The Educational Testing Service (ETS) has made major revisions to the GRE General Test in an effort to improve the quality of the GRE and to make the test more relevant to the type of work that graduate school currently demands. In Fall 2007 an altered, completely new version of the entrance exam for graduate school will be administered. The new revisions constitute a major change in the length and question format of the exam.

The revised exam was initially scheduled for October 2006 and has been delayed until fall 2007 to better serve test takers and graduate institutions as ETS transitions from the current computer and paper forms of the test to the new Internet-based (iBT) version. The new launch schedule will enable the GRE Board to complete the expansion of the Internet-based testing operations worldwide. Until then, ETS will continue to deliver the GRE using the current network of secure, proctored test centers.

According to ETS, the GRE was redesigned by the GRE board to increase test validity, enhance security measures, better evaluate students’ performance abilities, increase worldwide access to the test, and make better use of advances in technology and psychometric design. Each of the GRE’s three sections-verbal reasoning, quantitative reasoning and analytical writing-will have different types of questions and a new format. This new test is designed to emphasize complex reasoning skills, which are closely associated with graduate work, and to more accurately gauge students’ success in graduate school. Samples of these questions are presently available on the ETS Web site.

The test currently takes two-and-a-half-hours, but with the new modifications the exam will be over four hours long. The GRE will still be given via computer, but it will no longer use an adaptive format, where the questions become harder or easier according to the students’ individual ability. Thus, every student will take the same exam with the same questions. The new test will have a scoring scale of approximately 110-150 in 1-point increments, compared to the current range of 200-800. ETS will release a conversion scale that compares verbal and quantitative scores on the old and new versions in early January 2008. The Analytical Writing section scoring is unchanged and will still be evaluated using a 6 point scale. The exam will also be given only 29 times a year worldwide with different questions every time the test is administered. However, ETS also plans to improve student access to its tests by adding thousands of testing sites worldwide in the next two years.

PowerScore instructors and test experts are available to explain the upcoming changes to the GRE format and question structure, and can help clarify the impact these changes will have on students preparing for the exam. David Killoran, CEO and Director of Course Development, and Jon Denning, Instructor and Assistant Course Developer, can provide comprehensive explanations regarding question structure on the new exam. As PowerScore founder, David Killoran has over 14 years experience in the test preparation industry, and has overseen the preparation of thousands of students. To speak with or schedule an interview with either David Killoran or Jon Denning, please call 800-545-1750 or email lpilcher@powerscore.com.

Additionally, PowerScore Instructors can assist students applying for entry into the Graduate School of their choice. PowerScore has gathered a team of admissions experts—including former graduate school admissions board members, college instructors, and students from top ten graduate schools—to address admissions counseling and admissions essay needs. Weaknesses in applications may include a low GPA or GRE score, inconsistent undergraduate performance, non-traditional undergraduate major, and time gaps in their work history. Our counselors will develop a plan tailored to students needs in order to provide them with the best possible application.

PowerScore is one of the world’s fastest growing test preparation companies. Headquartered on Hilton Head Island in South Carolina, PowerScore offers GMAT, GRE, LSAT, and SAT preparation classes in over 75 locations in the U.S. and abroad. For more information, please visit www.powerscore.com.