₦airaland Forum

GlitteringStar

Amen and thanks.

What was your GRE score?

Yildiz, you owe us your 2nd GRE experience.

Nastydamus, we see you lurking in the shadows.

Bless us with your experience thus far over there and any tips you can give to prospective testtakers and school applicants.

hybeenoni:
@ Paul beta and scholastics 16 I used the link for converting to WES evaluation, or I used a wrong link?

Could you plz give me a link to convert my cgpa to the WES scale.

Also how can what states are known to be generous with funding so I could narrow my search there, I wish to know how to link up with graduate students in Actuarial or Data Analytics masters program.

Thanks

Some schools have names of students in the department but some others don't.

Your best bet is to use LinkedIn.

Type the name of school and course. The searchbox will bring out profiles of people doing such courses in the school. You can add them up and ask questions via email or otherwise.

RexCheeng:
Is there anyone here who recently sent GRE scores to a school via B.Y Mafit? I'd like to know if the deal is also a 'promo'.
Thanks.

N8000? It is not a promo and I used it to send some of my score reports to atleast 5 or 6 schools. The rate was better for me because ETS charges $27 to send each score report which is still N8100 at N300/$ and I doubt banks charge that low.

briliantsak:
Good day guys,
I'm new here...I graduated last year from a Federal University of Technology in Nigeria with over 92% CGPA. I've scheduled my GRE for November 2, my vocabulary bank is quite good ( say 60%) and I'm still working on it. I'm above average with mathematics ( working on that too). But the truth of the matter is I'm kinda scared, maybe because I've contacted some schools outside and they're willing to accept me (based on my result and research experience with publications)... all I'm left with is the GRE.

Hmmmmm... I don't even know what to say again (Smiles, I'm scared)

Kindly help me out guys...

You are welcome.

Your strong vocab would not be of help if you don't know how to use it in context. And the GRE will never test you on a word in the most recognized meaning so make sure you are taking note of such words like 'Table, Involved, Qualify and Discriminate' etc as their varied use far strays from what we all know.

By now you should be taking only full-length tests. Solving questions at your own pace can be misleading. I was getting 34/36 sometimes all in many of the Manhattan exercises but kept jamming in the venue because I falsely tested myself.

So take the full-length tests including the essay prompts to develop the stamina you need on the main day. A lot of us would have done better if we had developed enough stamina. I know for certain that that would have been my case. To add to that, practicing full-length tests helps cure the nerves.

Make sure you don't waste the PowerPrep II software; use the first one as a diagnostic test and the 2nd one a day or so before your GRE date. It would tell you almost exactly what to expect on the main day in terms of the score you would reproduce.

Employ useful tips on the main day. Some questions will simply be solved by plugging in the answers and testing it. Some would be solved simply by eliminating weird options and guessing between the final 2. Don't do 'gra gra' like me who thought I needed to solve every single Maths Q to get a 170. Bizzarely, the GRE does not work that way.

One guy from OAU that got Q-170 said...wait for it... that he did not answer 2 questions in his 2nd QR. And it paid off because they ended up being the easy questions. I know someone else who got 18/20 in the first section and 14/20 in the second yet his composite Maths score came to 159 yet another with 16/20 and 16/20 got 163. If you are skilled enough to get the difficult questions right, this could be your kismet.

HEADYWORLD:
thanks for your response, what if i take the GRE exam and have good score, will that ease the hurdles? DO YOU HAVE IDEA OF WHAT I CAN DO, MAYBE A TOP UP PROGRAM?

The best person to ask this question is the grad coordinator of your prospective schools.

You can get their emails on the websites of the schools.

temmitats:
You're right, I was able to learn that the diversity scholarship is awarded to US citizens and Permanent residents, This wasn't stated on their website at all. At least now I know that.

So to be or not to be?

HEADYWORLD:
Please, can HND holder write GRE and gain admission for masters? if not, what are the things i need to do to qualify me for this exam?
thanks on your swift response

Oga, you can write the exams. Whether you would be admitted now depends on the school.

