Help my friend please..

[Audihopful]

Hey Guys!

I hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving break. I really need help for my friend, shes 28, African American with a degree in Music, a 3.4 gpa but she recently bombed the New Gre, she has a 150 Verbal and a 145 Quants. She is severely devastated by her scores and wants to quit, She studied for months and took the test three times before and bombed them, 780 and 800 combines the first and second time. I keep telling her its not that bad but the truth is i have no idea since i'm relatively new to the revised gre scoring and the whole Audiology admissions process. She has no clue of her chances, most of the schools shes looking at have a minimum of 1000, can somebody suggest some schools that she could apply to? Any suggestion would be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance!

---

Members don't see this ad.

 

[Kerrianne]

While I'm not sure what the requirements are for different schools, I can help you with comparing the new GRE scores with the old scores.

A 150 in verbal is about a 450 and a 145 in quantitative is about a 530 or 540 on the old scale. So, her combined score is about a 980 or 990. That's a lot better than her other scores and pretty close to 1000! I just did a quick search on ASHA and it seems like there are quite a few schools that don't even have minimum GRE requirements and her GPA is higher than their minimum requiremenst. Is there a state or area of the country she is hoping to go to grad school at?

This conversion chart was found on the ETS website. Here is the link to the pdf if anyone else would like to convert their scores. (Your friend should double check that I did it right too!) www.ets.org/s/gre/pdf/gre_guide.pdf

 

[spring88]

Hey Guys!

I hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving break. I really need help for my friend, shes 28, African American with a degree in Music, a 3.4 gpa but she recently bombed the New Gre, she has a 150 Verbal and a 145 Quants. She is severely devastated by her scores and wants to quit, She studied for months and took the test three times before and bombed them, 780 and 800 combines the first and second time. I keep telling her its not that bad but the truth is i have no idea since i'm relatively new to the revised gre scoring and the whole Audiology admissions process. She has no clue of her chances, most of the schools shes looking at have a minimum of 1000, can somebody suggest some schools that she could apply to? Any suggestion would be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance!

First of all, Kerrianne is absolutely right! I would have your friend double check her GRE scores against the ETS measurement.

Additionally, if your friend is dissatisfied with her GRE scores, she should absolutely contact her programs and let them know of her predicament. This would be an excellent opportunity for programs to get to know her aside from what's on paper. If she has time to visit, that's even better. I was in a similar situation when I was dealing with a low GPA, I visited/contacted schools and was often asked (or told) to explain why I didn't think my GPA was representative of my potential. A lot of programs give their applicants an opportunity to explain themselves this but applicants have to take initiative first. Additionally, the minimum of 1000 is the norm but NOT a requirement for most schools. Even the most competitive schools take applicants with GRE scores below 1000. It just depends on the applicant and what else they have to offer.

Your friend needs to make sure that she has all "her ducks in a row" for her applications. All paperwork in order, recs all taken care of, no mistakes on the application and a VERY well written/unique SOP that conveys her interest and knowledge about the field of audiology. With your friend's background in music, I think she could write a very unique SOP . A well written and unique SOP/complete application will take your friend further than she thinks.

Also, Kerrianne mentioned the ASHA EdFind. This is an AWESOME resource. You can find the average GPA/GRE scores for each program as well as number of acceptances vs. applicants. I recommend any applicant to check out this resource, knowing this information is helpful when deciding on what schools to apply to or what you need to have GPA/GRE wise for the schools you may be interested in.

Also, if it doesn't work out for your friend this year, definitely tell her to reapply! I know a couple of people who reapplied and are now very happy 1st year AuD students . It's not how you get there, just as long as you get there in the end!

Hope this helps!

 

[Audihopful]

OMG you guys are so awesome, thank you so much guys, i let her read this and she is so much more confident. We are starting a plan of action as we speak. First we are going to find schools she is interested in and them go visit and explain her low gre scores. Wish us luck!!

 

[Audihopful]

While I'm not sure what the requirements are for different schools, I can help you with comparing the new GRE scores with the old scores.

