Friday, April 22, 1977
5
Staff Reporter
Use of graduate exam questioned
By JOAN McMULLEN
Recent changes in the Graduate Record Examination (GRE) may not have much impact on students applying to graduate school here because many KU administrators said they didn't emphasize the test in graduate school admission policies.
The GRE will be changed this October to include an analytical section. The exam now has only verbal and quantitative sections.
The verbal section deals with word relations and comprehension. The quantitative section deals with mathematics and charts.
Most of the admissions directors interviewed recently said the tests were just one factor of many, and not all schools and departments required the test.
Mark Pennington, administrative assistant in the School of Business, said that the test would be more desirable with the analytical section, but that the School of Business preferred the General Management Aptitude Test.
PENNINGTON ALSO said that grades and professional experience were important when considering applicants for graduate school.
Henry Wingington, administrator of the exam, said, "It's really unsettled as to the absolute value of the GRE, and most students have done so for themselves the validity of the test."
Kerneth Lenzen, director of graduate admissions in the School of Engineering, said the school didn't require the GRE because "it doesn't tell us a thing."
"With a high GRE, students could just as well flunk out," he said, "and if they get a low GRE, they could get an A in engineering."
Because of the low correlation between GRE scores and success in engineering, Lenzen said, be won't consider the test until it is improved. The GRE Board publishes lists of the relationships of test scores to academic performances in graduate school.
LENZEN SAID THAT HE WOULD watch for any changes in correlation levels that might result from the added analytical section, but that for now, the engineering school emphasized grades, professional experience and recommendations.
Engineering requires a skill in assumption and guesswork that can't be measured
Jung Kong Lee, director of graduate admissions for the chemistry department, said the GRE measured "whether a student has actually retained knowledge of his undergraduate training." He said the GRE became important to him when he was in college. "When he applied to an applicant's school or when he didn't know the source of a letter of recommendation.
by the GRE, he said, and innovativeness is hard to measure.
"I would think they are more reliable than the grade because of grade inflation,"
The chemistry department had no correlation between the GRE scores and academic performance because they had used the test for only three years.
WILEY MITCHELL, the director of graduate admissions for the School of Business, said that the correlation statistics weren't completely reliable because not all of the students who took the test were accepted into graduate school, but that a student who had a high score had a high probability of successfully completing the graduation program.
Mitchell said the GRE was one piece of information among many criteria.
Roy Laird, director of graduate admissions for the department of political science, said the GRE was a factor, "but certainly not a decisive one."
"When you get to the marginal cases, age and experience can make a difference," he
George Woodyard, director of graduate admissions for the department of Spanish and Portuguese, said the GRE wasn't required for his department because recommendations and transcripts weighed more heavily.
JOHN BUSH JONES, coordinator of graduate studies for the English department, said his department used the GRE extensively.
He said the test was a "pretty accurate barometer" of a student's ability because it indicated background and intensity of training, but he acknowledged its failability.
Jones said that the English department considered only the verbal portion of the test and that he could care less about the quantitative portion.
University Daily Kansan
The GRE isn't used by the School of Social Welfare and the department of health, physical education and recreation (HPER) for master's admissions.
Art and athletics featured in Greek Week activities
The week-long activities will begin with a picnic at Potted Lake and end SKI Camp.
Competition and culture, music and merrymaking will highlight Greek Week 1977, celebration to recognize and acknowledge Greek system at the University of Kansas.
The theme of this year's festivities is Aorte—a Greek word for celebration.
Other activities during the week will be a Greek art show, a Greek sing, an alumni appreciation banquet, a superstars fundraising program and parties.
There hasn't been a Greek Week at KU
(Greek Week, 1972), and year-round chairman of
Greek Week, 1972, said year-round.
"IT'S A RENEWAL of a tradition," TSA LARREN said. In recent years we held a Finals Fest, which included the Greek festival, and it was a week-long celebration like this is.
Instead of competing against one another, which many of the Greek houses do throughout the year, KU Greeks will unify with their neighbors and serve Otto Greek Week publicity chairman, said
"If we do have any competence, will be on a fun level or for a philanthropic cause," she said. "One such event is the Greek Week Superstars. All the money we raise from that will be donated to the mentally retarded."
Greek Week Superstars is a series of events in which athletes from campus living
groups compete in various athletic events, sponsored by contributions solicited from the Lawrence community. Proceeds will be donated to the Douglas County Special Olympics track and field program for the mentally retarded.
"We were contacted by Alka Seltzer through the College Marketing and Research Corp. out of Chicago," Larson wrote, "and we accepted our Greek Week, and we accepted."
