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Last Updated on April 27, 2023
Although most test-takers expect the GRE to be a “one-and-done” experience, many find themselves thinking about retaking the exam.
If you’re currently debating whether retaking the GRE is the best course of action, how long you should wait before retaking the test, or whether you should concentrate on your applications rather than attempt to increase your score, then please read on.
This article will address frequently asked questions about retaking the GRE and common reasons for retaking it. We’ll also discuss situations when a quick retake (of 21 days) makes sense and when it’s better to wait longer before retaking the GRE.
Topics We’ll Cover:
- GRE Retake Policy: How Long Do I Have to Wait to Retake the GRE?
- Reasons for Retaking the GRE
- GRE Retake Strategy: Is It Worth It to Retake the GRE?
- Does Retaking the GRE Hurt You?
- To Retake or Not to Retake?
Let’s start with an overview of the GRE retake policy.
GRE Retake Policy: How Long Do I Have to Wait to Retake the GRE?
Test-takers can sit for the GRE once every 21 days, but they may take the exam no more than 5 times in a 12-month period, regardless of whether they are taking the at-home or in-person GRE. Also, note that the GRE does not have a lifetime limit. In other words, you can take the GRE as many times as you’d like.
KEY FACT:
Test-takers can sit for the GRE once every 21 days, but they may take the exam no more than 5 times in a 12-month period. There is no lifetime limit.
Please see this article for additional information on the GRE retake policy.
Now, let’s look at some reasons that retaking the GRE might be a good idea.
Reasons for Retaking the GRE
If you’ve been wondering, “Should I retake the GRE?,” the answer is almost always a resounding YES. There are, of course, some exceptions, which I’ll discuss further below. But in the vast majority of cases, retaking the GRE to improve your score is a wise strategy. To put it another way, if you believe that you require a GRE retake, you almost certainly do.
Let’s discuss some “non-content-related” reasons why you should retake the GRE. You will see that in most of these circumstances, retaking the GRE as soon as possible is the optimal strategy.
If you believe that you require a GRE retake, you almost certainly do.
Non-Content Factors Affected Your Performance
Even if you were well-prepared for the GRE, there are many situations that you might have encountered on test day that affected your performance. These issues didn’t involve the exam’s content. Rather, they stemmed from your internal “processing,” or possibly an external situation that affected your ability to do your best on test day. To start, we will discuss test anxiety.
You Suffered from Test Anxiety on Exam Day
Being well-prepared for the GRE may not always be enough to keep your nerves at bay on the day of your exam. Test anxiety is more common than you may think, and it has the potential to impact your GRE score negatively.
If you believe that nerves, stress, or the pressure of the exam prevented you from earning the highest possible GRE score, then fight that anxiety head-on and get back on the GRE horse right away. However, before taking your next stab at the GRE, you must practice some techniques for calming your nerves and refocusing yourself on test day.
If you’re feeling nervous on test day, you can use a variety of simple but highly effective strategies, such as deep breathing or reciting a mantra, to help calm your nerves. If you’re prone to test anxiety in general, you may want to incorporate some stress-reduction strategies into your daily life in the 21 days leading up to your retake. For some more detailed advice regarding test anxiety, please read our article about how to overcome GRE test anxiety.
TTP PRO TIP:
If you suffer from test anxiety, you should practice stress-reduction techniques before your retake, and plan to use them during your exam.
You Just Had a Bad Day
Even the most well-prepared GRE test-taker can have a bad day every now and then. Perhaps you were feeling under the weather the morning of your exam, or perhaps you had a bad night’s sleep the night before the exam. Perhaps you experienced car trouble on test day, or perhaps your commute to the test center took longer than anticipated, and you felt rushed once you arrived. For whatever reason, you simply felt “off,” and as a result, your test performance was negatively affected.
Remember, even professional athletes, who are the best of the best at what they do, suffer from “bad days.” So, keep this thought in mind if you happen to suffer from a bad day on your GRE. Don’t beat yourself up over it. Instead, just tell yourself: “Now that I’ve gotten my bad day out of the way, I’m going to have a fantastic day the next time I sit for the GRE.” Having a positive attitude about your retake will help you get the score you truly deserve. Once again, in this scenario, don’t push off your next GRE. Clearly, you are ready — take your next GRE in 21 days.
