decent percentile to get ahead. But, say you’ve taken the test and ended up with not-so-great a score, what then?
The GRE score range is between 130 to 170 in the Verbal and Quant sections, and from 0-6 for the Analytical writing part, however, this section doesn’t add onto your final score. So, to understand what is a good GRE score out of 340, let’s divide it into 4 components based on the percentile.
- Less than 25 percentile (260-290)
- 25-50 percentile (290-305)
- 50 – 75 percentile (305-310)
- More than 75 percentile (310+)
Percentile refers to how many people scored lower than you. So in the same way, if you score 25 percentile it means that 75% of the test takers scored higher than you. This is considered a relatively low score.
50 percentile is the mean score, and most of the test takers stay around this mark. A percentile between 25-50 is considered to be on the lower-average side. It is not-too-bad an attempt.
A score within the 50-75 band is deemed a good attempt, and you will be eligible to get into almost all programs of your choice.
This is considered to be the GRE score range for top universities, and scoring more than 310 will help you get scholarship opportunities too.
For a rough idea, the 90-percentile score is around 324, and anything above this will put you among the crème de la crème of applicants.
Now, if your score falls into the first two buckets, you have two paths ahead of you; either you retake the GRE, or you look into universities where the GRE doesn’t play a major role in deciding admissions. Let’s take a look at each of these in a little more detail.
Retake the GRE
Look into your choice of program and university. If you want to pursue a masters in engineering from a top school, there is a high chance that your GRE score will be an important factor. And having a lower score might give the impression that you aren’t competent enough to take up this major. So if your choice of program requires you to have high scores, then the best option for you would be to retake the GRE and aim to do better.
If you’ve chosen this path, then here are some tips to help you score higher in your next attempt!
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Reflect on your previous performance and see which areas you can improve in.
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If you weren’t able to do well in the verbal section, practice reading. It will help build your speed and vocabulary.
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If you scored less in the quant section, focus on your fundamentals and commit to rigorous practice.
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Do full-length practice tests. They will help you create your very own test day strategy and aid you in scoring better. If extensive practice is what you lack, try our GRE Test Series pack that has 8 full length tests and 1900+ practice questions.
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Get professional support! Look into Jamboree’s tried and tested GRE study plan to score 325+ in two months.
Take admission with your current score
Universities look at a bunch of factors before offering you admission, and your GRE score is only one of those factors. In fact, some universities give so much importance to the rest of your profile that they straight up tell you that the GRE is optional. Having the score on these applications doesn’t hurt, unless you’ve scored less, then it’s better to omit it altogether.
We at Jamboree have some of the best universities across the world as partners. And how does this benefit you? Application fee waivers, faster acceptance, higher scholarships, and a smooth application process. Say your chosen university requires GRE scores, but yours aren’t the best, we can personally vouch for your profile and help you get admission in your dream university.
Here are some of our partner universities:
USA
- Kent State University
- New York Institute of Technology
- RIT (Rochester Institute of Technology)
- Texas A & M Corpus Christi
- University of Massachusetts
- UT Arlington
- SUNY Albany
Canada
- Northeastern university Vancouver
- Dalhousie University
- Lakehead University
- University of Windsor
Ireland
- University College Dublin
- Trinity college Dublin
- Dublin Institute of Technology
UK
- Kings College London
- Kingston University
- Newcastle University
- Leeds Beckett
- Coventry University
- Cardiff university
These are but a handful of universities, for the full list make sure to check out our tie ups page. With one component gone from the lot, now it’s even more crucial to strengthen the rest of your profile. This could include your Statement of Purpose, Letters of Recommendation, Extracurricular Activities, Digital Footprint, and other admission Essays. At Jamboree, we have helped thousands of students get into the best possible universities, regardless of their GRE score. Reach out to our counsellors for a free one-on-one session to find out how to go about enhancing your profile for these top universities.