Help me decide about taking the subject-test !!! [Please Read !!]

[GRE_Fighter]

hello Guys !!

I just took my general GRE yesterday . 1320 ( 580 V + 740 Q)

I'm literally devastated by my Quantitative score. It has shattered all my dreams of Ph.d admission . I had hoped for at least 770.

 

Anyways, I have around 2 months left for the subject-test and I'm in a big dilemma now !!. Subject-test scores definitely enhance chances of admission(Ph.d) in renowned CS schools, but what if the admission committee doesn't even bother checking my subject scores after seeing my poor quant. score in the very first place? It only makes good sense to sit for subject test if you're targeting schools ranked 35 or higher. But paradoxically, schools ranked above 35 in U.S.News aren't looking for students with quantitative score of 740.

 

So, I would love to hear from you guys ( CalmLogic!! from you in particular) about the feasibility of taking the subject test, given my context. If I manage to score something around 77% there, what are the universities ( precisely which rank? ) that would be ideal for me ?? I have around 79% marks in my undergrad and I am going to have a 'just-about-average' SOP.

[CalmLogic]

Since PhD programs are obviously competitive, the only reasons I can think of not to take a GRE CS exam:

 

- If one is too busy publishing research

 

- If one's application is so wonderful (top of their class, published papers, recommendations from CMU professors, etc.) that a less impressive GRE CS score will taint it.

 

- If one can't get a good score on the practice tests in the ETS booklets, in which case one may want to take the exam anyway but as practice (non-scored).

 

what if the admission committee doesn't even bother checking my subject scores after seeing my poor quant. score in the very first place?

Certainly, if you get a high enough score on the GRE CS exam, no one is going to ignore your application simply because of your general GRE scores.

 

From what I have read about CS grad admissions committees, they usually (or at least ideally) try to look at the big picture. What they care about the most is: Will this person be good at doing research in computer science?

 

While it's true they use GPA & GRE scores as a criteria to help eliminate the most mediocre applications, I think it's usually the case that they consider all relevant scores, including any subject tests you take. For example, if an economics major scores an 800 on the quantitative GRE, that doesn't mean he/she would be a good researcher in computer science. (I certainly would have more faith in a person's immediate CS research ability if they scored a 70th percentile on the GRE CS compared to someone without knowledge of computer science scoring a perfect 800 on the quantitative GRE.)

 

It only makes good sense to sit for subject test if you're targeting schools ranked 35 or higher

Most of the CS grad programs I have read of -- regardless of their rank by U.S. News & World Report -- like to see a GRE CS Subject Test score, especially if the student is coming from a college they are not familiar with or if the student did not major in computer science.

 

If I manage to score something around 77% there, what are the universities ( precisely which rank? ) that would be ideal for me ??

I really don't know, especially since I'm more interested in master's programs than PhD programs. You may want to also post in the Computer Science Admissions forum and read the old posts to get a better idea.

 

As you suggest, it's always a good idea to apply to at least one or two "safe" schools that will be likely to accept you even if the higher ranking schools do not. One smart way to make the most of this is to use CS rankings that are overlooked by most students. Most students just seem to use the U.S. News & World Report rankings as if they were incontrovertible. Therefore, there are CS programs that are better than most students think, such as the University of Central Florida and the University of Cincinnati, both of which actually ranked higher than MIT for at least one criteria:

 

NSF-funded survey puts UCF in the company of top computer science programs