TTP PRO TIP:
If you had a bad day, don’t beat yourself up about it. Instead, tell yourself that you’ve “gotten it out of the way,” and schedule your retake with confidence.
Your Timing Was Off During the Exam
“Freak” Timing Factors
Poor time-management on your GRE can result from several factors. These include rushing through questions because of nervousness, worrying about previous or upcoming questions instead of concentrating on the question in front of you, and implementing misguided strategies, such as overinvesting time on a select number of questions in the Verbal and Quant sections. Any of these problems could result in a GRE score that does not accurately reflect your knowledge and abilities.
If you suffered from any of these “freak” timing issues on your GRE, there is no reason that you can’t dust yourself off and retake the GRE pretty quickly after your initial exam. With a greater focus on your retake, there is no reason why you can’t improve your score.
“Macro” Timing Issues
However, there are also larger, macro timing issues that may not be so easy to overcome.
For example, running out of time in a section or leaving questions unanswered could be a symptom of a more significant problem that could take longer than 21 days to resolve. In many cases, pacing issues on the GRE are an indication that a test-taker’s knowledge or skills are lacking. In these cases, additional GRE preparation is required.
Additionally, you may have simply not spent enough time fine-tuning your pacing strategies during your GRE preparation. Remember that maintaining a steady pace under strict time constraints throughout a lengthy exam with multiple question types is a skill in and of itself and one that most test-takers will require a significant amount of time and practice to master.
The bottom line is that being completely honest with yourself when analyzing the reasons for your pacing issues on test day will save you time and money in the long run because you will not have to repeat the process and risk getting the same result. Remember, you’re not required to retake the GRE in 21 days just because you have the option to do so.
TTP PRO TIP:
If you received a low score because of poor time-management, determine why you were unable to pace yourself properly, and give yourself enough time to address those issues before retaking the test.
The Test Center Environment Threw Off Your Game
While you should always try to simulate test-day conditions when taking practice GREs, there is only so much you can do to control how the test center environment will affect your GRE performance. For example, the temperature in the exam room was too cold or too warm, or the person at the desk next to yours kept clearing his throat or tapping his fingers against his desk. These types of occurrences are quite random and not likely to be repeated. So, if you experienced one of those situations, go ahead and reschedule your GRE as soon as possible.
In addition, since the at-home GRE is now an option, if you find that you’re having issues at the test center, you may want to seriously consider taking the GRE online from the comfort of your own home (provided you have the necessary space and equipment).
TTP PRO TIP:
If problems or distractions at the test center caused you to lose focus, consider taking the GRE online for a retake.
Now that we’ve covered some non-content-related factors that might have held back your score, let’s look at some test prep issues that might have led to your getting a less-than-optimal score. When analyzing these issues, we will see that, while retaking the GRE would be a good idea, the fixes that you need to implement might take more than just 21 days. Let’s begin with being ill-prepared on test day.
You Were Ill-Prepared on Test Day
It happens every day: students take the GRE even when they are ill-prepared to get their target scores. There are several circumstances in which students take the GRE before they are truly ready.
You Took the Test Even Though You Weren’t Ready
There is an old saying: “Wishing won’t make it so.” This saying is true for the GRE. If you are not prepared for your exam, you won’t score well, and you’ll need to either accept a low score or study more, so that you are well-prepared for your retake.
So, if you walked into your GRE simply wishing to do great on your test, then a low score should be no surprise. Because you did not realize the difficulty of the GRE, you might not have taken your preparation seriously enough, and you paid a price for being ill-prepared. While being ill-prepared would necessitate a retake, you must keep in mind that you may need to give yourself months (not days) before retaking your GRE. In fact, if you are considering changing up your study strategy, check out our article about how to best prepare for the GRE.
The next reason for being ill-prepared on test day involves using poor GRE prep materials.
