GRE® for Allied Health: What SLP, OT, and PT Programs Require in 2026-27
If you're applying to a master's program in speech-language pathology, occupational therapy, or physical therapy, you've heard two different stories about the GRE®. One says the requirement dropped at many programs after 2020, so an allied health application today can come without a test score. The other says you'll need to test, and it points you toward prep timelines to fit one in. Each story describes something that happened at specific programs. Neither holds across the three fields, because the fields took different paths, and the programs within each field took different paths too.
The answer for your applications comes from your list, and checking it is an afternoon's work once you know where the policies live. Below: what survey data says for speech-language pathology, what named programs in all three fields require, and how to set a score target in a part of graduate admissions where almost nothing publishes medians.
What the numbers say
For speech-language pathology, the numbers come from the CSD Education Survey, the annual census that ASHA and CAPCSD run for communication sciences and disorders programs. In the 2024-25 academic year, 16 of the 295 responding SLP master's programs required GRE® scores for admission, or 5.4 percent. In the 2023-24 academic year, 26 of 291 responding programs required them, or 8.9 percent. Audiology programs show the same direction: in 2024-25, 8 of 74 responding programs required scores, or 10.8 percent. The survey collects admissions data from the large majority of CSD programs each year, so the trend covers a broad sample rather than a handful of schools.
About one responding SLP program in twenty required the score in the most recent survey year.
For occupational therapy and physical therapy, no equivalent public survey exists. The picture there comes from program pages themselves, all checked in November 2026, and the examples below show the same kind of program-by-program variation the survey documents for SLP: some schools require the GRE®, some don't consider it, and some publish a policy that may change in a later cycle. Treat the OT and PT examples as illustrations of that variation rather than a field-wide estimate, and check each program on your list directly.
Where named programs stand
The policies below were checked against the programs' own admissions pages in November 2026.
| Field | Program | GRE® policy | What the program adds |
|---|---|---|---|
| SLP | LSU Health Shreveport (MS) | Required | No minimum score, but scores are "heavily weighted in the evaluation and ranking of applications"; most recent attempt counted, no superscoring |
| SLP | Portland State University | Not required | "We do not require the GRE. Standardized testing is not part of our application." |
| OT | Georgia State University (OTD) | Required | Recommended scores of 150 Verbal, 140 Quantitative, 3.5 Analytical Writing; the test itself is mandatory |
| OT | Colorado State University (OTD) | Not considered | Comprehensive review that doesn't consider "GRE scores or other academic testing" |
| OT | University of Montana (OTD) | Not required in the 2025 cycle | Scores "may be required for the 2026 application cycle and beyond"; check the current page before planning |
| PT | San Diego State University (DPT) | Required | Recommended minimums of 300 combined Verbal plus Quantitative and 4.0 Analytical Writing; scores within the last five years |
| PT | Stony Brook University (DPT) | Not required | Dropped the requirement beginning with its 2024 admissions cycle |
LSU Health Shreveport's SLP admissions page states: "The Graduate Record Examination (GRE) is required. There is no minimum score; however, the GRE score is heavily weighted in the evaluation and ranking of applications." For applicants who took the exam more than once, the program counts the most recent scores for all sections, with no superscoring.
San Diego State's DPT page gives a reason: "The Graduate Record Exam (GRE) is required as an early indicator of your performance on the NPTE licensing exam." Its recommended minimums are a 300 combined Verbal and Quantitative score and a 4.0 Analytical Writing score, with testing completed at least one month before the PTCAS deadline to allow for processing.
Georgia State's OTD requires the test while recommending rather than requiring score levels. A minimum of 150 Verbal, 140 Quantitative, and 3.5 Analytical Writing is "recommended," the page says, and "these are not absolute requirements. Completion of the GRE itself remains a mandatory component of the application process."
On the other side, Colorado State's OTD page lists what its comprehensive review doesn't consider, and the list includes "GRE scores or other academic testing." Portland State's page puts it plainly: "We do not use the GRE or other standardized test scores in our criteria for selection."
Why the policies differ
After 2020, many allied health programs stopped requiring the GRE®, and few have restored it. The ASHA survey numbers show programs continuing to drop the requirement after the emergency years passed: among responding SLP master's programs, the required share fell from 8.9 percent to 5.4 percent in one year. The programs that kept the requirement tend to give a reason, and San Diego State's is the easiest to check against its own goals, since the NPTE is the licensing exam physical therapy graduates take and the program wants an early read on it.
New programs can launch with conditional policies. Montana's OTD admitted its second cohort without scores, and its page says GRE® scores "may be required for the 2026 application cycle and beyond." A policy that applies this cycle can change by next cycle, at the same school, for the same degree.
Third-party lists go stale quickly in this field, and some still describe requirements that no longer exist. When a requirement decides your prep calendar, the program's own admissions page is usually the best source to check, and the date you checked it matters as much as the page.
How to check your list
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Start with the application portal. SLP and audiology programs apply through CSDCAS, OT programs through OTCAS, and DPT programs through PTCAS. Each program's portal entry usually lists whether GRE® scores are required, recommended, or not considered.
