November 2011 PGRE test scores

DanMarcy · Post by **DanMarcy** » Sat Dec 10, 2011 10:57 am

Scores by phone are in! I got 970, with a percentile of 93. Oh, snap!

nabla · Post by **nabla** » Sat Dec 10, 2011 12:08 pm

Can you give some information on the procedure of learning scores by phone? For example, how do we pay the fee, or what information do they ask(registration number, codes or sth like these)?

dfeld31 · Post by **dfeld31** » Sat Dec 10, 2011 12:31 pm

I know many of you will scoff at this but I'm actually kinda happy. I got a 700, 55%. I'm tempted to ask a "what are my chances" type question, but ill spare you guys for now.

sssggg999 · Post by **sssggg999** » Sat Dec 10, 2011 12:36 pm

I just got a 670 - 48% (International student). It looks like I am doomed yet could someone please comment briefly on my chances of acceptance or where it still could be worthwhile to try ? Would really appreciate this.

physicsworks · Post by **physicsworks** » Sat Dec 10, 2011 2:08 pm

sssggg999 wrote:I just got a 670 - 48% (International student). It looks like I am doomed yet could someone please comment briefly on my chances of acceptance or where it still could be worthwhile to try ? Would really appreciate this.

I think you should take the test again (unfortunately, the next one is only in April). It is expected that an international student's score is at least a little bit higher, than domestic student and I doubt there is a university around top 50 that happily accepts domestic students with PGRE score like 600-620.

physicsworks · Post by **physicsworks** » Sat Dec 10, 2011 2:17 pm

nabla wrote:Can you give some information on the procedure of learning scores by phone? For example, how do we pay the fee, or what information do they ask(registration number, codes or sth like these)?

Phone Services for Scores

1-609-771-7290 or 1-888-473-7267 (toll free for test takers in the United States, American Samoa, Guam, Puerto Rico, U.S. Virgin Islands and Canada).

1-888-473-8333 (TTY)

Call 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. Eastern Time (New York), seven days a week.

Use these services only if you call from a touch-tone phone, pay by credit/debit card (American Express®, Discover®, JCB, MasterCard®, or Visa®), and have tested in the last five years. Wait for confirmation before hanging up. Once information is entered, changes cannot be made.

Have the following information ready:

Registration number, Social Security number, or confirmation number

Test date

Date of birth

Institution code(s)

Department code(s)
Scores by Phone

Fee: US$12

nkqed · Post by **nkqed** » Sat Dec 10, 2011 3:59 pm

I keep getting cannot find your information. I'm pretty damn sure I've entered it correctly, any one else getting something similar?

Edit: I know I'm entering in my information correctly because it can find when I took the general GRE in December. Any help would be appreciated!

Second Edit: You need to use the registration number from your admissions ticket, got mine 76% 820

bigD3002 · Post by **bigD3002** » Sat Dec 10, 2011 4:01 pm

ehh 810 (74%) I guess I wont be going to a top ten school but I wont be doomed to fail either. I bet the raw score for a 950 is close to 90. anyone feel the same?

psocket · Post by **psocket** » Sun Dec 11, 2011 9:37 am

nkqed wrote:I keep getting cannot find your information. I'm pretty damn sure I've entered it correctly, any one else getting something similar?

Edit: I know I'm entering in my information correctly because it can find when I took the general GRE in December. Any help would be appreciated!

Yes, I am getting this too. It's probably that our scores aren't in the system yet.

nkqed · Post by **nkqed** » Sun Dec 11, 2011 11:58 am

psocket wrote:
nkqed wrote:I keep getting cannot find your information. I'm pretty damn sure I've entered it correctly, any one else getting something similar?

Edit: I know I'm entering in my information correctly because it can find when I took the general GRE in December. Any help would be appreciated!

Yes, I am getting this too. It's probably that our scores aren't in the system yet.

O good, I was really worried I was the only one. Still sucks though

gentan · Post by **gentan** » Sun Dec 11, 2011 12:41 pm

nkqed wrote:
psocket wrote:
nkqed wrote:I keep getting cannot find your information. I'm pretty damn sure I've entered it correctly, any one else getting something similar?