Ask the grad coord of the schools you are considering.

HEADYWORLD:
GOOD MORNING, CAN HND HOLDER TAKE GRE EXAM FOR MSC ADMISSION?

The chances of getting admitted into good US schools is already X3 harder for BSc holders without a GRE. Now factor in the HND and see if that factor does not, more than quadruple without the GRE.

gokuu:
Anyone here has used or plans to use expert admissions consultants for their applications?

The girl I told you about in NYU Stern used some experts. 2.1 Accounting degree, 319 GRE 104 TOEFL. She paid N300k late 2015 or so.

Yea, she got fully-funded into Stern for her MBA. Her $71k tuition waived with a $5000/month stipend.

The point is, the credible ones work yet sometimes they don't but if you have the money (which you do). Give it a try. UT Austin, Duke, MIT Sloan etc. if they end up giving you a good/full tuition waiver, you won't remember how much you paid the consultants.

hybeenoni:
Good evening all, I appreciate honest advice been given out to those in need of it.

I intend writing gre by 1st week of December and wish to be advised on schools that have reputations for funding.

Cgpa 4.22/5
Wes 3.37/4
BSc Mathematics
Proposed course Msc Actuarial science or Data science/Analytics

Major consideration is funding.

Would appreciate your usual kind advice

Your GPA and WES don't rhyme. You should check it very well so as not to sell yourself short.

Your first degree and master's prospects are in sync. What advice are you looking out for?

Endeavor to do well in your Quants as that is almost what you would be judged by. It would determine the schools you can apply to and funding you could get. Your GPA is already very good.

Greatmayok:
Hello house,

I have a Bachelors and Masters degree in Agricultural Economics.
I am planning to write my GRE later this year. I intend to apply for a PhD in Agric Economics in the US.

Kindly advise me on Universities in the US that provides a full tuition waiver and Graduate Assistantships in the field of Agricultural Economics.

Thanks.

1. Google your program and append PhD to it.
2. Check out schools that offer it.
3. Look for a ranking of such schools (if you care about such)
4. Visit schools' websites and check for thesis interests that match your spec.
5. Take email of grad coord of the dept as well as names and email ads of persons of interest (that you may like to work with)
6. Most schools would already have it stated; if they offer full tuition waivers to all or some of their PhD applicants and even the size of the stipend per annum.
7. In any case you could then email the grad coords asking them about the funding policies of the school for PhDs, GRE/TOEFL requirements, if you need to contact POIs on your own, GPA requirements etc.
8. Based on above, you would know whether to proceed with the school or abandon it.
9. Subsequent to 1-8, you would have a list of schools to apply to. Fin.

temmitats:
Hi guys, so yesterday I had a conversation with a current grad student in UW Madison and honestly it was so funny I cannot help sharing it.One of the reasons I chose UW Madison as my ambitious school was that while carrying out my research i discovered it was a predominantly white school and they were working towards diversifying their campus. I felt that would work in my favor being a black woman , they also made mention of the criteria for admitting international students by their countries' GPA equivalent and Nigeria's was a 3.6/5 and they consider the last two years of study too, It was looking perfect. This grad student is currently a beneficiary of the diversity scholarship, He's Hispanic,He practically advised me to not apply to UW Madison, He told me that over 75% of the student body is white and in Engineering specifically i could be the only person of color in a class of 20-25 students. I tried to let him know things like that don't really phase( I mean what is my business if i am the only black person in the whole school sef), He insisted I was going to be in for a very big surprise and he told me that if i eventually go to school there I'll have to assume that every white person is racist to protect myself ( is it really that deep?). I never really considered racism when choosing schools I believe I'll be able to endure anything thrown at me but what do you guys think? Do you think I should actually consider potential racism when considering schools?

How much can your faith take? There would always be outliers to every case and you could be.

That does not mean we are trivializing what he said (as he gave something worthy of note or consideration).

