Should I retake the GRE? 450/800

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Entering a mechanical engineering master's program at prestigious universities like Penn State, Stanford, MIT, or CalTech requires strong GRE scores. A perfect quantitative score may help offset a low verbal score, but many programs prioritize verbal and writing sections, particularly for assessing a candidate's ability to produce coherent academic work. A GPA of around 3.5 is decent, but the emphasis on GRE scores varies by institution, with some placing less weight on them. Retaking the GRE could be beneficial, especially if it improves the verbal and writing scores. Additionally, achieving high quantitative scores is common among candidates from science and engineering backgrounds.
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Hi all,

I'd like to enter a mechanical engineering master's program at a respectable university (I'm aiming for at least Penn State. I'd LOVE to get into Stanford/MIT/CalTech). I took the GRE for the first time today. I was surprised by both my verbal and quantitative scores because my verbal was very low and my quant was perfect. As I understand, most good universities are looking for at least 500/700. Will my perfect quant score be enough to make up for my lousy verbal? I'm confident that I can get 750+ consistently on quant.

I haven't gotten my writing results back, but I'm expecting a 3-3.5.

I have a ~3.5 GPA

Thanks for any input or suggestions.
 
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This is what I have heard from a few professors now that I have entered graduate school: they care more about the verbal and writing sections, and the most about the writing sections of the GRE. Not quite sure about the reasoning on that one. I think they want to know that you will be able to put together a coherent thesis and publications.

As to the value of retaking it - I am not sure. I have heard some schools care a lot about the GRE, but I know mine puts less weight into it.

Second note: A few of my friends and I all got perfects on the quant section - it seems that is common for people coming out of science and engineering.
 
Eh.. your username says you're dyslexic. Is this true?
 

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