Princeton requires the GRE for most of its PhD programmes, making it one of the stricter Ivy League schools on this front even as many peers moved to optional or test-blind policies. Princeton does not run a traditional MBA programme.
Does Princeton Require the GRE?
| School / Programme | GRE Status |
|---|---|
| Most PhD programmes (Graduate School) | Required |
| Woodrow Wilson School (now School of Public and International Affairs, MPA) | Optional |
| Engineering PhD | Required |
| Certain Humanities PhD programmes | Occasionally optional — confirm per department |
Competitive GRE Scores at Princeton
| Programme | Competitive Quant | Competitive Verbal |
|---|---|---|
| Economics PhD | 168 – 170 | 162 – 168 |
| Computer Science PhD | 165 – 170 | 158 – 165 |
| Physics PhD | 167 – 170 | 158 – 165 |
| SPIA (MPA, GRE track) | 160 – 165 | 160 – 165 |
Princeton's PhD programmes are among the smallest and most funded in the Ivy League — with a low volume of admits per cycle, the GRE serves as one of the few standardised comparison points across a highly self-selected international applicant pool.
Why Princeton Kept the GRE Requirement
Princeton's smaller PhD cohorts and heavily funded, research-intensive model mean admissions committees rely on a fuller data set — including standardised scores — to differentiate among applicants with very strong but hard-to-compare academic records from different countries and institutions.
GRE Is Separate From English Proficiency
A GRE score does not satisfy Princeton's English language requirement. International applicants still need TOEFL or IELTS:
| Requirement | Princeton Policy |
|---|---|
| GRE | Required for most PhD programmes |
| TOEFL | Required — see our Princeton TOEFL Requirements guide |
| IELTS | Required — see our Princeton 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; Princeton's competitive TOEFL benchmark is 100+. Or prepare for IELTS.