Remember Drhopeful said she almost did not apply to UVA again as she thought her writing GRE a second time and not getting the grad cord/ or POI to respond to her questions spelled doom about her chances. Well, you know the rest.

There are racists everywhere by the way.

gokuu:
@Time2Smile,
Have you started working on your applications?

Just because He might be too busy to respond soon to you, He is already in the US undergoing his PhD in Molecular Cell Biology or so at the University of Texas in Dallas fully-funded with a very generous stipend - his own words.

He has a very strong profile and is one of the few people especially on this thread who cracked the 330 (Q-165 V- 165 AWA- 4.5)GRE score in his first try!

eaglebeliever:
Good evening everyone. I have followed all the posts on this platform and it really helped. I took the GRE on September 1st and was targeting a minimum score of 320. I ended up scoring 311 (Q - 159, V - 152). I basically started preparing in mid-july when I registered for the examination. I prepared hard but didn't have enough time to take full-practice tests because I left it for the last week and unplanned assignments from the office crept into my schedule. On exam day, the major mistake I remember on my Quant is that I marked four questions in the second part and when I returned to the first one, I spent all my time trying to solve the question that I could not get back to at least guessing in the other 3. I actually didn't answer three questions.

I am a Lecturer in a University in Nigeria (2014 - date). My field of Study is Electrical Engineering (Wireless, Mobile and Communications Engineering). I had about 2 Years field experience with a Telecommunications company in Lagos between 2010 and 2012 before I obtained my Masters degree. I also have a couple of publications (not really in the top journals of my field). I had a 3.94/5 in my first degree and a 4.52/5 in my Masters programme. I work in the University I got my Masters so it will be easy to get LOR from my Profs.

I need help on what schools to apply to considering my GRE score. A friend of my who works in the US is advising me to apply to schools some of our classmates in the university attended. They include Tennessee Tech University, Worchester Polytechnic University, Clemson University, University of Kentucky, University of Massachusetts, Lowell and University of New Mexico. I have researched them but they really don't have the kind of rating I would have preferred. I need a lot of advise.

cc @Scholastica16

Since every other person has given you a robust reply, I would just zero-in on the highlighted portion of your post.

Ratings are very subjective especially in the US, that I am surprised anybody still takes it as seriously as you have used it above. I hate to belabor it, but some Ivies have shït engineering programs compared to some of the schools you have afore-mentioned.

Every thing you are planning and working on should be in respect to not just the overarching department you are looking at (EE) but even to the specific area of interest (wireless, mobile and communications) as that -and not rankings- should shape your decision making.

Let me put this in context: Clemson Uni for instance, is top notch for construction management that if someone were to take MIT over them and go for interviews in the US upon graduating, they should not be surprised to see the Clemson grads sweeping all the jobs.

In the same vein, UTAustin is better than MIT's Sloan in terms of MFin because it offers best placements and job prospects after graduation that if one were to routinely use MITs number 1 or 2 overall ranking as a top world university over UTAustin's, they would be remiss.

Another thing is individuals or specific professors in equally specific project interests can be a scale-tipper. One of my close friends went to TTU (Tennessee Tech) to obtain his master's degree in EE albeit I'm unsure of his project interests. He told me he attended job interviews with Stanford, GATech and even MIT grads but in 2 of the jobs he bested all of them and was offered the job 4 good months to his graduation; Cummins in Texas and I think Ford in Michigan. He ended up taking the Cummins offer because they offered to sponsor the H1B whereas Ford said they could not. The point is, his employers did not see those higher-ranking schools and begin to salivate about their degrees, nope. Instead, they treated everyone on a level-playing field and my friend used it to his advantage.

But if you are still particular about the schools you want to attend, perhaps you would need to retake the GRE like someone else said. Try to get 162+ in the Qs and then aim for schools that match your taste. Only note that, even after getting the GRE score of your taste, it does not guarantee that you would be accepted into the schools that you care for. So use your tongue to count your teeth.

