Verbal 300 in GER

[econyun]

Hello All,
I would like to ask whether it does matter if I got 300 in verbal and 800 in Math part for my application to Econ phd ?

[studentecon]

Originally Posted by econyun

Hello All,
I would like to ask whether it does matter if I got 300 in verbal and 800 in Math part for my application to Econ phd ?

It does

[TopDog]

the verbal part doesn't matter match but when it gets so low then it sends red signals. i also wonder how you propose to do it. the math questions are also in english so unless you intentionally flunk the verbal to make a point or just bcos you think it's useless i don't see how you will get an 800q and 300v.

[corpfin2006]

I also thought that the verbal part were useless, so I just skipped all the questions and got V320. My other scores, however, are Q800 and AWA6.0. On top of that, my degree is from England. So, do I have to re-take the GRE?!?!

[TopDog]

Originally Posted by corpfin2006

I also thought that the verbal part were useless, so I just skipped all the questions and got V320. My other scores, however, are Q800 and AWA6.0. On top of that, my degree is from England. So, do I have to re-take the GRE?!?!

oh what a perfect score you could have had.just imagine 700v,800q, 6.0v. the admission process is all about impressions and you don't miss any opportunity to strut your feathers. i think the uselessness of the verbal is taken too far. but since you have already gotten your voluntary 320v, i'd suggest that you not risk your perfect quant score by retaking the test, given your u.k. education on top of things. others might think otherwise though...but i still wonder what you did that for.

[corpfin2006]

I had two days to prepare the GRE, so I asked professors whether the verbal score counted for anything. All of them (top 5!) said no. But I guess they were being attentive to the fact that I studied in both the US and the UK.

[SquareSquare]

Verbal 300 in GER
Hello All,
I would like to ask whether it does matter if I got 300 in verbal and 800 in Math part for my application to Econ phd ?

Contrary to what other people are saying, my feeling is it does not matter. I mean, if you are a student from a village in remote country of ******* then they might care. Or if you are international student who was doing math and statistics only, they might care. But if you got a degree that required some written work or if you are native speaker... why would they care?

[TruDog]

Originally Posted by SquareSquare

Contrary to what other people are saying, my feeling is it does not matter. I mean, if you are a student from a village in remote country of ******* then they might care. Or if you are international student who was doing math and statistics only, they might care. But if you got a degree that required some written work or if you are native speaker... why would they care?

I disagree, because of the undergraduate degree from an English-speaking country. That suggests that the OP still doesn't know English well, even after being immersed in the language for several years. That's a likely red flag.

[SquareSquare]

I disagree, because of the undergraduate degree from an English-speaking country. That suggests that the OP still doesn't know English well, even after being immersed in the language for several years. That's a likely red flag.

Agree to disagree. IMO, high V signals you're good with words, low V could be that you just didn't bother learning what pernicious or bellicose means . Yah, yah for some people these are the first words they use after waking up and GRE vocab is essential for reading the Economist... but you don't need sophisticated English to complete PhD thesis.

OP should just ask the department secretary or something. Some departments even offer English for non-native speakers classes (through some sort of language center at their university).

While someone here might know, there also is a possibility of mis-information. Coming straight from what the chair of a top graduate program said...

[buckykatt]

Originally Posted by corpfin2006

I also thought that the verbal part were useless, so I just skipped all the questions and got V320.

Actually, if you didn't answer anything at all on the verbal, you should have received a no score (NS) on that section. And that, IMHO, wouldn't look as bad as a 320. If I were an adcom member I'd think, hey, this is a rational test taker who knows that the verbal score isn't important and chose to save their energy for the other sections. But if I saw someone get a 320 I'd wonder how they ever made it through a good school. (Though I'd give them the benefit of the doubt anyway if English wasn't their native language.)

In general, my take is that a low GRE verbal doesn't hurt you much if at all with admissions, but a very high score might help you stand out; also, it might make a difference when it comes time to compete for fellowships that are funded university-wide rather than by the economics department itself.