Adrianne is a Senior Admissions Counselor and TV/film director, producer, writer, and actress currently based in LA. She uses her experience in multiple disciplines to help students achieve their personal and academic goals.
When pursuing graduate studies in the U.S. and many other countries, most students take the GRE. The Graduate Record Examination (GRE), a multiple-choice, computer-based, standardized exam often required for admission to many graduate schools, is usually a crucial component of the application process. However, many prospective grad students wonder: what is a “good” GRE score?
The answer to this question can vary widely based on several factors, including the kind of programs and schools you are applying to, your academic background, and your specific long-term goals in academia. Of course, if you’re applying to the most competitive graduate programs, you’ll want to shoot for a higher-than-average score in every section, but what does meeting these score expectations actually entail?
In this blog post, we will answer these questions, explore what constitutes a good GRE score, and help you interpret your results in the context of your graduate school aspirations.
Table of Contents
Understanding the GRE Score
As with all standardized test scores, the GRE has its own scoring system and scale that determines a student’s reasoning skills in certain areas, which can indicate a student’s preparedness for graduate programs. There are three measures on the GRE General Test that are scored: Verbal Reasoning, Quantitative Reasoning, and Analytical Writing.
Verbal reasoning scores reflect a student’s ability to evaluate written text and “make connections among words, sentences, ideas, and larger messages,” according to University of Minnesota professor Michael Rodriguez. Quantitative reasoning scores reflect a student’s ability to problem solve with quantitative (i.e. number-based) concepts and draw conclusions from scientific data and the like (akin to a science or math section on the ACT or SAT, although there’s less of an emphasis on hard facts learned in high school). And, finally, a student’s performance in the analytical writing section indicates their ability to understand and synthesize issues and arguments.
Verbal and Quantitative scores range from 130 to 170 in 1-point increments, and the Analytical Writing score ranges from 0 to 6 in half-point increments. You will receive a combined final score between 260-340 (so your verbal score plus your quant score), but the separate scores for each section are more important in the context of grad school applications. The quality of your essays determines your writing score, and that section is scored separately and not included in the calculation of your final score.
The score you receive for each section has two components that will be considered by grad school admissions: a scaled score (i.e. 130-170 and 0-6) and a percentile rank for each section. Your percentile ranks are determined by the scores of all test takers for that specific occurrence of the GRE. These ranks are more important than your scaled score — your percentile rank indicates how your GRE scores compare to those of other test takers.
What is Considered a Good GRE Score?
Considering all of the above, a high GRE score — meaning that you likely rank in the 75th percentile or higher — is considered to be 158+ on Verbal Reasoning, 159+ on Quantitative Reasoning, and 4.5+ on Analytical Writing. This range typically places you in the 75th percentile or higher. If you’re applying to competitive graduate school programs, you obviously want to be as close to the 100th percentile as possible, which would place you in the top 10% of test takers.
Again, this depends on your subject of choice and the type of school to which you’re applying. For instance, for the top law schools in the U.S. like Harvard and UCLA, the median GRE verbal score ranges between 164-168, and the median GRE quantitative score is around 162-165. So, in order to be competitive at these schools, you’ll need near-perfect scores, even in the sections that aren’t as relevant to your subject of choice. If you’re applying to less competitive graduate programs, your target score for each section might be lower.
Below are the score averages for each section of the GRE in 2022-2023 separated by major. This should give you a good idea of what your target score might be if you want to be a competitive candidate.
Average GRE Score by Major, 2022-2023
Intended Graduate Major Field | Average GRE Verbal Score | Average GRE Quantitative Score | Average Analytical Writing Score |
Business | 150.8 | 156.2 | 3.5 |
Education | 148.4 | 147.1 | 3.5 |
Engineering | 149.6 | 159.0 | 3.4 |
Humanities & Arts | 155.0 | 151.2 | 4.0 |
Law | 151.7 | 151.7 | 3.6 |
Life Sciences | 149.2 | 149.2 | 3.7 |
Physical Sciences | 150.8 | 159.8 | 3.5 |
Social & Behavioral Sciences | 152.8 | 152.6 | 3.8 |
Factors Influencing a Good GRE Score
As with all standardized tests, what is considered a “good” score is relative to a student’s goals. When it comes to the GRE, this largely depends on the school and the program to which you’re applying. Some schools have a cutoff score, which means that you’ll have a specific number above which you’ll need to score, and some programs only consider parts of your score, meaning you can focus on the relevant sections and minimize the time spent on other sections.
