GRE requirements · United States

Washington University in St. Louis GRE requirements (2026)

GRE policy at Washington University in St. Louis is set school by school and program by program, so it varies widely. The Olin MBA and many Arts & Sciences and McKelvey Engineering graduate programs have made the GRE optional, while specific PhD programs may still require or recommend it. Applicants must check the policy of the specific program they are applying to.

Updated 29 Jun 2026Last checked 29 Jun 20264 min read

About Washington University in St. Louis

Washington University in St. Louis is a private research university founded in 1853. It is organized into eight schools, including Arts & Sciences, the McKelvey School of Engineering, the Olin Business School, the Brown School (social work and public health), the School of Medicine, the Sam Fox School of Design & Visual Arts, the School of Law, and the School of Continuing & Professional Studies.

GRE requirement by program

Washington University in St. Louis sets its GRE policy by program, so there is rarely a single university-wide answer. Below is each program we have checked, with its status, a link to the program's own admissions page, and the date we last confirmed it.

Program	Status	Official source	Last checked
Olin Business School (MBA, Specialised Master's) MBA and Masters	Optional The Olin admissions page typically lists GMAT or GRE scores as accepted but not required for several programs, with test waivers available based on academic background or work experience. Confirm the current cycle's policy on the program's own admissions page.	olin.wustl.edu	Jun 2026
McKelvey School of Engineering (graduate) MS and PhD	Varies by program GRE policy at McKelvey is set per department: Computer Science & Engineering and several other departments have made the GRE optional in recent cycles, while specific PhD programs may still ask for scores. Check the department's own admissions page.	engineering.wustl.edu	Jun 2026
Arts & Sciences Graduate School (PhD and Masters) PhD and Masters	Unconfirmed for 2026 Across Arts & Sciences PhD and master's programs, GRE policy is set at the program level and has changed for many programs since 2020. Status for the current cycle should be confirmed on each department's admissions page.	graduate.artsci.wustl.edu	Jun 2026
Brown School (MSW, MPH, MS Public Health Sciences, PhD) Masters and PhD	Varies by program Brown School has typically not required the GRE for its MSW and MPH master's degrees, while doctoral programs may have a different policy. Confirm the current cycle on the school's admissions page.	brownschool.washu.edu	Jun 2026
School of Medicine — research doctoral programs (PhD, MD-PhD) PhD	Unconfirmed for 2026 GRE policy across the MD-PhD and research-PhD programs at the School of Medicine is set per program and has shifted significantly since 2020. Most life-sciences PhDs nationally have made GRE optional or removed it. Confirm on the specific program page.	medicine.wustl.edu	Jun 2026

Each status was read from the program's own admissions page (last checked 29 06 2026). Policies change between cycles; always confirm on the linked official page before you apply.

Not the program you need? The status is set department by department. Use the three-step check on the is the GRE required page to confirm any program in a couple of minutes.

What GRE score do you need for Washington University in St. Louis?

There is no single Washington University in St. Louis GRE cutoff, because programs admit on the whole application and most do not publish a hard minimum. In practice, aim for a score at or above the admitted-student median for your specific program, which some departments share in a class profile or on request. A percentile around the 80th or higher on the section that matters most to your field, Quant for STEM and economics or Verbal for the humanities, is a safe target wherever a score is worth submitting.

Where Washington University in St. Louis marks a program Optional, a score comfortably above that median can strengthen a borderline application, especially for funded or international applicants. Below it, your effort is usually better spent on the required parts of the file. Where a program is Not accepted, do not send a score, it will not be reviewed.

Unsure where you would land? Sit a free full-length mock and convert your scaled score to its exact official percentile before you decide.

GRE requirements at other universities

Compare Washington University in St. Louiswith the GRE policies at other top programs. Each page is sourced from the university's own admissions pages and dated.

Stanford University Yale University University of California, Berkeley Princeton University Columbia University in the City of New York Cornell University Carnegie Mellon University University of California, Los Angeles University of Michigan, Ann Arbor California Institute of Technology

Frequently asked questions

There is no single university-wide rule. WashU's GRE policy is set by each school and each program, so some programs require it, some make it optional, and some no longer use it. Check the policy on the specific program's own admissions page.

Olin typically accepts either GMAT or GRE scores but has moved several programs to a test-optional or waiverable model. Confirm the current cycle's policy on the Olin admissions page.

WashU does not publish a fixed minimum GRE score, and accepted ranges vary widely by program. As a rough anchor, competitive graduate applicants typically present scaled scores in the high 150s to mid 160s on each section, with the exact target depending on the program and the rest of the application.

Several WashU programs have made the GRE optional or stopped using it for admissions decisions, in line with the broader trend across US graduate programs since 2020. The change is program by program rather than university-wide, so the answer depends on which program you are applying to.

ETS reports your GRE scores for five years from your test date, so a score you earn now stays usable across several application cycles. A program can set a shorter window, so confirm the cutoff on Washington University in St. Louis's admissions page before you apply. A free mock test shows where you would score today.

Every status here is read from the program's own admissions page and dated. Policies change between cycles, so always confirm on the linked official page before you apply. See our editorial standards for how we source and date claims.

GRE policy is set program by program, so two departments at the same university can differ. Use the three-step check on our is the GRE required guide to confirm any program in a couple of minutes.

If you can score at or above the program's admitted-student median, a strong score is a low-risk way to add a signal, especially for funded or international applicants. Below that, focus on the required parts. A free mock is the fastest way to see where you would land.