By Signe K. Skinion

A new computer-administered test for the Graduate Record Exam is being offered in Carbondale that allows students who decide at the last minute to go to graduate school a chance to take the test before deadline, campus officials say.

Gary Jones, director of the Sylvan Technology Center, said offering the GRE test, the required entrance exam for graduate school, on the computer allows the students year-round access to the test.

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Up until a few years ago the GRE was given three or four times a year through a pencil and paper test, Jones said. Students who decided late in the year to go on to graduate school were pretty much out of luck because the test deadline had already passed. The computerized GRE test is offered three weeks every month, Monday through Saturday, in the mornings and afternoons.

The test content is the same, even though the form of the test is different, Jones said.

There is no advantage to taking either test; they are the same in most respects, Jones said. The main difference between the two tests is the computer one takes the answers from previous questions and changes the difficulty level for the next question.

The computerized test begins with a medium level question, and depending on the student’s answer, the next question will either be harder or easier, Jones said.

These are the same questions as on the pencil and paper test, Jones said. The only difference is you can skip the easier questions if you are a brighter student, or you can stay at medium and easy level questions if you’re not. You get more credit for the harder questions, but the scores will be the same on either test.

Jones said there are some major benefits to taking the computer test besides the availability.

Students get their scores before they walk out of the room instead of waiting weeks to find out how they did, Jones said. Also, there are only five people at the most in the room taking the test at the same time you are. Students find this atmosphere to be better.

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Jones said because there are so few people taking the test at a time, there are no monitors walking around, and there are less distractions during the test.

With there being no monitors in the rooms, you don’t have someone looking over your shoulder all the time, and that takes some of the pressure off, Jones said. It’s hard to cheat on these computer tests, and we do have a security camera to make sure no one brings something into the test.

Because this is a computer test, the time limits are set into the system, Jones said.

The test is set up on the same four-and-a-half hour time frame, Jones said. About three hours of that is test time. You don’t have to take a break when it says, and you can go on to the next section when you’re done instead of waiting for the time to expire or everyone else to get done with the section.

Ralph Arnold, coordinator of University Career Services, said the computerized test has not yet had much impact on the number of students who take the pencil and paper test given through SIU.

We still have quite large sessions for the pencil and paper test, Arnold said. The computer test is just a different way of administering the test, and it is more progressive.

Arnold said the University does not differeniate between the two tests when it comes to scoring, but there is a difference in the price of the tests.

The pencil and paper test is the cheaper of the two, Arnold said. The computer test costs $96, and the pencil and paper test costs $64.

However, the computer tests seem to be the way of the future, and the pencil and paper tests will soon be gone, Jones said.

The Educational Testing Service is phasing out the pencil and paper tests for most of the standardized exams, Jones said. In about a year, the GRE will only be administered through the computer. Already the Nursing tests are being given over the computer. There is also talk about the Scholastic Aptitude Test being given over the computer, as well.