A few days ago
AK

How good is a 1350 on GRE?

I’m a non-US medical doctor and I wish to pursue graduate training in Biochemistry in the US. I got a 790 (math) and 560 (verbal) on my GRE. I have previous research experience with one publication in a US journal. GPA is a sharp 3.0 though. I’m not sure how strong an applicant I am as some of my friends say I should apply to top grad schools while others say I would have to score higher on the GRE and I would need a better GPA.

What places do I have a good chance of acceptance at?

Appreciate your input…

Top 2 Answers
A few days ago
Henry B.

Favorite Answer

There are usually books published on all graduate programs in the U.S., their admittance criteria, the average/median gpa and gre of their accepted students, as well as how much emphasis they place on each of the above criteria. I believe that one is called Graduate Schools in the US http://www.amazon.com/Graduate-Schools-U-S-2008-Petersons/dp/0768924766/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1/104-0084044-1143148?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1190256975&sr=8-1

Yes, 1350 is a very good GRE score, although many prgrams put emphasis on either verbal or quant…I’m assuming biochemistry would be quant. I see your quant score is very high, so that speaks for you. If you’re a second or third author on a paper, some institutions view that as more important than GRE scores. But, many schools–particularly top schools in competative areas–have cut offs, meaning they don’t even look at your application if you are below a certain score, what that is will depend on the school and the program. Admission commitees are lazy and want to weed out as many applicants as possible, even if through dubious means (such as using the GRE as a method of assessing academic ability or throwing out possibly good candidates because their GPA is below a certain number). Buy/check out one of the books and if they don’t provide the info you need, email the university. Apply to at least one school that you know you can get in.

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A few days ago
hplss.rmntc
I think your GRE score and research background are strong enough, but I would be worried about your GPA. In your letters of recommendation make sure you have a professor or someone say that you are a good student despite your GPA. Maybe include in your essay why your GPA is so low. Graduate schools in the sciences can be difficult. I would try applying to some of the top schools, some average level schools, and maybe a safety school.

I would look at some state schools of varying sizes. Most large state schools have biochemistry.

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