In any case, you should try to contact potential advisors and present yourself to them. If any of them picks interest in you or your project, I know for certain that your GRE score would not matter. And the beauty of this is, it could very well be a professor in a top 20 engineering school.


PS: Add this to your list (if it is not already there); UMich Dearborn, UTK, UTDallas, UCDavies and UT San Antonio (if you are not so big on rankings anymore).

Sorry for my long note.

patomaniac:
Can you please list schools in the US that offer such programs?? As my search leads me to schools that offer the online program... Thanks

Are you sure you searched?

I did not know diddly squat about the program until yesterday yet I routinely found many sites detailing the top 50 schools that offer the program and their corollary job prospects.

tizentos:
Great GRE scores flying around, congrats to gokuu,Time2reign, temmitats(kudos to your tenacity).

You also have a great quant score @fatazee, you can still be accepted in some engineering programs provided you have eye-catching overall profile,better still, rewrite the test to be on a safer side. @TheZed, review your techniques, vocabulary and write more mock test.

The process that ensues after GRE is the most onerous, gliding from one school's website to the other, checking faculty members, I'm extremely inundated by the process. My SOP is quite long ; I'm not sure if I'm getting it right, do I need to give brief details about the projects have done?

Gurus in the house, I need some tips to go about it. Thanks

Each school gives a guideline to follow in writing SOPs. Though all guidelines would have similar requirements, some others are differentiated by subtleties or nuances here and there that you should look out for.

So ransack the school's website to see their SOP guidelines as it is always there.

Anyways, yea, it usually makes sense to give brief details about past projects you have done and how they tie into what you are trying to do going forward.

Time2reign:
Petroleum Engineering

Please, forget Petroleum engineering I beg you. The report on ground based on post-schooling job prospects are not favourable which means even funding for the course would have dwindled.

Even US citizens are having a hard time getting jobs with that course with massive let offs being announced every other day.

Not trying to act as a harbinger of bad news but you need to hear it this point-blank to avoid stories that touch.

Have you looked at Chemical, Industrial or Production engineering?

Time2reign:
@Scholastica16

what do u feel about a masters in engineering in Texas and with a gpa of 3.49/4.0 (using WES)

GRE: 328

Mehn..It seems the secret to a great GRE score is to call oneself Time2*insert something great*

Great GRE score you have there.

Texas as a whole is broad so it depends on the schools you are looking at but it is generally good for engineering courses.

The question is, what is your engineering discipline and what schools are you looking at? What Master's program are you also vying for?

TheZed:
Please how does the 21days rule work? Can I register now but for a date after the 21st day or I can't register until after the 21st day ?

You can register now but for a date 21days after your last one.

gokuu:
Exactly, some of these schools have close to 100% placement rates. I'm applying to the MFin not the MBA - I do not have the experience required for the MBA.
TBH, recruitment is my primary motivating force for applying to these schools; I'm really after the platform that comes with the school.

Your GPA is really strong. Sloan, though competitive could be very well within reach for you. UT Austin is highest rated for your program and Texas has PwC, KPMG and co to employ you right after.

I would only tell you to consider either UCBerkeley or UCLA as they both have very great job prospects too. UVA Charlottesville is another great fit for your program and someone on here who got admitted into the school for a different program said International students with 3.7/4.0 GPA and 320+ GRE stand a great chance.

Which means you do.

gokuu:
Yeah. I'm looking at UTAustin, that have a good programme and very good graduate placements, and Texas economy is booming.