Edit: I know I'm entering in my information correctly because it can find when I took the general GRE in December. Any help would be appreciated!

Yes, I am getting this too. It's probably that our scores aren't in the system yet.
O good, I was really worried I was the only one. Still sucks though

Did you try entering the registration number from the exam admission ticket? I entered the web confirmation number at first, and the system wasn't able to find my score. But it found the score when I putted in the registration number.

I got 870, 83%. To bigD3002, yeah I feel the same.

aby · Post by **aby** » Sun Dec 11, 2011 3:04 pm

810 (74%). although this score is pretty much the same as those of my practice tests, i feel a bit disappointment because after the test i had a really good feeling. anybody know the average score for an international student in top 20 ?

physicsworks · Post by **physicsworks** » Sun Dec 11, 2011 3:38 pm

Haha, ETS cannot locate my data too. Even though I took the test in 2010 and have already received the score by mail

So, don't worry -- be happy

bigD3002 · Post by **bigD3002** » Sun Dec 11, 2011 5:15 pm

nkqed wrote:
psocket wrote:
nkqed wrote:I keep getting cannot find your information. I'm pretty damn sure I've entered it correctly, any one else getting something similar?

Edit: I know I'm entering in my information correctly because it can find when I took the general GRE in December. Any help would be appreciated!

Yes, I am getting this too. It's probably that our scores aren't in the system yet.
O good, I was really worried I was the only one. Still sucks though

You might try the 888 number that physics works posted. I first tried the 609 number but it gave me similar messages. Apparently one of the numbers isn't working

nabla · Post by **nabla** » Sun Dec 11, 2011 6:28 pm

I got 990, 95%. I read some posts saying that physics gre is especially important for international applicants. Does anyone know why this is the case?

physicsworks · Post by **physicsworks** » Sun Dec 11, 2011 7:10 pm

nabla wrote:I got 990, 95%. I read some posts saying that physics gre is especially important for international applicants. Does anyone know why this is the case?

what raw score do you think will be for the maximum scaled score, approximately?

physicsworks · Post by **physicsworks** » Sun Dec 11, 2011 7:22 pm

bigD3002 wrote:You might try the 888 number that physics works posted. I first tried the 609 number but it gave me similar messages. Apparently one of the numbers isn't working

well, this number doesn't work for me too...

psocket · Post by **psocket** » Sun Dec 11, 2011 7:34 pm

dfeld31 wrote:I know many of you will scoff at this but I'm actually kinda happy. I got a 700, 55%. I'm tempted to ask a "what are my chances" type question, but ill spare you guys for now.

Finally, some perspective. I congratulate you on your fine score! I expect to do much worse, and will be happy to get 600+, so I hope people will keep that in mind -- an ~800 instead of a ~900 isn't the end of the world.

physicsworks · Post by **physicsworks** » Sun Dec 11, 2011 7:40 pm

By the way, does anybody know how to find out the result of your Subject test (by phone) if you took General test in the same month and year?

nabla · Post by **nabla** » Sun Dec 11, 2011 8:07 pm

physicsworks wrote:
nabla wrote:I got 990, 95%. I read some posts saying that physics gre is especially important for international applicants. Does anyone know why this is the case?
what raw score do you think will be for the maximum scaled score, approximately?

There were 2 questions I didn't answer and 7-8 questions I was not 100% sure of. In the worst case, this corresponds to a raw score of 90. In my opinion, November test was not substantially different from 01 and 08 exams. However, I remember 2-3 questions in previous tests which can be classified as unexpected. There was not any unexpected question in November test. Therefore, I think raw score for 990 cut-off might be slightly higher than that of in previous exams, i.e. 85-87 approximately.

Actually, it is hard to define a question as expected or unexpected, but that is what I think. I am an EE student, Physics students might think differently.

nabla · Post by **nabla** » Sun Dec 11, 2011 8:33 pm

physicsworks wrote:By the way, does anybody know how to find out the result of your Subject test (by phone) if you took General test in the same month and year?

