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Within this study the author examines factors commonly employed as master of business administration applicant evaluation criteria to see if these criteria are important in determining an applicant's potential for success. The findings indicate that the Graduate Management Admissions Test (GMAT) is not a significant predictor of student success when considering factors such as undergraduate grade point average and work experience. Furthermore, the results suggest that prior findings in support of the GMAT are the result of missing variables in the model specification. Our results show that undergraduate grade point average alone can be employed as an admission criterion and indicator of potential success in lieu of the GMAT; adopting this criterion instead can streamline the admission process while minimizing student expenses. Within the discussion section the author offers suggestions for reducing the need for the GMAT score information in the admissions process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although many articles have been written about thesis assessment, none provide a comprehensive, general picture of what examiners do as they assess a thesis. To synthesise this diverse literature, we reviewed 30 articles, triangulated their conclusions and identified 11 examiner practices. Thesis examiners tend to be broadly consistent in their practices and recommendations; they expect and want a thesis to pass, but first impressions are also very important. They read with academic expectations and the expectations of a normal reader. Like any reader, thesis examiners get annoyed and distracted by presentation errors, and they want to read a work that is a coherent whole. As academic readers, examiners favour a thesis with a convincing approach that engages with the literature and the findings, but they require a thesis to be publishable research. Finally, examiners give not only a final evaluation of a thesis, but also instruction and advice to improve the thesis and further publications and research. We hope that these generalisations will demystify the often secret process of assessing a thesis, and reassure, guide and encourage students as they write their theses. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aim To assess the effects of binge drinking on students' next-day academic test-taking performance. Design A placebo-controlled cross-over design with randomly assigned order of conditions. Participants were randomized to either alcoholic beverage [mean = 0.12 g% breath alcohol concentration (BrAC)] or placebo on the first night and then received the other beverage a week later. The next day, participants were assessed on test-taking, neurocognitive performance and mood state. Participants A total of 196 college students (≥21 years) recruited from greater Boston. Setting The trial was conducted at the General Clinical Research Center at the Boston Medical Center. Measurements The Graduate Record Examinations© (GREs) and a quiz on a lecture presented the previous day measured test-taking performance; the Neurobehavioral Evaluation System (NES3) and the Psychomotor Vigilance Test (PVT) measured neurocognitive performance; and the Profile of Mood States (POMS) measured mood. Findings Test-taking performance was not affected on the morning after alcohol administration, but mood state and attention/reaction-time were affected. Conclusion Drinking to a level of 0.12 g% BrAC does not affect next-day test-taking performance, but does affect some neurocognitive measures and mood state. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The validity of Graduate Management Admission Test (GMAT) scores is examined by summarizing 273 studies conducted between 1997 and 2004. Each of the studies was conducted through the Validity Study Service of the test sponsor and contained identical variables and statistical methods. Validity coefficients from each of the studies were corrected for restriction of range on the predictors. The interquartile range of the validity coefficients for the combination of GMAT scores and undergraduate grades in predicting early graduate school performance was .45 to .63. Further examination of study findings showed that higher validity coefficients were observed for executive MBA programs compared to either full-time or part-time programs. There appeared to be no measurable differences in results for public versus private institutions. For programs not located at U.S. institutions, quantitative scores showed lower average validity coefficients compared to programs located in the United States. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recent assessment research joining cognitive psychology and psychometric theory has introduced a new technology, item generation. In algorithmic item generation, items are systematically created based on specific combinations of features that underlie the processing required to correctly solve a problem. Reading comprehension items have been more difficult to model than other item types due to the complexities of quantifying text. However, recent developments in artificial intelligence for text analysis permit quantitative indices to represent cognitive sources of difficulty. The current study attempts to identify generative components for the Graduate Record Examination paragraph comprehension items through the cognitive decomposition of item difficulty. Text comprehension and decision processes accounted for a significant amount of the variance in item difficulties. The decision model variables contributed significantly to variance in item difficulties, whereas the text representation variables did not. Implications for score interpretation and future possibilities for item generation are discussed [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article describes the rationale, implementation, and assessment of a summer-study format, part-time doctoral program that was designed to address the shortcomings of traditional part-time doctoral education in social welfare. Findings of a comparative analysis between 67 full-time and 52 part-time doctoral students suggest that the program offers a number of significant advantages over traditional part-time education. There were no statistically significant differences between summer-study and full-time students in Graduate Record Examination and Miller Analogies Test scores, in rates of graduation, or in length of time to complete the degree. Educational limitations of the program for summer-study students as compared to full-time students are presented. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of the present research was to develop a difficulty model for logical reasoning problems involving complex ordered arrays used in the Graduate Record Examination. The approach used involved breaking down the problems into their basic cognitive elements such as the complexity of the rules used, the number of mental models required to represent the problem, and question type. Weightings for these different elements were derived from two experimental studies and from the reasoning literature. Based on these weights, difficulty models were developed which were then tested against new data. The models had excellent predictive validity and showed the relative influence of rule based factors and factors relating to the number of underlying models. Different difficulty models were needed for different question types, suggesting that people used a variety of approaches and, at a wider level, that both mental models and mental rules may be used in reasoning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, the author examined the validity of the Graduate Management Admissions Test (GMAT) for non-U.S. students (N = 75) through a predictive validation procedure in which applicants were given the predictor test but the test results were not used to admit students. The author's business school admitted students to three overseas MBA programs. The author then gathered academic performance data (MBA grades) and correlated the predictor (GMAT) with the criterion (MBA GPA). The findings showed that the correlation between the two was .64 (p < .001), meaning that 41% of the variance in MBA academic performance was explained by the GMAT. This number is higher than the corresponding one for U.S. students. The findings indicate that the GMAT was a valid predictor of academic performance in an MBA program for these non-U.S. students. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the advent of modern computer technology, there have been growing efforts in recent years to computerize standardized tests, including the popular Graduate Record Examination (GRE), the Graduate Management Admission Test (GMAT) and the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL). Many of such computer-based tests are known as the computerized adaptive tests, a major feature of which is that, depending on their performance in the course of testing, different examinees may be given with different sets of items (questions). In doing so, items can be efficiently utilized to yield maximum accuracy for estimation of examinees’ ability traits. We consider, in this article, one type of such tests where test lengths vary with examinees to yield approximately same predetermined accuracy for all ability traits. A comprehensive large sample theory is developed for the expected test length and the sequential point and interval estimates of the latent trait. Extensive simulations are conducted with results showing that the large sample approximations are adequate for realistic sample sizes. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Presents an experimental administration of both the verbal and quantitative section of the Graduate Record Examination General Test (GRE) with standard time limits and with 1.5 times the standard time limit. Aim to test the assumption that GRE is a measure of academic reasoning abilities that is intended to be a power test in which speed of responding plays at most a minor role; Results indicating that extra time added about 7 points to verbal scores and 7 points to quantitative scores; Comparable results across gender and ethnic groups; Finding that quantitative scores were slightly higher for lower ability examinees.

