A new study made public by the ETS has revealed that nearly 1 out of 4 GRE takers retake the exam and tend to score higher in the retake. The analysis included test taker performance around the world in 2014. Of course, the analysis is a subtle push to encourage more students to retake the GRE.
In the note published by ETS, it states that the ScoreSelect option has generated a positive interest among graduate school applicants. The ScoreSelect option allows students who have taken multiple exams to send in their best scores to schools.
According to the data, there was a 15% increase in the number of people taking the GRE a second time in 2014, compared to 2013. Test takers made improvements in all three sections of the GRE. However, 60% of students did better in Verbal and Quantitative reasoning sections of the exam. For AWA, the numbers dropped to about 40% indicating that lesser number of students tended to improve scores in this section.
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The folks at ETS believe that the student-friendly policies are beneficial for repeat testing. The special emphasis was on the ScoreSelect option which enables students to feel more confident while taking the exam and put their best foot forward. Ever since its introduction, people taking the GRE has risen in number. Other test-taker friendly features such as the ability to skip questions and go back and change answers within a section might have also increased the number of students taking the GRE. Another ETS study revealed that 95% percent of GRE test takers changed atleast one answer and saw improved scores.
A big reason for the rising popularity of GRE is the increasingly growing acceptance of GRE scores by business schools. Apart from other graduate-level schools, 1200 business schools also accept the GRE. Many top business schools now allow students to submit either GRE or GMAT scores. The number of students taking the exam for management programs has also grown by 18%.
If you were confused about retaking the GRE, the study should come as music to your ears. Of course, ETS might make some more money in the bargain. However, there is no doubt that retaking the exam along with the ScoreSelect option does take the stress off students. Even after a bad exam, you can easily improve scores on the retake and put your best foot forward in the application process.
For details of the study, check out this infographic published by ETS.