Check UCLA too.

temmitats:
Today I took the GRE a second time and I'm relieved it's over as I don't intend taking it again.I took the test for the first time July 3rd, I scored 309, 154v 155q,AWA 4.0. I was disappointed to say the least,it felt like all of my efforts were in vain. I put in a lot of work considering my schedule(I'm resident on a construction site and it's very stressful)and it was just a downer. When I left the exam hall that day I knew I wanted to retake the exam but I was thinking of the money I'll have to pay again, luckily for me a friend of mine graciously offered to pay for me( someone I've never met o). So I registered and decided to focus more on practice tests to build my stamina.Today's was significantly more difficult than my last and I can attribute it to my doing better on my first sections than I did during my last attempt. Honestly the second section of my quantitative was difficult, my hands were shaking throughout the whole thing. I was already afraid I was going to score poorly again.My experimental section was verbal too so I had to read those long passages urgggh, I eventually reported my scores( I actually covered my face, I was really nervous) opened it and saw 158v 158Q , while its 4 marks short of my ideal score, I'm just happy it isn't too bad and I can actually put the GRE behind me and move on to the next thing.
This thread really helped me, I got a lot of materials andI was also motivated by the great scores here. Saying a big thank you to rexcheeng for his encouragement too. I'm sorry if my writing is all over the place, I'm just writing as it comes to mind.

Great score. You can do a lot with this provided you avoid the crazy top 15-20 schools. 316 is nothing to sneeze at as I doubt any school has anything higher than 315 as their base minimum.

Congrats.

gokuu:
Thanks.
That's where the problem lies. I was looking at MIT's MFin - the programme's online page says the mid-80 range for GRE Q is 163 - 170.

I'm really hoping I can get in as some kind of "diversity" candidate.

Nobody can say if it will be or not but your 162 I can guarantee, will not be the militating factor.

The problem with that "diversity" is that they may take someone from South Africa or Kenya as the African they needed to fulfill the diversity requirement simply because they may have 3.9/4.0 GPA which Unilag may not have given you.

The girl I know in my last post had 319 GRE and a 2.1 in GPA though I am not sure if she was a 4pter.

gokuu:
Hello, so I've taken my GRE so I think I can ask questions on here now. I wanted ask about the jobs market in Charlotte-Raleigh-Durham area. I'm seriously looking at Duke's Fuqua School of Business and chances for getting employers that could sponsor the H1B.

Also, any thoughts on diversity considerations when schools hand out admissions?

TBH, the quality of school and nature of program can influence the H1B. With that in mind, even after having undergone the MBA Program (I presume this is what you are vying for) you can get great jobs outside of the state so you have nothing to be worried about.

Duke is even Ivy whereas MIT is not. Try your hands on NYU Stern's MBA Program as well if you are looking for other solid options. Someone I know got in July 2016 fully-funded with a $5000/month stipend to boot.

gokuu:
Oh okay,
I didn't do very good for my choice school.
I got 324 (Q:162 V:162), took the exam today so nothing yet on AWA.

Wow congrats. We have the same composite but different breakdowns.

Can you share with us your preparatory steps and how the tests went for you today? What materials you used and how long you prepared for?

You write like a proper grad student, So I would be surprised if you scored less than a 4.5 in your AWA.

And your scores are very good except MIT and co are involved.

dawbbleOuEi:
"Thank you for your interest in our graduate program. We do not offer a terminal Master's degree. However, there are two mechanisms to enter our department for studies toward the Ph.D.:

1) You can apply directly to the Department of Biological Sciences. If accepted, you will complete 2-3 rotations with faculty in our department. This is a good option if you have a strong interest in one or several labs in our department and prefer a small, focused environment with maximum coursework flexibility. In your statement of interest, please indicate which laboratories (from the list of primary training faculty) particularly interest you.

2) Alternatively, you can enter the department of Biological Sciences at the end of the first year after applying through the Interdisciplinary Graduate Program (IGP). The IGP is a first-year admission program that includes 11 different departments and programs concentrating on the Biomedical Sciences. The Biological Sciences department is a member of the IGP program (the only department that is housed in Arts and Science, rather than the medical school). If you are accepted to the IGP program, you complete 4 rotations during the first year while taking coursework with the other IGP students (a large, overview course in the fall and smaller, focused courses in the spring). The rotations can be completed with anyone affiliated with the 11 different departments and programs (more than 200 faculty total). At the end of the first year, you join a lab and also join a specific graduate program to which that PI belongs (e.g. Biological Sciences)."