Opposes the Graduate Record Exam (GRE), which, despite its well-documented predictive limitations, is still widely used in the academic sorting process in the U.S. Patterns, insights and evidence about the uses and misuses of testing; Harsh effects of pre-determined test score cut-offs on students of color and those from modest economic backgrounds; Model of academic merit.

Investigates the predictive relationship between Graduate Record Examination (GRE) scores and subsequent grade performance in graduate chemistry courses by evaluating records of students in a chemistry program. Cases where GRE scores predicts the graduate performance of chemistry students; Chart showing the validity coefficients for GRE scores and graduate course grades.

Presents a practical guide to running preparation courses for postgraduate examinations. Objectives of preparation classes; Funding aspects of preparation classes; Resources; Preparation and evaluation.

Reports on the use of meta-analytic review to examine the relationship between performance on the quantitative and verbal components of the Graduate Record Examination and graduate grade point average. Validity of the examination in the graduate admissions process.

A postgraduate quiz on the case of a 24-year-old man with juvenile-onset systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is presented.

The article offers information about an Objective Structured Clinical Examination (OSCE) assessment at the Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University, Rhode Island which enables the medical educators to evaluate the clinical skills and professionalism of the medical students. It states that the University conducts several OCSEs in the first two years of the Doctoring course including clinical skills clerkship, internal medicine and obstetrics. It mentions that the fourth-year OSCE is administered at the start of the final year of medical students and the students who do not pass the examination are required to remediate. It also presents several tables which depicts student's performance in the fourth-year OSCE.

We surveyed graduate programs to see how they use the Graduate Record Examination Analytic Writing (GRE-AW) Test. Only 35% of the graduate programs that responded use the GRE-AW test in their admission policy; of the programs not using it, most do not plan to do so. The programs using the GRE-AW rated it as medium or low in importance in their admission decisions. Few programs have cutoff scores. Approximately 8% reported using an initial validation study; about half reported considering or running an ongoing validation study. We urge program coordinators to evaluate the potential benefits of the GRE-AW as part of admissions decisions and the Educational Testing Service to help coordinators do so. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Reports on the issues related to the establishment of an independent educational equivalence for graduates of nonaccredited veterinary colleges in the U.S. Meeting held which focused on resolving the certification of veterinary graduates; Reasons cited by the working group for the advantages of having a single licensing body; Ways of evaluating educational equivalence.

Opinion. Comments on the article `Does the Graduate Record Examination (GRE) Predict Meaningful Success in the Graduate Training of Psychologists? A Case Study,' by R.J. Sternberg and W.M. Williams, in the American Psychologist journal. Indication that the GRE is not valid for important criteria; Indepth look at the prediction and measurement of professionalism; What factors constitute the final graduate school validation.