Different programs also weigh scores differently, so for more competitive programs, you’ll want to make sure you get the highest score possible on every section of course. You should also use the median GRE score at your school of choice to determine where you fall amidst the competition and to help you determine where to apply.
Competitive STEM programs may prioritize higher quantitative scores, while humanities programs and law schools may pay more attention to verbal scores. Analytical Writing is often a secondary factor but still important, especially for research-based or writing-intensive fields. However, a very competitive applicant will still have high scores in all three sections, regardless of the types of schools and programs to which they’re applying.
For instance, if your target program is Columbia University’s MBA program (which often is ranked somewhere in the top 1-15 MBA programs in the country), the average scores and ranges of scores* for the class that entered the school in 2024 were:
GRE Verbal Scores (average) | 162 |
GRE Verbal Scores (range) | 146-170 |
GRE Quantitative Scores (average) | 162 |
GRE Quantitative Scores (range) | 143-170 |
*Analytical writing scores were not reported.
So, this information can help you formulate a study plan — note that there is no difference in the average score for both the verbal and quantitative sections, indicating that admissions officers are looking for students who excel in both kinds of reasoning skills.
How to Improve Your GRE Score
The best way to improve your GRE score and score percentiles is simple: practice! As is the case with most standardized tests, you will benefit from being familiar with the general structure and pacing of the exam.
Once you’ve determined your ideal score for admission to your top grad programs, either by using the steps in the above sections or determining the score requirement for your target schools, take timed practice tests until you’re regularly achieving those scores. Imitate test day conditions as closely as possible (i.e. start at the same time and bring the materials and/or refreshments you’ll need) so you do not encounter any surprises along the way.
If you’re looking for practice tests and resources, the website for ETS, which is the organization that administers the GRE, has a wealth of materials, including full practice tests. If you’re looking for a GRE tutor, reach out to us at H&C — we have a team of expert tutors who have not only succeeded on the exam themselves but have since taught plenty of students how to do the same.
Interpreting Your GRE Scores
Understanding and interpreting your GRE score is key to evaluating your performance and determining your competitiveness for graduate programs. Once you take the test, your score will be available in your ETS account 8-10 days after you’ve taken the test. ETS will also send an official Institution Score Report to any of the schools you indicated on test day, so make sure you know where you’re applying by the time the test rolls around. If you’re not ready to submit your scores, you can hold off on this but note that pretty much every school will only look at the highest score you submit.
Once you have your score, you can determine whether or not it would be beneficial to take the test, and this largely depends on your percentile ranking. As described above, the percentile ranking accompanying your scores shows how you compare to other test-takers, which indicates to admissions committees where you fall in the applicant pool. For instance, a verbal score of 160 will place you in the 85th percentile, meaning you performed better than 85% of test-takers.
If you’re disappointed with your GRE scores after several attempts to improve, don’t panic — GRE scores are just one part of your application. Make sure to balance them with a compelling personal statement, strong letters of recommendation, and relevant experience. While achieving your goal score on the GRE will significantly help you in the graduate admissions process, it is by no means the end of the road if your test-taking abilities are not up to par.
Conclusion
A good score on the GRE, which is classified as “good” depending on the particulars of your unique academic situation, will make it easier to get into the school of your choice, so ensure you’ve done the research and preparation necessary to succeed. Taking the GRE is an important step in the graduate admissions process and your overall journey in higher education — you’ve got this!
Need help with your graduate school application or improving your GRE score? Reach out to us today to set up a free consultation with a member of our H&C team.