

This is the first time ever that GRE test-taking declined during an economic downturn. - ph0rque
http://insidehighered.com/news/2008/12/08/gre

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etal
Observations from the article:

\- Test-taking levels declined to below 2007 levels, but are still above 2006
levels

\- GMAT levels are still rising.

\- China's test-taking is still rising; India's fell to between 2006 and 2007
levels.

\- GRE test-taking has been sharply rising since 2004, when the credit bubble
was in full swing.

So, was there also somewhat of a bubble for student loans, which is now
deflating? Are GMAT-takers more ambitious in the face of an economic downturn,
or just more likely to have already lost their jobs in 2008? Is immigration
policy affecting China and India the same way, or is India's economy more
vulnerable than China's?

~~~
Retric
Yea, I think most people are a little late to the game, we have been in a
resesion for over a year and plenty of people noticed. What I found most
intresting was:

"One of the largest changes in the GRE is the introduction of the Personal
Potential Index, which ETS is adding to the GRE next year and that will allow
students to have _people who know them_ rank their creativity, communication
skills, teamwork, resilience, organizational skills and ethics."

This does not seem like a good idea. It seems to test your ability to network
and get people to lie vs any real skill set. Most companies and collages seem
to have done away with personal references because of such issues and they
want to add it to a standardized test?

~~~
etal
Who says getting people to like you and lie for you isn't a real skill? ;)

ETS seems to be under pressure to do _something_ since they scrapped the
latest revision of the GRE. Fortunately, colleges are still free to interpret
an applicant's raw GRE results according to their own standards, including
ignoring any new section that appears to be BS.

