Will a Low Math Score on the General GRE Affect My PhD Program Admissions?

[Ryan007]

I know this question has been asked by others before, but:

I did poorly on the math part of the general GRE. I got a 160 (78%). I actually did better on the verbal (161, 87%)! I just ran out of time because I took too long on some problems. I did practice tests and did fine on them, but I guess I choked. How much will this hurt me for admissions into PhD programs? I'm applying right now so I don't have time to retake it. I took the general GRE many years ago and did pretty well (660 V (94%); 800 M (94%)), but of course I can't use scores older than 5 years.

 

[jbrussell93]

It probably depends on many things: the degree you're after, the caliber of programs you're applying to, you're GPA, and research experience. Without knowing any of these things, we cannot help. And even knowing these things, we still cannot say for sure whether your scores are good enough.

Anecdotally, I scored the same math GRE, for similar reasons, however I had good research and a perfect GPA. I received offers from every place that I applied. However, maybe GRE was less important for the programs I applied to compared to, say, a pure physics or math program.