**GREKE WEEK 1977** is being sponsored by laboratories, Inc., makers of Alkali Seltzer.
Jan Lewis, assistant director for graduate admissions at the School of Social Welfare, said the GRE wasn't very significant for students. He said he attended at grade reports and field summaries.
JEANPYFER, director of admissions for HPER, said the department didn't use the GRE partly because of tradition. She has been director the last five years, during which the GRE has never been used for master's programs.
To promote Greek Week, Alka Seltzer has supplied posters, banners, and ads free of charge.
However, Pyfer said that the GRE had always been used for doctoral programs because the demands on writing and research were tougher for HEER doctoral candidates.
HPER has an open admissions policy based on grades and professional experience.
"I'm sure some of that Alka Solzler will come in real handy for all those people with a brain."
Gerald McSheffrey, director of graduate admissions for the School of Architecture, said the school used the GRE along with grades and brochures submitted by students. He said the amended test would be an improvement.
MANY OF THE directors interviewed said they were concerned about the test's fairness to foreign students, whom they felt were disadvantage because of language difficulties.
Some directors said that the analytical portion had been included in the test all along, mixed throughout the two other samples, and not only would only isolate the analytical portion
THE TEST is given six times a year. The current edition will be given April 23 and June 11 in a Wesco auditorium. The amended test will be given Oct 15 (aptitude portion only), Dec 10, Jan. 14, Feb. 25, March 22 and June 10.
Wingington said applications should be made a month before the test date. Information is available at the counseling office, 114 Bailey Hall.
All applicants are required to take the aptitude portion (verbal and quantitative) section. Additional tests for specific areas are required by some departments.
Rent increase
From page one
age, Barry Nall, rental manager for the Rental Mart, said.
The manager of Gatehouse and Frontier Ridge said that rent increases would take effect Sept. 1, and that the cost of water for these disposals and dishwashers was going up.
HIGHER UTILITY rates also account for planned increases at Southridge Plaza and the University of Chicago.
Rates for this August were established last November, Debbie Van Saun, manager of Trailirage, said and include increased fuel costs which Trailirage pays the gas and water.
Juanta Hubbard, manager at the Malls Ode English Village, where rents will increase Aug. 1, attributed the rise to a 7-11 increase in food prices and the largest increase was in utilities.
. . .
The Malls Olde English Village pays all utilities except electricity.
Other management's planning increases include Park 25 and Park Plaza South.
The management of Woodcreek said residents would soon pay more to live in the complex. Donna Enneking, manager, said that tenants would either become responsible for electricity or would have to pay higher rent.
THE MANAGEMENT of Meadowbrook said rents would increase in some apartments this fall because of increases in gas and water rates. Sally Davis, resident manager, said the increases would average about $5 and would affect only some apartments in which Meadowbrook paid gas and water.
Woodcreek currently pays all utilities, she said.
DUPLICATE BRIDGE
TOURNAMENT sponsored by KU BRIDGE CLUB
April 24, Sunday, at 2:30 p.m. in
Parlors A and B of Student Union
Admission $1.00
Sign up in SUA office For further info. SUA office 864-3477
— Everyone Welcome —
23rd & Louisiana
Malls Shopping Center
10:00-8:30 Mon.-Thurs.
10:00-6:00 Fri. & Sat.
Coupon in today's paper good for this weekend only.
All televised KC Royals baseball games can be seen on our 7' TV screen.
Another trip to the Bahamas!
Disc 8-12, Cover $1.50
Peanut Gallery—Reds vs
Dodgers
Ladies Night—Disco 8-12:15
Specials on beer throughout the
night '7 TV open 7:00 p.m.
Lawrence's Newcast 18 Club
Hillcrest
Shopping Center
9th & Iowa
Ladies Night–Disco 8:12:15
On our 7 TV–Frank Sinatra
Special soals on beer throughout the day
Free Disco for everyone 8-12:15 $7^{\prime}$ TV open 7:00 p.m.
Live: "Millionaire at Midnight"
9:12:15, 9:20.00
Peanut Gallery—NBA Playoffs,
10:30 p.m.
Peanut Gallery open 1-10 p.m. for your sports enjoyment
Rock & Roll with Roxtar, 9:12:15
Come watch all games on our 7'
TV Free 12 noon to 7 p.m.
CARLIN
GEORGE
SUNDAY APRIL 24
8:00 p.m.
HOCH AUDITORIUM
TICKETS
SUA BOX OFFICE, KIEF'S
Reserved Seats Only - $5.75
AN SUA SPECIAL EVENT
A RICHARD DEUTSCH PRODUCTION