The Graduate Record Examination (GRE) is developed and administered by the Educational Testing Service (ETS). The GRE measures your ability to handle graduate-school level work through verbal, quantitative, and analytical reasoning questions. Graduate school admissions committees use your score to gauge your abilities and compare it with those of other applicants.

SNAPSHOT: GRE

The GRE is now a computer adaptive test (CAT). In other words, no more pencils, ovals, or erasure dust. Instead, you will take the exam on a computer. During the test, you will see one question at a time, which you must answer in order to move on to the next question. The first question will be of average difficulty. The computer will then select subsequent questions based on whether you got the first one right or wrong. The exam will continue in this way until you've seen the required mix of concepts and question types.

On the GRE, you will receive a "scaled score" within a range of 200-800 for each of the three sections (verbal, quantitative, and analytical). You can score no higher than 800 or lower than 200 on any one section.

GRE Subject Tests

Another exam you might have to take is a GRE Subject Test. These exams are designed to test your knowledge of a particular subject area, such as English, chemistry, or sociology. In all, there are sixteen tests covering a variety of topics. However, not every graduate school or program requires a subject test. Check the admissions requirements of the schools you're considering.

More GRE Articles:

• GRE Practice Test
• How Does The CAT Work?
• Admissions Tips

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