Q: What are the minimum GPA and GRE scores I need to get into graduate school?
 Megan attending the Slobodna Field School, Summer 2010. |
If you find one of your numbers is lower than you would like it to be you might apply anyway. Some schools will admit graduate students on a provisional basis if the student is interesting in some other way, e.g. has work experience someone in that department may need such as publication or lab experience, has extraordinary field experience, surveying experience etc. Graduate committees can be flexible if someone on the committee needs a graduate student with specific experience.
If you are not pleased with your GRE scores, you may always retake the exam. One recent UE graduate had an excellent GPA, but did not do so well on the GRE. She chose not to retake the GRE because she did not want to pay for it. A graduate school admitted her, but did not offer a scholarship because of her low GRE score. After a year of paying all of her graduate school expenses herself, she proved to her professors that she really was an excellent student and so they gave her a teaching assistantship along with tuition remission and a stipend. She has been kicking herself for not retaking the GRE after she saw how poorly she had preformed. If she had spent the extra $100+ to take it again and improved her scores enough to get the TA-ship, she could have saved herself thousands of dollar during her first year in graduate school.
The tables below provides some guidance to help you see where your scores stand.
| GPA | How Graduate Schools See You |
| 4.0-3.6 | Good prospect for a Ph.D. or M.A. program, schools will probably consider you for financial aid; all grad schools will look at your application |
| 3.3-3.5 | Good prospect for M.A. program, possible candidate for Ph.D. program; good schools might consider for financial aid if have something else extraordinary on application; elite schools will not be very interested in you unless you have something else to attract them |
| 3.0-3.2 | Iffy prospect for graduate school; you will need to prove yourself worthy in some other area; elite schools will throw out your application |
| 2.5-2.9 | Masters programs in good schools will be interested but will not offer you financial aid |
| GRE Scores | How You Compare to Others Applying to Graduate Programs in Archaeology and Art History* |
| V-165-170, Q-160-170, W-5.5-6 | Really good, much better than the mean |
| V-160-164, Q-155-159, W-4.5-5 | Good, better than the mean |
| V-155-159, Q-145-154, W-3.5-4 | OK, about the mean |
| V-150-154, Q-140-144, W-2.5-3 | Not so good, below the mean |
| V-149-less, Q-139-less, W-2.0-less | Take a year off, take a GRE course, try again next year |
*These data come from ETS, the company that administers the GRE. They do not list scores for classical studies.