It's a lot. Would someone please be kind enough to make this clearer?
cc DreManuel, Scholastica16, Time2Smile ....pretty please?

What did you ask the Grad coord about?

gokuu:
Hello, so I've taken my GRE so I think I can ask questions on here now. I wanted ask about the jobs market in Charlotte-Raleigh-Durham area. I'm seriously looking at Duke's Fuqua School of Business and chances for getting employers that could sponsor the H1B.

Also, any thoughts on diversity considerations when schools hand out admissions?

Share your GRE experience with us, then we can take it from there.

TheZed:
Good evening everyone, I wrote my gre again for the second time today and was only able to add 5 points to my previous scores. Am really devastated at the moment, Don't know what to do. Previous score V 144 Q 150. Recent score V 143 Q156

Congratulations first and foremost. I have 2 friends that got admitted into good master's programs with 286 or thereabouts so don't be hard on yourself.

My target GRE Verbal score was 164 but I did not meet it in 2 tries despite scoring 166 and 164 in 2 of my practice tests. I would use myself as an example to explain how tricky the GRE Verbal could be.

In my first GRE I had 156 in my VR. I went through the diagnostics and saw that I had 16/20 in the TCs and SEs but 9/20 in the passages. In fact, I got only 3/10 in the long passages and 6/10 in the shorter ones.

Armed with this information, I figured I needed to work on the longer passages so I took steps I had not taken originally i.e started reading NY times, Long Reads etc. I knew I understood just about anything that was written in English so it was flustering how longer passages challenged the heck out of me in the GRE.

I can't say with a straight face that this strategy worked. Personally, I think knowing how to pace yourself will do the trick. I am saying this because, practicing ahome, I found myself in many situations finishing before the 20min mark and getting 14-18/20 in both long and short comprehension passages, but in the venue of my first GRE, after having answered the TCs & SEs I went blank for like 3 mins.

I found myself reading lines and not remembering what I had just read. In fact, the words were appearing in doubles to me. All my hardwork came to naught and I ended up guessing randomly in like 4 different questions.

My plan did not change much when I retook the GRE as I tossed away my strategy on the day when the nerves grew and I am sure same thing happens/happened to you so I would just tell you to do what I did: concentrate on your TCs and SEs.

Learn all the words from the Barron 1100 and Magoosh vocab builder lists. Understand the tips for plugging in answers in your SEs and TCs. They are always 20 of them in both tests and if you can get all of them, your extrapolated GRE score would be between 150-152 - even without getting any answers right in the passages!!

In my second GRE the diagnostics said I got 18/20 in the SEs and TCs but only 10/20 in the Long and short passages yet my composite verbal score still came to 160. I still panicked when I saw the long passages. I still guessed some of the answers. I only took the short passages, SEs and TCs seriously yet I did a good 4 marks better simply because of the TCs and SEs.

Notice I only did 1 better in the passage sections between both GREs. That is because it is harder to improve in that aspect than it is in the TCs & SEs. So instead of knocking your head trying to figure out how to crack 150+ just focus on the TCs, SEs and shorter passages. I give you the permission to randomly guess the answers to the longer passages if you are tired. Not only would you do 150+, if you are even lucky, you would do 160+.

Caveat: na just advice. No look for me if e no work o.

santricedupas:
hello house, am new on this thread
I graduated with a 2.2 in agric extension and rural sociology from university of ibadan in 2014
I want to study in usa for masters in agric related field
I have heard of scholarships but I don't know if I can be entitled to that despite my cgpa
I need your enlightenment and genuine advice.
thanks

Is your 2.2 up to 3.0/5.0? Then write GRE & TOEFL and take it from there. 2.2 is no excuse, people are enjoying full-funding with their 2.2 in the US as we speak.

DeSepiero:
I couldn't help but notice for the second time; if you don't mind Sir, I'd like to know why you're advising some persons here not to apply to UPenn.

Because their acceptance rate is not encouraging for international students except one has external source of funding.