Graduate Record Examinations
 |
|
| Acronym | GRE |
|---|---|
| Type | Computer-based or paper-based standardized test. |
| Developer / administrator | Educational Testing Service |
| Knowledge / skills tested | Analytical writing, quantitative reasoning and verbal reasoning. |
| Purpose | Admissions to masters and doctoral degree programs in various universities. |
| Year started | 1949 |
| Duration | About 3 hours and 45 minutes (includes 1-minute breaks after each section and a 10-minute break after third section). |
| Score / grade range | Analytical writing: 0.0 to 6.0 (in 0.5 point increments), Verbal reasoning: 130 to 170 (in 1 point increments), Quantitative reasoning: 130 to 170 (in 1 point increments). |
| Score / grade validity | 5 years |
| Offered |
Computer-based test: Multiple times a year (depends on availability of the test center). |
| Restrictions on attempts |
Computer-based test: Can be taken only once after 21 days from the day of exam in every year. Maximum of 5 times a year. (Applies even if candidate cancels scores on a test taken previously.) |
| Countries / regions |
About 1,000 test centers in more than 160 countries. |
| Languages | English |
| Annual number of test takers |
 Over 655,000 in 2012 |
| Prerequisites / eligibility criteria | No official prerequisite. Intended for bachelors degree graduates and undergraduate students who are about to graduate. Fluency in English assumed. |
| Fee |
US$ 205 |
| Scores / grades used by | Most graduate schools in USA, and some in other countries. |
| Website | www |
Computer-based test: Multiple times a year (depends on availability of the test center).
Computer-based test: Can be taken only once after 21 days from the day of exam in every year. Maximum of 5 times a year. (Applies even if candidate cancels scores on a test taken previously.)
About 1,000 test centers in more than 160 countries.
US$ 205
The Graduate Record Examination (GRE) is a standardized test that is an admissions requirement for most Graduate Schools in the United States. Created and administered by the Educational Testing Service (ETS) in 1949, the exam aims to measure verbal reasoning, quantitative reasoning, analytical writing, and critical thinking skills that have been acquired over a long period of learning and that are not entirely based on any specific field of study outside of the GRE itself. The GRE General Test is offered as a computer-based exam administered at Prometric testing centers.
In the graduate school admissions process, the level of emphasis that is placed upon GRE scores varies widely between schools and between departments within schools. The importance of a GRE score can range from being a mere admission formality to an important selection factor.
The GRE was significantly overhauled in August 2011, resulting in an exam that is not adaptive on a question-by-question basis, but rather by section, so that the performance on the first verbal and math sections determine the difficulty of the second sections presented. Overall, the test retained the sections and many of the question types from its predecessor, but the scoring scale was changed to a 130 to 170 scale (from a 200 to 800 scale).
The cost to take the test is US$205, although ETS will reduce the fee under certain circumstances. They also promote financial aid to those GRE applicants who prove economic hardship. ETS does not release scores that are older than 5 years, although graduate program policies on the acceptance of scores older than 5 years will vary.
The structure of the computer-based GRE General Test consists of six sections. The first section is always the analytical writing section involving separately timed issue and argument tasks. The next five sections consist of two verbal reasoning sections, two quantitative reasoning sections, and either an experimental or research section. These five sections may occur in any order. The experimental section does not count towards the final score but is not distinguished from the scored sections. Unlike the computer adaptive test before August 2011, the GRE General Test is a multistage test, where the examinee's performance on earlier sections determines the difficulty of subsequent sections. This format allows the examined person to freely move back and forth between questions within each section, and the testing software allows the user to "mark" questions within each section for later review if time remains. The entire testing procedure lasts about 3 hours 45 minutes. One-minute breaks are offered after each section and a 10-minute break after the third section.
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