I took the both tests in November 2011. I guess, the system differentiates the two when you enter your registration number for Physics subject test.

physicsworks · Post by **physicsworks** » Sun Dec 11, 2011 8:46 pm

nabla wrote:I took the both tests in November 2011. I guess, the system differentiates the two when you enter your registration number for Physics subject test.

But registration number, if I remember correctly, is the same for both tests. It can be found https://mygre.ets.org/greweb/action/ViewScores in the Examinee Information table. And before you receive the scores by mail all you have beside this number is your confirmation number.

nabla · Post by **nabla** » Sun Dec 11, 2011 9:00 pm

physicsworks wrote:
nabla wrote:I took the both tests in November 2011. I guess, the system differentiates the two when you enter your registration number for Physics subject test.
But registration number, if I remember correctly, is the same for both tests. It can be found https://mygre.ets.org/greweb/action/ViewScores in the Examinee Information table. And before you receive the scores by mail all you have beside this number is your confirmation number.

The registration number in your online GRE account is for the GRE general test. I am sure of this because when I was applying to a grad school, I entered this number and the system confirmed that my GRE general test score received.

Registration number for the subject test is written on your GRE admission ticket. I used this number when getting my subject test score by phone. The two registration numbers I have mentioned so far are different for me.

psocket · Post by **psocket** » Sun Dec 11, 2011 9:19 pm

nabla wrote:
physicsworks wrote:
nabla wrote:I took the both tests in November 2011. I guess, the system differentiates the two when you enter your registration number for Physics subject test.
But registration number, if I remember correctly, is the same for both tests. It can be found https://mygre.ets.org/greweb/action/ViewScores in the Examinee Information table. And before you receive the scores by mail all you have beside this number is your confirmation number.
The registration number in your online GRE account is for the GRE general test. I am sure of this because when I was applying to a grad school, I entered this number and the system confirmed that my GRE general test score received.

Registration number for the subject test is written on your GRE admission ticket. I used this number when getting my subject test score by phone. The two registration numbers I have mentioned so far are different for me.

I can definitely confirm that this is true. I have a $12 charge to prove it

.

bigD3002 · Post by **bigD3002** » Sun Dec 11, 2011 10:08 pm

psocket wrote:
dfeld31 wrote:I know many of you will scoff at this but I'm actually kinda happy. I got a 700, 55%. I'm tempted to ask a "what are my chances" type question, but ill spare you guys for now.
Finally, some perspective. I congratulate you on your fine score! I expect to do much worse, and will be happy to get 600+, so I hope people will keep that in mind -- an ~800 instead of a ~900 isn't the end of the world.

sure, its true that an ~800 will get you into a good school, but those hoping to go to a top 10 school will have a difficult time getting in on a number under 900. A 700, with good research experience and letters will certainly get you into a top 30-50 school and thats not a bad ranking to be at. Personally, I had my hopes on Stanford but I feel my application is simply too weak to top it off with an 810. However, I still feel a few of my other favorites, most notably Boulder, will consider me a good candidate.

dfeld31 · Post by **dfeld31** » Sun Dec 11, 2011 11:42 pm

bigD3002 wrote:
psocket wrote:
dfeld31 wrote:I know many of you will scoff at this but I'm actually kinda happy. I got a 700, 55%. I'm tempted to ask a "what are my chances" type question, but ill spare you guys for now.
Finally, some perspective. I congratulate you on your fine score! I expect to do much worse, and will be happy to get 600+, so I hope people will keep that in mind -- an ~800 instead of a ~900 isn't the end of the world.
sure, its true that an ~800 will get you into a good school, but those hoping to go to a top 10 school will have a difficult time getting in on a number under 900. A 700, with good research experience and letters will certainly get you into a top 30-50 school and thats not a bad ranking to be at. Personally, I had my hopes on Stanford but I feel my application is simply too weak to top it off with an 810. However, I still feel a few of my other favorites, most notably Boulder, will consider me a good candidate.

