Do the schools care about the GRE AWA scores?

[xaero]

Hello everyone,

 

I was just wondering how the new Analytical Writing Assessment(AWA) would be put to use for our admission process. Previously, some colleges asked for Q+A scores, others Q+V scores. How is it going to be now for the Q+A asking colleges?

 

Also, what would be a decent score in AWA?, say something analogous to 770-800 in the older analytical section?

 

Erin, could you please help us?

 

[Erin]

Well, of course you know that nobody can say for sure what each adcom will be looking for, right? Right, I think you and everybody else here already knows that. Good.

 

We can't say for sure what will happen with the new GRE AWA; the first AWA has yet to be given. However, the GMAT has had an AWA for a long time now, and I suspect that many adcoms will probably end up doing the same thing with the GRE AWA that the B-Schools now do with the GMAT AWA, i.e., give them less importance than the V and Q sections of the test.

 

HOWEVER, it is entirely possible that different programs will give different weights to the various sections of the test. For example, you might find that applicants to English Lit or History programs will need to have high scores on their AWA essays (makes sense, right), whereas Math and Computer Science majors will not need to worry so much.

 

We never know what will happen. However, I've talked to a lot of admissions officers in the past who've said that as long as their applicants' AWA scores were above a certain level, the applicant was in good shape. The schools I've talked to have said that they either expect at least a 5.0 (top-30 schools or so) or at least a 4.0 (outside of the top 30). And, just in case you haven't heard, the scoring of the AWA is similar to that of the GMAT AWA and TOEFL TWE--0 to 6, with 6 being the best, and 0 the score you'd get for a completely blank essay.

 

Hope that helps, xaero (kind of a cool nick--what does it mean?) :)

[xaero]

Hi Erin,

 

Thanks a lot for your message. And of course, until the AWA begins from tomorrow, none can say what could happen to it.

By the way, I'm a Computer Science student, in my final year (Since I have not mentioned it in my profile [|)])

 

If you've glanced through some of my passages, could you please give me a gross estimate as to where my essays would stand between 0 and 6?. Of course, a few of my stories are not too well written and others, I'm pretty satisfied.

Thanks a lot :D

 

As for Xaero, he's actually a warrior ( a really lethal one [}:)] ) in the popular PC game, 'Quake 3 Arena'. Thats one name that I generally use wherever I register on the Net. :D