You Did Not Use Comprehensive GRE Preparation Materials
Using Comprehensive Study Materials Is Crucial
Your GRE score will certainly reflect gaps in your knowledge if you do not use comprehensive materials for your GRE prep.
To perform well on the GRE, you must master a large amount of content, and this content encompasses a wide range of topics and concepts. As a result, you must use GRE preparation materials that teach all of that content in-depth and provide ample practice so that you can put all of your knowledge to use and hone your skills when dealing with the various GRE question types.
If you spent a significant amount of time and effort on your GRE preparation and still felt unprepared on test day, there is a good chance that the preparation materials you used were insufficient for your needs. Thus, you should look into other options for further study and preparation.
You should spend some time reading verified course reviews written by GRE students on reputable websites such as GRE Prep Club. You can sign up for trials of various courses to get a feel for which course would work well for you.
Understandably, most GRE students don’t have an infinite amount of time to prepare for the test. Therefore, there is no reason to keep investing more and more time in preparation materials that aren’t working for you.
Reassess Your Choice of Study Materials
Students frequently choose GRE prep materials without giving it much thought at the outset — they simply choose a name that they are familiar with or purchase the first GRE book that they come across. Not all GRE preparation materials, however, are created equal. You can’t expect the same GRE preparation materials you’ve been using for the past 6 months to produce a different result if you just add another month to the clock.
For example, I know a GRE student who began with a baseline GRE score of 310 and set a score goal of 330. His receiving a GRE score of 313, which was only 3 points higher than his baseline, came as a surprise after months of diligent work using a self-study course. He was fortunate that he had given himself plenty of time to study, and he decided to retake the test.
He also was not interested in continuing his preparation with the prep course he had used for his first exam. He decided to enroll in the TTP program. He followed his TTP study plan for his second attempt and received a 332 on the GRE, 2 points higher than his target and 22 points higher than his first exam score.
If you put forth your best effort during your GRE preparation, but you still struggled on your exam, your prep materials may be part of the issue. Reassess your original choice of prep materials, choose new ones, and invest some time in using them.
TTP PRO TIP:
If you put a lot of time and effort into your GRE preparation but still struggled when confronted with GRE questions on test day, consider studying with more comprehensive prep materials before retaking the test.
GRE Retake Strategy: Is It Worth It to Retake the GRE?
When deciding whether to retake the GRE and how long to wait before taking it again, students sometimes find themselves in a “gray area.” In other words, they find themselves in a place where they are unsure whether retaking the GRE makes complete sense.
In addition, because every individual’s situation is unique, decisions about GRE retakes must be made on an individual basis. We can consider whether retaking the GRE is the best course of action by considering some hypothetical examples. Consider the following scenarios.
Scenario 1: Your deadline is close and your score is acceptable.
Consider the following scenario: you’re applying to MBA programs at Dartmouth, Harvard, and Stanford, and you have six weeks until the deadlines for each program. You take the GRE and receive a score of 326. In the cases of Dartmouth and Harvard, which have median GRE scores of 324 and 327, respectively, a 326 score is just acceptable. In the case of Stanford, which has an average GRE score of 330, a 326 score is borderline at best. In other words, your score is acceptable but not exceptional. Would it be worthwhile to retake the test?
Assuming that you have your applications wrapped up and are scoring higher than 326 on your practice exams, I’d recommend giving the GRE another shot,. If you could bring your GRE score to, say, 330+, it’s possible that score could be a difference-maker for you. And, given that you’ve demonstrated that you’re capable of earning 330 on practice tests, you should be capable of earning that higher score on the real thing as well.
Remember, you never want your GRE score to be the reason for rejection from any schools. Thus, if your score seems just average, then, the best course of action may be to err on the side of caution and aim for a higher score.
This type of scenario serves as a good reminder not to put off taking your GRE until the last possible moment. If you give yourself more time than you think you’ll need to prepare for and take the GRE, you can avoid finding yourself in a situation in which you’re pressed for time but aren’t quite where you want to be.
TTP PRO TIP:
Giving yourself more time than you think you’ll need to prepare for and take the GRE is a good idea.