Thanks psocket! And bigD... I hope your right. Do you mind giving your opinion... I scored a 700 on the PGRE, I'll have a 3.8-3.9 after this semester, my research experience consists of working for a professor at my instiution for the past 2 years, and for another professor last summer, and should get decent rec's from these professors. No publications though... I only have 2 years of experience because this is my 2nd bachelors degree and im completing it in 2 years. So my hopes are to go to a school in NYC... Im applying to Columbia (obvious stretch), Rockefeller, NYU, Stony Brook, and CUNY. Any thoughts on my chances?

psocket · Post by **psocket** » Sun Dec 11, 2011 11:59 pm

bigD3002 wrote:
psocket wrote:
dfeld31 wrote:I know many of you will scoff at this but I'm actually kinda happy. I got a 700, 55%. I'm tempted to ask a "what are my chances" type question, but ill spare you guys for now.
Finally, some perspective. I congratulate you on your fine score! I expect to do much worse, and will be happy to get 600+, so I hope people will keep that in mind -- an ~800 instead of a ~900 isn't the end of the world.
sure, its true that an ~800 will get you into a good school, but those hoping to go to a top 10 school will have a difficult time getting in on a number under 900. A 700, with good research experience and letters will certainly get you into a top 30-50 school and thats not a bad ranking to be at. Personally, I had my hopes on Stanford but I feel my application is simply too weak to top it off with an 810. However, I still feel a few of my other favorites, most notably Boulder, will consider me a good candidate.

Though it appears to be a mantra on this website, I'm not so sure that a 900+ is that important for getting into a top 10, especially with good grades and letters of recommendation. It seems to be more likely for an international student, but there are probably a fair number of domestic students with scores even in the upper 700's. If average PGRE scores at top schools are in the mid 800's range, then shouldn't we expect some (if only a few) applicants to have scores in the low 800's and perhaps lower? Yes, there are cutoffs, and maybe you have to have an insane score to get into Princeton, for instance, but if I scored a 750+ I would definitely give a couple top schools a shot. I personally know someone who went to Stanford on a PGRE of 780, so its not impossible. Also, the PGRE is only one part of the application. Some schools will consider it more important than others.

By the way, I expect to get a terrible score (especially compared to most people here). However, that will not keep me from applying to solid schools. If it is truly horrible, I may have to shuttle over to a M.S. program first, but I think my research experience (with expected first author pub), good grades, and excellent recommendations show that I have done, and am capable of doing, graduate-level research and study. At worst, I take a detour on my way to a PhD. The point is that even with the worst of scores, or even scores lower than one would want, there is a place for someone who can do research. The test is just a test, and it is only so meaningful -- some good students get left out of their first choices because of it, while some good testers get into top schools and can't make it through their programs.

Anyhow, what harm is there in applying to a school, even if you consider it a stretch? I can't imagine the cutoff at Stanford to be higher than your score.

psocket · Post by **psocket** » Mon Dec 12, 2011 12:29 am

Thanks psocket! And bigD... I hope your right. Do you mind giving your opinion... I scored a 700 on the PGRE, I'll have a 3.8-3.9 after this semester, my research experience consists of working for a professor at my instiution for the past 2 years, and for another professor last summer, and should get decent rec's from these professors. No publications though... I only have 2 years of experience because this is my 2nd bachelors degree and im completing it in 2 years. So my hopes are to go to a school in NYC... Im applying to Columbia (obvious stretch), Rockefeller, NYU, Stony Brook, and CUNY. Any thoughts on my chances?

I don't have enough expertise to speculate on your specific chances, but I can offer my profile and application schools as a reference: http://www.physicsgre.com/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=4274.

I think I may have an edge in research experience, to balance my expected lower score, so it may be that our profiles are quite comparable overall. Though I'm looking mostly at astronomy departments, I can tell you that I am applying to some that are considered to be in the top 5-10 range, though the total number of programs is much smaller at ~30-35.

I can also say that if I got a 700, I would apply to some stronger schools in physics/applied physics such as Boulder, Maryland, Washington, Wisconsin and even a couple of long shots, along with some more mid-tier and lower safety schools. There are a lot of good schools in the 15-30+ range where a 700 is below average, but probably not so low as to have your application summarily rejected. Just remember to keep a balanced set of selections in different ranges and some good safeties. Also, never be afraid to reach for a couple of schools, as long as you keep your chances of getting in in perspective.

