GRE scores for the T14 Forum

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bogahoga

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GRE scores for the T14

Post by bogahoga » Wed Dec 26, 2018 10:13 pm

Now that we are halfway through the admissions cycle for 2018-2019, I am wondering if anyone has an update on what GRE scores the T14 schools are seeking in applicants who apply with a GRE score. From anecdotal evidence, It seems like applicants are eager to have GRE scores that are identical to the percentile for a school's LSAT medians. For the T14, the median LSAT is at least a 170, which would equate to the 97th percentile (on their website, Georgetown Law indicates that they are looking for GRE scores that hover around the 95th percentile). The 97th percentile for the GRE is equal to a V166/Q169, which in my opinion, is a score that is even more unlikely than getting a 170 on the LSAT. US News reports that Harvard Business School has a median GRE score of V164/Q164 (the 94th and 86th percentile, respectively) and Stanford Business School has a median GRE Score of V165/Q164 (the 96th and 86th percentile, respectively). And, if you use the ETS comparison tool (https://www.ets.org/gre/institutions/ad ... ison_tool/), those scores translate to LSAT scores of a 169 and a 171, which doesn't quite make sense for ultracompetitive schools. I feel like the T14 should want GRE scores that are roughly equivalent to the medians for the b-schools at Harvard and Stanford, but the sentiment out there is that law schools are eager to have GRE scores that are higher than these medians. Why is that the case? What GRE scores should a top applicant to the T14 really be seeking? My scores are V163/Q166, which would be a high score for b-school, but is equivalent to a 169 on the ETS LSAT calculator.

albanach

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Re: GRE scores for the T14

Post by albanach » Wed Dec 26, 2018 11:01 pm

bogahoga wrote:The 97th percentile for the GRE is equal to a V166/Q169, which in my opinion, is a score that is even more unlikely than getting a 170 on the LSAT.
Are you suggesting that, as a group, GRE candidates are statistically smarter than LSAT candidates? What's your premise for the top 3% out of tens of thousands of test takers not being approximately equivalent to the top 3% out of hundreds of thousands taking another test?

It can't be that one test is harder than the other, since we're talking about those that are scoring in the top x percentile - unless your theory is that GRE candidates study harder so, despite the groups being of similar intelligence, it's easier to make it to the top. Both tests are considered learnable. I'm curious as to how you're reaching your conclusion.

QContinuum

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Re: GRE scores for the T14

Post by QContinuum » Wed Dec 26, 2018 11:10 pm

Having taken both, my opinion is that, while both tests are learnable, the GRE takes much more effort to learn than the LSAT. Though I guess that might depend on each test-taker's strengths. I found learning Logic Games to be challenging, but much less time-consuming than memorizing reams of obscure vocabulary for GRE Verbal.

albanach

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Re: GRE scores for the T14

Post by albanach » Wed Dec 26, 2018 11:18 pm

bogahoga wrote: US News reports that Harvard Business School has a median GRE score of V164/Q164 (the 94th and 86th percentile, respectively)
The thing is, high GRE scorers aren't all going to business school, whereas high LSAT scorers are all trying to get into the T-14.

584,677 people took the GRE in 2016. 9,543 (1.63%) applied to do an MBA at Harvard.

Of 109,354 taking the LSAT, 7,578 (6.93%) applied to Harvard Law.

The business school needs to fill almost 2,000 places compared to the 560 who enroll in the law school each year. Given they have similar numbers of applicants, it's inevitable that the medians at the business school will fall.

bogahoga

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Re: GRE scores for the T14

Post by bogahoga » Wed Dec 26, 2018 11:36 pm

Those are all fair points. HBS has an enrollment of a little over 900, so a bit under double the size of HLS. Regardless, what do you think HLS is looking for in the GRE? Do you think they are using the converter?

nixy

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Re: GRE scores for the T14

Post by nixy » Thu Dec 27, 2018 10:58 am

QContinuum wrote:Having taken both, my opinion is that, while both tests are learnable, the GRE takes much more effort to learn than the LSAT. Though I guess that might depend on each test-taker's strengths. I found learning Logic Games to be challenging, but much less time-consuming than memorizing reams of obscure vocabulary for GRE Verbal.
This is totally individual. I didn't have to study at all for the GRE verbal to get something like a 98th percentile score (and found logic games hard to learn, although in retrospect I didn't put in the time I should have). But then I had to relearn all my high school math for the quant section (and mostly just wrote that section off, because I was taking it to apply for non-STEM grad programs so it was less pertinent).

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