Scenario 2: You have a high score, but you know you can improve it.
Often, people believe that if they already have a high GRE score, there is no point in retaking the test to score even higher. However, if you think you have a good chance of improving your score and have the time to retake the test, why not go for it?
Consider the following scenario: you received a GRE score of 330, which is significantly higher than the average GRE score at graduate schools to which you want to apply and is unquestionably impressive by any standard. But what if you’re reasonably confident that you could achieve a score of 335+ with a little more time? Perhaps your practice test scores were already in that higher range, or perhaps you’ve been making consistent progress in your GRE preparation and are confident in both the material and your ability to continue to improve. Perhaps you are extremely familiar with the material, but you made a few mistakes in your test-taking strategy that you are confident you can correct.
In any of these cases, as long as you are not in a time crunch that makes a retake close to impossible, and you believe that you can improve your score with just a few more weeks of prep, does it really make sense to throw your hands up and declare that a score of 330 is the end of the road? In that case, give the GRE one last shot. After all, you have nothing to lose!
TTP PRO TIP:
If you’re confident that you can improve an already excellent score to an even better one, go for it. Just make sure you don’t fall into the perfectionist trap.
Next, let’s discuss a scenario in which it makes sense to actually stick with your current GRE score.
Scenario 3: You have a solid score and outperformed your practice exams.
While there are plenty of times when it makes sense to retake the GRE, you don’t always have to retake the test just because your score isn’t quite as high as it could be. For example, let’s say you’re in the middle of your desired score range for your target programs. Furthermore, you scored higher on the actual GRE than you did on your GRE practice exams. You also still need to commit time to finish your applications.
You have some reach schools and some safety schools, and in light of your overall profile, you may be happy with your score. Given that you maxed out your GRE score and need the time you have left to work on your applications, it may make sense to stand pat and not retake the GRE. You are likely competitive with your current score, and unlike in the previous scenario, in which you could study for a few weeks and improve your GRE score, in this case, you likely would have to study for a number of months to improve your score.
Remember, applicants don’t always need to be at the top of a school’s GRE range in order to be competitive. And while your GRE score is important, it is just one aspect of your profile. So, if you have a solid score for the schools you’re targeting and would need a significant amount of time to improve your score, don’t sit for a GRE retake. That time could probably be put to better use in other ways, such as making your application essays as good as they can be.
TTP PRO TIP:
If you can’t think of a specific reason why you should retake the test, don’t sit for a GRE retake just because you have the time.
Does Retaking the GRE Hurt You?
The short answer to the question of whether retaking the GRE “looks bad” to business schools or graduate programs is no. GRE retakes are a common occurrence among advanced degree applicants. So, you’re not going to get a mark against you just for taking the GRE more than once.
KEY FACT:
GRE retakes are a common occurrence among advanced degree applicants.
Additionally, you have the advantage of being able to use the ScoreSelect option after test day, which allows you to choose exactly which GRE scores you want to send to which institutions. Thus, regardless of how many times you take the GRE, you will always have the option to send just your highest GRE score to schools.
TTP PRO TIP:
Use the ScoreSelect option to give yourself flexibility in deciding which GRE scores to send to which institutions.
That said, you want to make sure that if you’re taking the GRE multiple times, you’re improving with each retake. The key to a successful GRE retake is to do things differently the second (or third, etc.) time around. If you keep using the same strategies over and over, you’re going to keep getting the same (or similar) results.
Remember, deciding whether to retake the GRE is a matter of balancing how easily you can improve your score with how much time you actually have to improve it. So, the more time you give yourself before your applications are due, the more flexibility you’ll have in mapping out a GRE retake strategy.
To Retake or Not to Retake the GRE?
I know that we have covered a lot of ground in this article. The bottom line is that if you are even considering a retake, there is a very good chance you should go for it. However, before doing so, you need to thoroughly analyze your current situation to determine whether that retake will happen in the span of weeks or months. Then, using the guidelines presented here, you should be able to determine the right answer for you.
Happy studying!