One last thing that I've noticed in my grad school search. Many applied programs put less emphasis on the PGRE, so if you want to get into a higher ranked school you might consider this route. For instance, Berkley's applied science program, along with Harvard's SEAS, don't technically require it, so perhaps a solid 700 score would add to your application.

bigD3002 · Post by **bigD3002** » Mon Dec 12, 2011 12:50 am

dfeld, like psocket stated, since I am applying to grad school for the first time, its tough to say and there are many opinions. I think I am mostly basing this off of those sites that people place their credentials and their list of schools applied and whether they were accepted or not. Anyway, we can only wait to see what people say in a few months. I personally believe that, when given time to think, I am a good writer (my 4.0 writing score doesn't quite say the same thing) but I feel my s.o.p is where I can really show who I am. Also having two research projects and a first author pub in the press and 4 good recommendation letters helps. Its a matter of speculation at this point since we haven't looked at the 400-600 some odd applications our favorite schools are receiving either. I know for a fact that the particular graduating class I am with is one of the strongest in recent years, I hope that isn't the case nationwide :S. Either way, good luck to everyone!

physicsworks · Post by **physicsworks** » Mon Dec 12, 2011 4:38 am

nabla wrote:The registration number in your online GRE account is for the GRE general test. I am sure of this because when I was applying to a grad school, I entered this number and the system confirmed that my GRE general test score received.
Registration number for the subject test is written on your GRE admission ticket. I used this number when getting my subject test score by phone. The two registration numbers I have mentioned so far are different for me.

Oh, yes. Sure! I forgot that we have admission ticket also. Damn it, ETS tries to confuse us and strip more money every time we encounter with it

psocket · Post by **psocket** » Mon Dec 12, 2011 7:43 pm

Got a 650 @ 44%! I know that many of you would be completely depressed with this score, but considering my uncanny ability to not do well on this test, coupled with only 2 hours of sleep, I am very

!

dedicateddan · Post by **dedicateddan** » Tue Dec 13, 2011 12:53 pm

Got a 950 / 91%. Pretty solid, though I feel I could have gotten a 990 if I started studying more than a week in advance, given my aptitude for standardized tests.

Rorschach · Post by **Rorschach** » Thu Dec 15, 2011 6:24 pm

No one cares dude.

P-representation · Post by **P-representation** » Fri Dec 23, 2011 1:16 am

Hello,
The scores have just been uploaded on the ETS website. However, only the scaled score and percentile are available.
I got a 990

LIUJIEWEI · Post by **LIUJIEWEI** » Sat Dec 24, 2011 7:18 am

Only got 940/90%. Lowest score among my schoolmates. Good bye Top 10

physicsworks · Post by **physicsworks** » Sat Dec 24, 2011 8:04 am

LIUJIEWEI wrote:Only got 940/90%. Lowest score among my schoolmates. Good bye Top 10

Are you kidding?

InquilineKea · Post by **InquilineKea** » Sat Dec 24, 2011 5:52 pm

P-representation wrote:Hello,
The scores have just been uploaded on the ETS website. However, only the scaled score and percentile are available.
I got a 990

"only" scaled score and percentile? Was there ever anything else to report?

P-representation · Post by **P-representation** » Sun Dec 25, 2011 1:35 am

What about the raw scores and the number of questions answered correctly? When do we get that information? I guess ETS does give us that information right?

InquilineKea · Post by **InquilineKea** » Sun Dec 25, 2011 2:12 am

ETS never really gives us that sort of information. It gave us it for SAT IIs and the SAT Is, but not for the GREs.

P-representation · Post by **P-representation** » Sun Dec 25, 2011 7:04 am

Really? I've seen a lot of people discussing their raw scores on threads like :
http://www.physicsgre.com/viewtopic.php ... 4&start=50
[PGRE of Nov. 13th, 2010]

Has ETS changed it's policy regarding displaying the score break up?

InquilineKea · Post by **InquilineKea** » Sun Dec 25, 2011 1:17 pm

The raw score is the number you got right minus 1/4*(number you got wrong). There are multiple (right answer, wrong answer) combinations that you can get for each raw score. So the raw score is a degenerate eigenvalue, although you could split the degeneracy if you precisely know how many answers you skipped.

