25 Years of GRE Scores and Graduate Enrollments by Discipline, Sex, and Ethnicity

Abstract

The Graduate Record Examination (GRE) is a highstakes test of developed cognitive abilities. Undergraduate students who aspire to graduate school are often recommended and sometimes required to take the GRE, or a test like it such as the LSAT or MCAT, for admission. Several lines of research have established these tools as valid measures of cognitive ability and strong predictors of subsequent success. In this study, data was compiled to determine how scores on the GRE have fared over time. Comparisons were made of GRE scores and graduate enrollment patterns by sex, ethnicity, and discipline to explore the flow of intellectual talent into graduate education.