A 150 in verbal is about a 450 and a 145 in quantitative is about a 530 or 540 on the old scale. So, her combined score is about a 980 or 990. That's a lot better than her other scores and pretty close to 1000! I just did a quick search on ASHA and it seems like there are quite a few schools that don't even have minimum GRE requirements and her GPA is higher than their minimum requiremenst. Is there a state or area of the country she is hoping to go to grad school at?

This conversion chart was found on the ETS website. Here is the link to the pdf if anyone else would like to convert their scores. (Your friend should double check that I did it right too!) www.ets.org/s/gre/pdf/gre_guide.pdf

Thanks so much kerri, she likes the South, like NC,FL,GA etc..

 

[Audihopful]

First of all, Kerrianne is absolutely right! I would have your friend double check her GRE scores against the ETS measurement.

Additionally, if your friend is dissatisfied with her GRE scores, she should absolutely contact her programs and let them know of her predicament. This would be an excellent opportunity for programs to get to know her aside from what's on paper. If she has time to visit, that's even better. I was in a similar situation when I was dealing with a low GPA, I visited/contacted schools and was often asked (or told) to explain why I didn't think my GPA was representative of my potential. A lot of programs give their applicants an opportunity to explain themselves this but applicants have to take initiative first. Additionally, the minimum of 1000 is the norm but NOT a requirement for most schools. Even the most competitive schools take applicants with GRE scores below 1000. It just depends on the applicant and what else they have to offer.

Your friend needs to make sure that she has all "her ducks in a row" for her applications. All paperwork in order, recs all taken care of, no mistakes on the application and a VERY well written/unique SOP that conveys her interest and knowledge about the field of audiology. With your friend's background in music, I think she could write a very unique SOP . A well written and unique SOP/complete application will take your friend further than she thinks.

Also, Kerrianne mentioned the ASHA EdFind. This is an AWESOME resource. You can find the average GPA/GRE scores for each program as well as number of acceptances vs. applicants. I recommend any applicant to check out this resource, knowing this information is helpful when deciding on what schools to apply to or what you need to have GPA/GRE wise for the schools you may be interested in.

Also, if it doesn't work out for your friend this year, definitely tell her to reapply! I know a couple of people who reapplied and are now very happy 1st year AuD students . It's not how you get there, just as long as you get there in the end!

Hope this helps!

Thanks alot, do you think she should write an Addemdum and attach it to her application or contact the school via email and explain? We are trying to figure the most effective way to do this

 

[spring88]

Hey! I would definitely contact the schools she is interested in. If she can visit that's even better! I would call as opposed to emailing. By calling, you can have actual discussions and a chance for them to interact with you on a more personal level. Emailing would be a great way to follow up OR if calling didn't work in the first place.

After she's's done this, I would have her strategically place a sentence or two in her statement about the GRE. However, I would be VERY careful with how you do this. It should be something that will reflect upon you in a postive light, like you are determined to work hard to overcome obstacles etc. The schools you've contacted and/or visited should have an inkling of what you are talking about based on prior discussion. Everything you write in your SOP should be in a postive light. In fact, even during conversations with faculty, you should NEVER be down on yourself over the GRE or any other weak area, just mention it but essentially be like I don't believe its representative of my abilities (provide evidence here), mention your positive attributes etc. You want to be able to take their focus away from the so called weaker areas of your application and instead, have them focus on your strengths

I'm someone who has been in similar shoes as your friend, she is more than welcome to PM me if she would like additional advice or to discuss things further.

 

[USAuD11]

Thanks so much kerri, she likes the South, like NC,FL,GA etc..

If she likes the south, I am an alumni from the University of South Alabama, I just graduated in May with my AuD! I must say I had a terrible time with the GRE (took it 3 times as well) because I am dyslexic. Had all kinds of troubles with it, but was still able to get into grad school based on my GPA and letter of intent so don't let her give up, you can message me if y'all have any other questions/concerns. Good luck!