MIT is one of the few top-tier US universities to have reinstated GRE requirements for most departments after the pandemic-era wave of test-optional policies, a notable reversal that makes MIT's GRE policy stricter than most peer institutions in 2026.
Does MIT Require the GRE?
| School / Programme | GRE Status |
|---|---|
| Most Engineering departments | Required (reinstated 2024) |
| EECS (Electrical Engineering and Computer Science) PhD | Required |
| MIT Sloan School of Management (MBA) | Not required, GMAT or GRE accepted |
| Science departments (Physics, Chemistry, Biology) | Varies, several require, confirm per department |
| MIT Media Lab | Not required |
Competitive GRE Scores at MIT
| Programme | Competitive Quant | Competitive Verbal |
|---|---|---|
| EECS PhD | 168 - 170 | 160 - 168 |
| Mechanical Engineering | 165 - 170 | 158 - 165 |
| Aeronautics and Astronautics | 165 - 170 | 158 - 165 |
| Physics PhD | 167 - 170 | 158 - 165 |
| MIT Sloan (GRE track) | 163 - 168 | 160 - 165 |
MIT's EECS PhD is one of the two or three most competitive graduate programmes in the world by any admissions metric, near-perfect Quant scores are effectively table stakes rather than a differentiator at this level.
Why MIT Reinstated the GRE
MIT's public rationale centered on the GRE providing an additional, standardised data point to fairly evaluate applicants from a huge range of undergraduate institutions and grading systems worldwide, particularly useful for MIT's large international applicant pool where GPA scales and institutional reputations vary enormously.
GRE Is Separate From English Proficiency
A GRE score does not satisfy MIT's English language requirement. International applicants still need TOEFL or IELTS:
| Requirement | MIT Policy |
|---|---|
| GRE | Required for most Engineering/Science departments |
| TOEFL | Required, see our MIT TOEFL Requirements guide |
| IELTS | Required, see our MIT IELTS Requirements guide |
GRE Score Validity
GRE scores are valid for 5 years from the test date.
Prepare for TOEFL with Gabble: while preparing for GRE, run your TOEFL preparation in parallel; MIT's competitive TOEFL benchmark is 109+. Or prepare for IELTS.