How Well Does the GRE Work for Your University (2003)

An Empirical Institutional Case Study of the Graduate Record Examination Across Multiple Disciplines Abstract This case study was designed to demonstrate how an institution could use readily available archival data to produce a simple, yet informative validity study as a necessary step in understanding the effectiveness of the selection process. Results indicated the GRE does not significantly predict graduate school success across all disciplines tested, but demonstrates some utility for specific disciplines. Additionally, prior undergraduate GPA was the best predictor of future GGPA. Implications and limitations are discussed. There is an increasing demand in the job market for individuals holding graduate degrees. Subsequently, the number of students entering graduate school and receiving graduate degrees is the highest it has ever been in the United States (Henderson, Clarke, and Reynolds 1996). Indeed, graduate training is critical for most professional fields and can have a significant impact on one's career as related to income, promotion, and status. This heightened demand for access to graduate school has produced an increased interest in the selection criteria employed by universities. Thus, it is likely that the microscope of public opinion will scrutinize universities regarding admissions practices. As several recent exposes in popular news magazines might suggest (e.g., Kantrowitz and Wingert 2003), administrators would be well advised to study their admissions practices carefully and understand the full range of their selection criteria. Beyond public feelings about university admission systems, inadequate selection systems are likely to do a great disservice to both the university and student. Poor decisions can result in inefficient uses of resources for the university, lost time and financial burdens for the student, and an overall weakening of the particular profession. Thus, developing a selection system that is both valid and administratively feasible presents a real challenge. As with most selection decisions, decisionmakers are drawn to objective predictors of success that are easily comparable and quickly diminish the applicant pool. The Graduate Record Examination (GRE) has been the objective predictor of choice for the past 50 years. The majority of universities in the United States require applicants to take at least the general GRE test for admission into graduate programs in the Humanities, Sciences, Social Sciences and Arts (e.g., Norcross, Hanych and Terranova 1996). Most institutions utilize the GRE in a top-down selection approach employing minimum standards (cut-offs) for consideration (Oltman and Hartnett 1984, 1985). Moreover, the GRE tends to be the most heavily weighted criterion by selection committees (Chernyshenko and Ones 1999; Ingram 1983). However, Educational Testing Service (ETS), the developer and publisher of the GRE, does not endorse this practice. On the contrary, ETS'S Guide to the Use of Scores (1997) explicitly rejects the practice, commenting, A cut-off score below which every applicant is categorically rejected without consideration of any other information should not be used (p. 9). Additionally, ETS recommends that using an overall GRE composite score as a predictor is inappropriate unless the institution demonstrates predictive validity evidence. Despite these clear recommendations, universities continue to utilize both GRE cutoffs and composite scores as the primary criteria for selection (Chernyshenko and Ones 1999; Rem, Oren and Childrey 1987). Universities may be using the test inappropriately; however, a more fundamental issue remains for most universities regarding the overall utility of the GRE'S prediction of graduate school success at the local level. Although large reviews (e.g., Kuncel, Hezlett and Ones 2001) show the GRE to be predictive of graduate school success, these data are aggregated and cannot inform administrators about the GRE and their own institution. …