GRE Psychology Subject Test – Percentile and Ballpark Scores
Psychology GRE Percentile Score
The main aim of the GRE subject test is to provide a common platform for all the undergraduates worldwide, who want to pursue further level of studies from an American University. Since this GRE test is held on a global basis, the students taking this test are also globally diversified. They come from different countries with different educational systems and therefore, the educational background varies from student to student. So it is not practical to admit students solely on the basis of how they have fared under the educational system in their respective countries. Hence, in order to compare the aptitude of the diverse aspirants on a common basis the GRE test comes in handy.
Percentile Score:
After you take the GRE subject test, your performance will be evaluated and your scores will be reported accordingly. As for the subject test scores, these are of two types: the raw score and the percentile score. Among the two, the percentile score is of more importance, as this will give you a better insight into your performance. With the percentile score, you will be able to find out the percentage of test takers who have scored more than you and likewise the number of people who have scored less. For instance, if your percentile score is 70%, it means that 70% of the total GRE subject examinees scored less than you and the other 30% scored more than you.
Importance of GRE Percentile Score:
The importance of the GRE subject percentile can be summarized in the following two brief points:
- Firstly, the percentile score gives you an idea of how you have fared amongst the other applicants or test takers.
- Secondly, while applying for a graduate school, your percentile score will help the authorities to assess your performance in comparison with the other GRE subject test applicants.
Although many of the graduate schools do not ask for your percentile score, there are many that do. And these are usually the better ones. So, it’s wise to have your percentile score with you.
Psychology GRE Ballpark Score
Each year, a number of undergraduates from all over the world clear the GRE test and likewise apply to various US Universities for a Masters’ degree. So, to choose the best from among the many applicants, most of the universities use the concept of ‘ballpark score’ or cut-off score, which is simply the minimum score, a student would require to apply to a particular university. The universities using this concept announce or publish their cutoff score beforehand on their official websites thus giving the applicants a fair idea of how much they need to score to apply for a particular university. Sometimes, the universities make their cut-offs public after the GRE results are out. So with the scores of the GRE in hand, the students can zero in on the list of the universities where they can apply in accordance to the ballpark or the cut-off score.
Ballpark Scores:
Most of the US Universities that offer graduate and postgraduate courses on psychology do not have a minimum or a ballpark score. Their reason for not having the ballpark score is that the average GRE scores of the students vary from year to year. Hence, when it comes to admissions, much emphasis is given on the actual test scores and on your applications. Some of the top U.S. universities with no minimum score requirements or cut-offs are Stanford University, University of Illinois, Johns Hopkins University, Yale University and Carnegie Mellon University.
Apart from these universities, some of the others do have their ballpark score or cutoffs. To make it to the University of Michigan and University of California-Berkeley, your minimum GRE percentile should be 80%. To apply to the University of Minnesota, a 60% percentile will do. To get into the East Carolina University, you will require a total score over 900 and to be able to apply in Columbia University, your score has to be between 650-800 in the different test forms. So the overall minimum percentile required to apply to a graduate school in the U.S is 60%. So, the more you score, the better are your chances of making it to a quality graduate school.