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Which PhD Programs Do Not Require the GRE–or will waive it in certain circumstances?

Brian Leiter

A philosophy student with an MA/MPhil degree from a university in Europe writes:

Are there PhD programs in the US that wave the GRE requirement for people with a MA or MPhil (apart from MIT)? 

After a philosophy-only BA and a two-year MPhil in philosophy, can't conferences, publications and the like be better evidence than the GRE for graduate-level work in philosophy??

Apart from the cost, I think the time spent "studying" for the GRE (i) could be better used studying and doing philosophy or related matters; (b) could discourage (at least some) European applicants. 

So there's two issues here:  are their PhD programs that do not require the GRE?  And are there PhD programs that waive the GRE requirement in special circumstances?  Readers?   Posts can be unsigned if they link to an official website with information, otherwise they should be signed.

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14 responses to “Which PhD Programs Do Not Require the GRE–or will waive it in certain circumstances?”

  1. Joao Abreu

    The PhD programs in Philosophy at Johns Hopkins and Cornell seem not to require the GRE scores.

    Reply
  2. Jeff Roland

    Back in the mid-1990s, when I applied to graduate programs, Cornell didn't require GREs. As far as I know, that hasn't changed.

    Reply
  3. Craig

    As a European currently converting to Philosophy via an MA course with plans to continue on to a PhD, I can say that this requirement is putting me off the US. I've got tonnes of work to do to be in a position to write an application in time for December/January deadlines, and I'd rather concentrate on the philosophy than practice GRE maths questions.

    Reply
  4. maxhgns

    As was mentioned, the only ones that come to mind are MIT, Cornell, and Johns Hopkins.

    The GRE is also not required in Canada (IIRC universities aren't actually *allowed* to require it or use it alone to make cuts–I tried to find the rule/law, however, and couldn't do so in a reasonably short period of time, so maybe I imagined it). Or, at any rate, while most Canadian institutions do recommend it, and want to see it if you did it (they don't want you hiding a bad score!), they'll consider applications without it.

    Reply
  5. Kelvin

    @maxhgns: Toronto requires the GRE for their PhD program: (under sub-section 2d)

    http://philosophy.utoronto.ca/graduate/admissions

    Reply
  6. Evan Westra

    The University of British Columbia Philosophy Department does not require GRE scores for admission to the MA or the PhD.

    http://www.philosophy.ubc.ca/graduate/admissions-faq.html

    Reply
  7. Justin

    The University of Wisconsin does not require the GRE for admittance, but does require the GRE for funding. Also, nearly all programs in Canada do not require the GRE. Toronto is the exception and not the norm. The University of Calgary, Mcgill, The University of Alberta, and Western Ontario are all solid programs that do not require the GRE and offer very good funding packages. The University of Calgary is also in the process of hiring a Canadian research chair in philosophy of science and logic and this should make them that much better.

    On a side note: Why have a different ranking for Canadian programs? Why not include them in the U.S rankings and call it North American rankings? It's not like there are many programs in Canada, if there were I could understand the separation. Just a thought.

    Reply
  8. Berit Brogaard

    It doesn't matter whether departments require the GRE or not. Last year our 99th percentile student got into every single top program to which she applied (quite a few), including the ones that do not require the GRE. Without her "star score" I doubt she would have been as successful, and I really don't think she would have gotten into the program she ended up choosing to go to. She certainly is really really good (and that's an understatement). I just doubt that the departments in question would have discovered how good she is without her GRE proof.

    Reply
  9. Anon Job Seeker

    5 years ago when I was applying to PhD programs I applied to both Cornell and Johns Hopkins. I didn't submit my GRE scores as they were not required. However, at Johns Hopkins the secretary of the school asked for them. She claimed that the admissions committee still wanted to see them. My suspicion is that most schools know that you will apply to more than just the 3 departments that don't require them. Thus, not submitting your (optional) scores to places that don't require them will look as if you have something to hide. At this point, I don't see any way around the GRE.

    Reply
  10. GPTLA

    Maybe it's different if English is a second language, but how much time does one really need to study for the GRE? A dozen hours at most completing a few sample tests should be enough to familiarize oneself with the questions and the material covered. I would think that the extortionate rents paid to ETS are more burdensome than the test itself.

    Reply
  11. Henrik Lagerlund

    We don't require GRE scores at Western. For information about admission see http://www.uwo.ca/philosophy/graduate/index.html.

    Reply
  12. Jason Marsh

    I think you meant: http://www.uwo.ca/philosophy/graduate/index.html

    Reply
  13. random grad student

    Even if most departments require the GRE, my guess is that it is not necessarily that significant of a factor in the decision making process at many places, if my own experience is any evidence. I had a pretty mediocre showing on the GRE but was admitted to a number of good places (NYU, Harvard, Pitt…).

    Reply
  14. MA student from England.

    I got a very high average in my undergraduate Philosophy BA at a decent university in England . Moreover, I've now received a scholarship for an MA in Continental Philosophy, and I expect to have similarly hight average at the end of this academic year.

    However, I haven't taken the GRE as I don't know nearly enough to pass the maths. This is because I haven't studied maths since I was fourteen, and even back then I didn't cover most of the things needed for the GRE. I expect that there are a lot of seemingly promising students like me, who would otherwise have a very strong PhD application, but who are put off applying in the U.S.A. because of the GRE.

    Reply

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