The article uses a real-life potential prime and a math task used in the graduate admission process to investigate whether affirmative action policies may trigger a stereotype threat effect. It describes an experiment that tested whether affirmative action affects how subjects perform on a test composed of questions taken from past quantitative portions of the Graduate Record Exam (GRE), a test that is used in actual admissions decisions.

The article informs that the Medical Council of India's (MCI) decision to form an apex body has come under severe criticism, which will be composed of administrators and bureaucrats. Topics include importance of medical education for any country, sound education policy of the U.S. such as Graduate Record Examination (GRE) examination, and standardization of exit exams by MCI.

Reports on the effort to improve certification process of a substitute resolution concerning the establishment of an organization for certifying graduates of veterinary schools not accredited by the American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA). Development and administration of the Clinical Proficiency Examination; Commitment of the AVMA and the American Association of Veterinary State Boards to serve the public and the veterinary profession; Consent given by the Executive Board to the enhancement activities for the resolution.

Presents a reply to several authors criticism of the article `Does the Graduate Record Examination Predict Meaningful Success in the Graduate Training of Psychologists? A Case Study,' by R.J. Sternberg and W.M. Williams, in the American Psychologist journal. Discussion on the unreliability of the criteria; Indepth look at the low failure rates in the graduate program.

Opinion. Comments on the article `Does the Graduate Record Examination (GRE) Predict Meaningful Success in the Graduate Training of Psychologists? A Case Study,' by R.J. Sternberg and W.M. Williams, in the American Psychologist journal. Impact of the GRE in the prediction of success in graduate school; Methodology used to conduct the study; What should the differences in graduate school performance be attributed to.

Opinion. Comments on the article `Does the Graduate Record Examination Predict Meaningful Success in the Graduate Training of Psychologists? A Case Study,' by R.J. Sternberg and W.M. Williams, in the American Psychologist journal. Prediction of the success in graduate schools; Indepth look at the data which was presented in the article; Reference to the American Psychological Association Task Force on Statistical Inference.

Opinion. Comments on the article `Does the Graduate Record Examination (GRE) Predict Meaningful Success in the Graduate Training of Psychologists? A Case Study,' by R.J. Sternberg and W.M. Williams, in the American Psychologist journal. Discussion on the validity of the GRE; Details on the usage of the GRE by graduate psychology programs in the making of admissions decisions; Indepth look at the conclusion of the article.

Opinion. Comments on the article `Does the Graduate Record Examination (GRE) Predict Meaningful Success in the Graduate Training of Psychologists? A Case Study,' by R.J. Sternberg and W.M. Williams, in the American Psychologist journal. Indepth look at the extent to which GRE results predict the outcomes in graduate training of psychologists; Why admissions committee rely on the GRE; Details on the problems arising from the usage of GRE scores in admissions procedures.

Opinion. Criticizes the article `Does the Graduate Record Examination (GRE) Predict Meaningful Success in the Graduate Training of Psychologists,' by W.M. Williams, and R.J. Sternberg in the American Psychologist journal. Indepth look at the authors' failure to use appropriate parameter estimate techniques; Identification of the authors' key errors; Discussion on the operational validity of the GRE.

Opinion. Comments on the article `Does the Graduate Record Examination (GRE) Predict Meaningful Success in the Graduate Training of Psychologists? A Case Study,' by R.J. Sternberg and W.M. Williams, in the American Psychologist journal. Indication that the study suggested a need for measures in graduate admissions; Indepth look at the validity of the GRE's scores; Identification of the two major important features of the results.

Opinion. Comments on the article `Does the Graduate Record Examination Predict Meaningful Success in the Graduate Training of Psychologists? A Case Study,' by R.J. Sternberg and W.M. Williams, in the American Psychologist journal. Relationship between general ability and performance; Reference to the Yale University's Department of Psychology; Examination of course grades.

The article offers information on the graduate review course and certification examination of American College of Veterinary Emergency and Critical Care (ACVECC), and certification exam of the Academy of Veterinary Emergency and Critical Care Technicians (AVECCT) in the U.S. The Post Graduate Review course of ACVECC will begin on January 9, 2009 while its certification exam will be on September 7-8, 2009. The deadline submission for AVECCT certification exam for 2010 will be on January 7, 2010.

The article reports that a graduate career is bookended by the Graduate Record Examination and the dissertation, and neither seems all that useful. The history and literature students write a big book to form the bulk of their Ph.D. degrees, but any potential labs or colleges do not ever ask to see a scientist's dissertation upon application. They open up the manila envelope and take a quick glance at the CV with their eyes shooting straight to the publication list. The graduate careers are defined by what one learns and what articles one get into which journals.