GRE for PhD Admission: Do USA, Canada and Ivy League Programs Still Ask for It?

The GRE is no longer a blanket requirement for PhD admission in the USA. It is also not dead. For 2027 entry you will see three kinds of policy, often inside the same university:

• Required: You must send scores. No waiver.
• Optional: You may send scores. Committees say you won’t be penalised if you don’t.
• Not accepted: The committee will not look at scores even if you send them.

Princeton shows how mixed this is. Its Graduate School publishes a department-by-department table: for Fall 2026, sociology required the GRE, psychology listed it as optional, and anthropology did not accept it at all. source

So the only reliable answer is the department page for the exact program you are applying to, checked in the year you apply.

Read also: Fully Funded PhD in UK for International Students

Why the GRE lost ground

After 2020, many PhD programs dropped the GRE. Some said the test cost too much for low-income applicants and predicted little about research success. Others simply could not run test centres during COVID and later found they didn’t miss the scores.

The trend has since split. Many humanities, social science and life science programs stayed test-free. Some quantitative programs, especially in economics, engineering and parts of the physical sciences, kept or reinstated the requirement.

GRE for PhD in USA by field

These are broad patterns, not rules. Always confirm on the department page.

What about the Ivy League?

There is no single Ivy League GRE policy. Each of the eight universities lets departments decide. At Harvard, Yale, Columbia, Penn, Cornell, Brown, Dartmouth and Princeton, you’ll find departments that require the GRE sitting next to departments that won’t accept it.

If a scholarship or fellowship at the same school asks for scores, check that too. A few funding awards set their own rules.

PhD in Canada without GRE

Most Canadian PhD programs don’t require the GRE. A few economics, business and psychology programs still ask for it or recommend it. For most Canadian applicants, the email to a professor and the research fit carry far more weight.

Read also: Fully Funded PhD in Canada for Indian Students

UK, Europe and Australia

The UK, Ireland, Germany, the Netherlands and Australia generally don’t use the GRE for PhD admission. A few economics and business programs in Europe list it as optional. Your research proposal, master’s grades and interview matter far more.

Should you take the GRE if it’s optional?

Ask yourself three questions.

1. Will a good score fix a weakness? If your undergraduate GPA is modest, or your college isn’t well known in the US, a strong quant score can reassure a committee that you can handle the coursework.
2. Is your field quantitative? In economics, operations research, statistics and some engineering programs, a high quant score is still read as a signal even when it’s “optional”.
3. Do you have the time? If GRE prep will eat into your SOP, research or publications, skip it. Those carry more weight.

If you do submit an optional score, make it a good one. A weak score on an optional test can only hurt you.

What score is “good” for a PhD?

Departments rarely publish cut-offs now. As a rough guide from what we see in admitted profiles:

• Economics, maths-heavy engineering: Quant 166 to 170.
• Other STEM: Quant 163 and above is comfortable.
• Humanities and social sciences (where accepted): Verbal 160 and above, with a strong writing score.

These are not guarantees. Many students are admitted with lower scores and strong research.

Timing for Fall 2027

• Take the GRE by September or October 2026 so you have time for a retake.
• Scores are valid for five years.
• Send scores directly from ETS to each program. Some schools accept self-reported scores first and want official scores only after an offer.

The current GRE General Test is shorter than the old version, at under two hours. That makes a retake less painful, but still plan for it.

Read also: Letter of Recommendation for PhD

Mistakes to avoid

• Assuming one university has one GRE policy.
• Relying on a coaching centre’s list from two years ago.
• Spending three months on GRE prep and one week on your SOP.
• Sending a mediocre score to an optional program because you “already paid for it”.

FAQs

Is GRE required for PhD in USA for Indian students?

It depends on the department. International applicants follow the same GRE rules as US applicants.

Can I get into an Ivy League PhD without GRE?

Yes, in many departments. Check each program.

Does GRE replace TOEFL or IELTS?

No. English tests are a separate requirement. [link: IELTS vs TOEFL for PhD]

Do UK universities need the GRE for PhD? Almost never.

Get a program-by-program GRE check

The GRE question depends on your exact list. If you want a mentor to check your shortlist and tell you whether the GRE is worth your time, book a free 30-minute strategy call with Doc Cognito.