P-representation · Post by **P-representation** » Mon Dec 26, 2011 7:16 am

What if you don't know the eigenvalue itself?

The raw score is not displayed on their website.

InquilineKea · Post by **InquilineKea** » Mon Dec 26, 2011 8:11 am

Then I suppose people remember how many answers they skipped? And then find their raw scores according to this rough metric:

No, they don't tell you that information via the phone.

Although I would say it is very similar to the October test.

I'd assume it looks something close to this

990 - 95% - 87 RAW
980 - 94% - 86
970 - 93% - 85
960 - 92% - 84
950 - 91% - 83
940 - 90% - 82
930 - 89% - 81
920 - 88% - 80
910 - 87% - 79
900 - 86% - 78
890 - 85% - 77

-Riley

P-representation · Post by **P-representation** » Mon Dec 26, 2011 8:45 am

Perhaps, but I was quite confused with the confidence with which people were stating their raw scores i.e Ex: I got a raw score of 60 and not 60 +/- 3. Thanks for your clarification anyway.

bigD3002 · Post by **bigD3002** » Thu Jan 05, 2012 3:35 am

InquilineKea, I hate to be so off topic but does the word Kea in your name have anything to do with the wonderful parrot from New Zealand?? I hope so, its an amazing animal to see in the wild.

InquilineKea · Post by **InquilineKea** » Thu Jan 05, 2012 3:37 am

Yes, it does.

And I know - I was so captivated by its description when I heard about it. There is simply no parallel in the wild.

bigD3002 · Post by **bigD3002** » Thu Jan 05, 2012 3:44 am

Agreed, there really in nothing like seeing them soar in the Southern Alps.

TakeruK · Post by **TakeruK** » Thu Jan 05, 2012 11:46 am

In 2009, my score report gave me:

# attempted
# correct
# incorrect
raw score (correct - incorrect/4)
Scaled score (200 to 990)
percentile ranking

This year (Nov 2011 exam), I only got the last two items. My online GRE profile and my recent paper score report no longer shows the first 4 items for the 2009 exam either. In 2009, I attempted about 60 questions, got about 44 correct (I think?? don't have the sheet with me), and my raw score was about 40, which was a 630 scaled score and 44th percentile.

If it's any use, I attempted 77 questions in the Nov 2011 exam, and my scaled score was 690 (53rd percentile). Maybe there is a way to figure out what raw score corresponds to what scaled score if enough people post? I don't know how to conclusively get that info though.

TakeruK · Post by **TakeruK** » Thu Jan 05, 2012 11:53 am

And some information that I found comforting and maybe others with similar scores to mine (690) might feel the same way:

1. The NRC doctoral program ranking show the median PGRE score of accepted students. For Astronomy, this ranges from ~700 to mid-700s for all schools, including the top 10. So ~half the accepted students have scores < 750.

2. A friend of mine had a score in the 800 range and got in a top 10 school without any research experience at all. His grades were very good though.

Although maybe astro programs weigh the PGRE score less, compared to Physics ones. Hope this will help some people!

InquilineKea · Post by **InquilineKea** » Thu Jan 05, 2012 12:07 pm

TakeruK wrote:And some information that I found comforting and maybe others with similar scores to mine (690) might feel the same way:

1. The NRC doctoral program ranking show the median PGRE score of accepted students. For Astronomy, this ranges from ~700 to mid-700s for all schools, including the top 10. So ~half the accepted students have scores < 750.

2. A friend of mine had a score in the 800 range and got in a top 10 school without any research experience at all. His grades were very good though.

Although maybe astro programs weigh the PGRE score less, compared to Physics ones. Hope this will help some people!

One caveat though: weren't those scores from old years though? I've heard that Astronomy programs have become significantly more competitive in recent years (this is *definitely* true for Penn State, Washington, *and* Columbia).

With that said, I don't think it matters *that* much. There actually are *a lot* of extremely strong Astronomy students with PGRE scores in the range of 700 - possibly because a lot of them didn't spend as much time studying for it as Physics majors do. This is probably doubly true for those applying to Planetary Science departments. Once you're in the range of 700, it's really the other factors that matter more.