The new GRE: What you need to know

By Michael Auslen | IDS
Mar. 24, 2011

http://www.idsnews.com/news/story.aspx?id=80549

The Graduate Record Examination, required by most institutions for admission to graduate school programs, will undergo significant changes beginning Aug. 1.

Currently, the GRE consists of a general test and a series of subject tests. Only the general test will be affected by the changes.

“The test will be much more user-friendly,” said James Wimbush, dean of the University Graduate School and incoming chair of the GRE Board of Directors. “The test will measure the qualities much better for graduate school.”

Wimbush said Educational Testing Service, the company that administers the GRE, looked at years of testing data and spoke with graduate programs about the skills they think are most essential for graduate students before making changes to the test.

“Graduate programs are very keen on students’ analytical abilities and their ability to comprehend,” Wimbush said.

TEST FORMAT
The new GRE will allow students to go backward and forward within the test sections. Students will also be allowed a calculator on the quantitative portion of the exam.

The verbal and quantitative portions of the exam will now be scored on a scale from 130 to 170 in one point increments. The analytical writing section will still be scored from zero to six.

Some of the section lengths will change. The new GRE will include two 30-minute analytical writing tasks, two 30-minute verbal reasoning sections and two 35-minute quantitative reasoning sections.

QUESTION TYPES
Among other things, the GRE will no longer include antonym or analogy questions in the verbal reasoning section. However, it will include more reading comprehension questions, new text completion questions and sentence equivalence questions that require interpreting the context of a whole sentence.

The quantitative reasoning section will have some questions with multiple correct answers, all of which must be identified, as well as numeric entry questions.

TAKING THE TEST IN THE FALL
The new version of the GRE will be administered beginning Aug. 1. Students can register for the new test now.

Because scores for August and September administrations of the GRE will not be available until November, Wimbush said students planning on attending graduate programs beginning in the fall should not take the new test in August, and those looking at spring programs should contact their schools.

Students who take the test in August and September will receive a 50 percent discount as well.

GPSO Announces Spring 2011 Travel Award Winners

IU GRADUATE AND PROFESSIONAL STUDENT ORGANIZATION (GPSO)

Released March 23, 2011

Each semester the GPSO offers a competitive, financial award for graduate and professional students to help support academic travel. The award covers expenses for events that promote academic and professional development, such as conferences, workshops, competitions and auditions. Funds may be used for registration fees, presentation materials, transportation costs, lodging and per diem expenses. The recipients are selected through a competitive, merit-based process in which an independent panel of fellow graduate and professional students review and assess anonymous applications. The GPSO would like to congratulate the following award recipients:

Spring 2011 GPSO Travel Award Winners:

Shingo Hamada, Anthropology
Viridiana Benitez, Psychology
Alexander Tatarinov, Music Strings
Philip Haralam, Fine Arts
Daniel Yurovsky, Psychology
Jennifer Jones, Communications and Culture
Jillian Rickly-Boyd, Geography
Nicholas Hersh, Music Conducting
Sarah Dees, Religious Studies
Gwen Arnold, SPEA
Olga Rass, Psychology
Joseph Harsh, Education Curriculum and Instruction
Chelsea Hamm, Music Theory
Nzingha Kendall, African American and Africa Studies

The GPSO Travel Awards are made possible by generous support from the University Graduate School. More information about travel awards can be found at http://www.iu.edu/~gpso/travel-award.php. The Graduate and Professional Student Organization is the formally recognized government for graduate and professional students at Indiana University Bloomington.

Contact Information:
Angela Jones, GPSO Communications Coordinator
gpso@indiana.edu
812-855-8747
803 8th St , Bloomington, IN 47408
www.iu.edu/~gpso

IU named a Bicycle Friendly University

IU's campus

March 21, 2011

http://newsinfo.iu.edu/news/page/normal/17767.html?emailID=17767

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. -- Indiana University Bloomington has been named one of the first Bicycle Friendly Universities by the League of American Bicyclists.

The league announced the designations recently at the National Bike Summit in Washington D.C. IU earned a "bronze" award for its bicycle friendliness, valid from 2011 to 2015.

The League of American Bicyclists recognized 20 universities that "create exceptional environments where bicycling can thrive," according to an announcement from the group. Universities were cited for their efforts on everything from exceptional bike parking facilities to incentive programs for students and staff.

"University life shapes students' habits for the future," said Bill Nesper, director of the league's Bicycle Friendly America program. "They have long served as incubators for developing bike-friendly cultures and practices, and that has a big impact on the expectations that students bring to the workplace and beyond."

IU received the award on the basis of an application submitted by the Office of Sustainability, which included responses to 93 in-depth questions evaluating five categories of bicycle friendliness: engineering, education, encouragement, enforcement, and evaluation and planning.

Questions ranged from quantitative details, such as how many bicycle parking spaces are provided compared to the university population, to more expansive themes. In response to a question about signature bicycling events, IU provided information about the annual Little 500 bicycle race.

As a result of filling out the application, the IU Office of Sustainability has gained more recognition of cycling-related campus shortcomings. It is working on quantifying the bike-ability of roads on and near campus and on prioritizing needs based on the areas most in need of attention. These studies will be included in the University's Comprehensive Bike Plan, due next spring.

"This national recognition adds momentum to the recommendations in the Campus Master Plan to enhance bicycle transportation pathways and amenities on campus," Director of Sustainability Bill Brown said. "We look forward to working with campus and community to continuously improve IU Bloomington bicycling to make it a more safe, convenient and fun experience for everyone.

"We are forming a Bicycle Friendly University steering committee," Brown added, "and I urge interested parties to contact our office to get involved."

Since its inception in 1880, The American League of Bicyclists strives for better cycling throughout America. It hosts a variety of programs including National Bike Month, National Bike Summit, Share the Road Campaign and Safe Routes to School Program, all aimed to strengthen cycling in the U.S. For more information, see http://www.bikeleague.org.

For more information about IU participation in the Bicycle Friendly University program, contact Office of Sustainability transportation intern Amy O'Shea at akoshea@indiana.edu.