Admissions Should I submit an 840 PGRE in my applications to top US PhD programs?

[Murex]

I know there have been several threads over the years asking advice on whether to submit PGRE scores, but I couldn't find a very recent one that gives advice to someone in a similar situation.

I'm applying to about 15 US PhD programs, all of which are in the top 25. Only a couple do not accept the PGRE; for the rest it's optional, and for some of those (e.g. Caltech, Stanford), it's recommended. I'm applying for computational/theoretical condensed matter.

Here are my stats:

• 4.00 GPA. I did my lower division coursework at a respected community college where the top grade is an A. I've been doing my upper division coursework at a state school ranked in the top 50 for physics, and some classes there award A+ as the top grade. I've obtained the highest possible grades in all of my courses.
• Several scholarships, three of which are merit scholarships for physics/mathematics.
• Research experience at one of the major national labs (one summer full-time, and then about a year of research part-time after that); REU at a school ranked in the top 20 for physics (still working on the project from that).
• Participation in a competitive bridge program run by one of the top theoretical physics institutes.
• I expect to have three great letters of recommendation.
• I'm a nontraditional student - I already have a separate B.A. in philosophy from an Ivy, as well as a J.D. from a top 5 law school (doubt this will mean that much, but figured I'd mention it anyway).

Based on the threads I've read, I'm leaning toward sending it, since while not amazing, it's still a pretty good score, and at least it will ensure that no one suspects I bombed/would have bombed. At the same time, it seems that many students (even many of the top students) aren't taking the PGRE these days. If anyone has inside knowledge of how admissions committees tend to think about this these days, I'd great appreciate it.

 

[Choppy]

A lot might come down to how well recognized your undergraduate program is.

Often the PGRE is used as a mitigator for grades from unfamiliar programs. While it's not a perfect surrogate, it can help the committee to rank you against students from programs they are more familiar with.

So if you're fairly sure that your program and courses will be well-recognized then there probably isn't much point in submitting your PGRE in your case*. If you're a graduate of Earl's Flat Earth College and Dog Catching Services, then submitting an above average score is probably a good idea.

Ways that you can tell the difference (for less extreme cases):

• Compare the textbooks and syllabuses from the courses you've taken with those used at the school you're applying to.
• Ask them directly. When you check out potential graduate programs, speak with professors in the department, potential advisors, graduate students, etc. See what they recommend.

*In this case the OP has a very high GPA. For others, submitting a PGRE could help if its an amazing score, but the GPA isn't perfect. That said, it won't completely balance out a non-competitive GPA.

 

[Murex]

A lot might come down to how well recognized your undergraduate program is.

Often the PGRE is used as a mitigator for grades from unfamiliar programs. While it's not a perfect surrogate, it can help the committee to rank you against students from programs they are more familiar with.

So if you're fairly sure that your program and courses will be well-recognized then there probably isn't much point in submitting your PGRE in your case*. If you're a graduate of Earl's Flat Earth College and Dog Catching Services, then submitting an above average score is probably a good idea.

Ways that you can tell the difference (for less extreme cases):

• Compare the textbooks and syllabuses from the courses you've taken with those used at the school you're applying to.
• Ask them directly. When you check out potential graduate programs, speak with professors in the department, potential advisors, graduate students, etc. See what they recommend.

*In this case the OP has a very high GPA. For others, submitting a PGRE could help if its an amazing score, but the GPA isn't perfect. That said, it won't completely balance out a non-competitive GPA.

Thanks for the reply, Choppy. My upper-division courses have used pretty standard textbooks: Griffiths for QM and E&M, Taylor for classical mechanics, and Schroeder for stat mech.