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Confirm on the program's own admissions page. The page carries the detail the portal compresses: minimums, recency windows, and sending instructions. Georgia State's OTD page, for example, asks applicants to self-report scores into OTCAS and send official scores to its institution code, and to test no later than two months before the application deadline. ASHA's EdFind directory collects CSD program profiles with admissions requirements reported by the programs, so it's worth checking as well.
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Note the sending code. For CSDCAS programs, official scores go from ETS to a program-specific CSDCAS code, and per Liaison, which runs the portal, that code differs from the school's regular GRE® code.
Setting a target without published medians
Business schools publish class profiles with GRE® medians down to the section. Allied health programs mostly don't, and ASHA's survey reports admitted-student GPA ranges without GRE® averages. Benchmarking works differently here:
Start with an official baseline. ETS's free PowerPrep practice tests use official content and scoring, and one sitting can give you section scores to plan from. Our guide to PowerPrep and other free GRE® practice tests covers the setup.
Treat published minimums as minimums. The programs that name numbers call them recommended, not required, and the percentile translations show the distance between a minimum and a goal. On ETS's current percentile table, Georgia State's recommended Verbal 150 sits around the 39th percentile, its recommended Quantitative 140 around the 5th, and its 3.5 Analytical Writing recommendation around the 40th. San Diego State's recommended 4.0 in Analytical Writing sits around the 63rd. A published minimum describes the bottom of the range a program accepts, so plan above it. Our percentiles guide carries the current table.
Set both section targets from the percentiles. Committees read Verbal and Quantitative separately, and the recommended minimums already show asymmetries: Georgia State's numbers ask for far more Verbal than Quantitative. Where your target programs publish no numbers at all, set each section target from the percentile band that fits the rest of your application, and aim for a profile where neither section sits far below the other.
Convert the gap into a plan. The difference between your PowerPrep baseline and your targets sizes the problem, and the study hours per point follow a pattern our study-length guide covers. Treat those hours as a rough calendar tool, not a promise: score growth comes from building skills, so let practice-test data and review of both correct and missed questions decide what you study. Plan to take the official exam at least twice, since ETS lets you test once every 21 days, up to five times within any continuous rolling 12-month period, and the limit applies even when you canceled scores on an earlier attempt.
Timing and cost
The calendar follows the application cycles. PTCAS opened for the 2026-27 admissions cycle on June 15, 2026, and some DPT programs close by October 1. CSDCAS opened July 15, 2026, with SLP deadlines in mid-January 2027 at programs such as LSU Health Shreveport, whose January 15 deadline feeds a May 2027 start. OTCAS opened in mid-July 2026 as well. San Diego State advises DPT applicants to test at least one month before the PTCAS deadline, and per ETS, official scores become available 8 to 10 days after your test date. An early test date leaves room for both.
On cost: the GRE® General Test runs $249 in the US as of the August 1, 2026 fee schedule, and ETS's fee-reduction program brings the cost to $100 for US citizens who demonstrate financial need. The test fee includes four free score reports, and ScoreSelect® lets you choose which scores each recipient sees. Our ScoreSelect® guide covers the mechanics, and our deadline planning guide covers the calendar math.
FAQ
Do SLP graduate programs require the GRE®?
Most don't. In ASHA's 2024-25 CSD Education Survey, 16 of 295 responding SLP master's programs, or 5.4 percent, required GRE® scores, down from 8.9 percent the year before. Some programs still require it, including LSU Health Shreveport's MS program, so check each program's admissions page.
Does OT school require the GRE®?
It varies by program. Georgia State's entry-level OTD requires the GRE®, with recommended scores of 150 Verbal, 140 Quantitative, and 3.5 Analytical Writing, while Colorado State's OTD states that it doesn't consider GRE® scores. Confirm the policy on each program's admissions page for your application cycle.
Do DPT programs require the GRE®?
Many no longer do. Stony Brook dropped its requirement beginning with the 2024 admissions cycle, and other DPT programs have done the same. San Diego State still requires the GRE®, with recommended minimums of a 300 combined Verbal and Quantitative score and a 4.0 Analytical Writing score.
What GRE® score do I need for allied health programs?
Most programs don't publish medians, so use any published minimum as a floor. On the current ETS percentile table, a 150 Verbal sits around the 39th percentile and a 140 Quantitative around the 5th. Set section targets from the percentile bands that fit your list, and build from a PowerPrep baseline.
How far in advance should I take the GRE® for these applications?
At least a month before your application deadline, per San Diego State's advice to PTCAS applicants, since ETS makes official scores available 8 to 10 days after test day. The 21-day spacing between attempts means an early first test leaves room for a second.
How long are GRE® scores valid for allied health applications?
ETS keeps GRE® scores reportable for five years, and the allied health programs that set recency windows typically ask for scores within that span. Georgia State's OTD accepts scores from within ten years of entry, so the window varies. Verify it on each program's page.
Want to learn even more?
For how to set a target score in the first place:
For the current percentile tables:
For the baseline test:
For what schools see when you send:
For the calendar math behind a January or October deadline:
For turning a baseline-to-target gap into study hours:
We also talk through decisions like this one on our podcast.
And if you'd like a second set of eyes on your score target, you're welcome to book a complimentary strategy session. We'll look at your program list, your baseline, and your timeline, and help you set a target that makes sense for both.