about my chances for top 30

[wendyecon]

international undergraduate in a top universitydouble
major in economics and mathematics,
overall gpa 3.62
gre v 490, q 800, w,4.0
toefl 633+4
moderate lor
some ra and ta experience
anyone got an idea about my chances for top 30 universities' graduate program?what about top 50?

[snappythecrab]

3.62 seems a little low. any idea what your gpa is in math and econ, respectively, and where your gpa stands in the relation to the rest of your class?

[wendyecon]

my major gpa concerning math and econ courses is a little better, 3.81. i am worried about my verbal score, since 490 is so low, however, i have no outstanding point to compensate it.

about the top 30 universities, i am considering cornell, uiuc, texas at austin, maryland and boston u. is there any chance for me to get enrolled? ( austin even announces gre verbal should be 576 on its web.)

about other universities, i would apply for usc, psu,virginia, north carolina, georgetown, wustl, rice

any suggestions for me, i am rather worried

[economicus]

Originally Posted by wendyecon

( austin even announces gre verbal should be 576 on its web.)

No it does not! They just say:The average GRE scores of students recently admitted were 576 verbal, 782 quantitative and 740 analytical. Please be aware that although high GRE scores enhance an application, the GRE is not our main selection criterion and does not substitute for a strong academic record.
..
this means that there were applicants with scores (much) below that.

[Skipper]

The average GRE scores of students recently admitted were 576 verbal, 782 quantitative and 740 analytical.

Wow, my analytical was like 735 points lower than the average at Texas. I guess I'm in trouble.

[user_name]

Originally Posted by Skipper

Wow, my analytical was like 735 points lower than the average at Texas. I guess I'm in trouble.

I know it's a joke, but unfortunately it might be true because a 5.0 AW is at the 71st percentile, while I imagine a 740 Analytical must be at a much higher percentile. I'm in deep sh*t too.

[Skipper]

I know it's a joke, but unfortunately it might be true because a 5.0 AW is at the 71st percentile, while I imagine a 740 Analytical must be at a much higher percentile.

Yeah, I'm a little concerned about it, too. And I thought I aced it! Oh well.

[kartelite]

Well, if 5.0 is 71% and 5.5 is 87%, then 5.0 is REALLY about 79% .

[user_name]

Originally Posted by kartelite

Well, if 5.0 is 71% and 5.5 is 87%, then 5.0 is REALLY about 79% .

How so? I don't follow.

[Skipper]

How so? I don't follow.

I think what he/she is saying is that 71st percentile means 71% score LOWER than a 5.0. A 5.5 is 87th percentile, so 16% of test-takers score exactly a 5.0. If you assume that a given 5.0 scorer is in the middle of the 5.0 pack, then essentially a 5.0 is equivalent to the 79th percentile (71 + 16/2).