New York Medical College Graduate School of Basic Medical Sciences Removes GRE Requirement for Ph.D. Programs
Joins other leading institutions abandoning the metric as an admission requirement
Jennifer Riekert, M.B.A.
Vice President of Communications and Strategic Initiatives
New York Medical College
(914) 594-4552
jennifer_riekert@nymc.edu
Valhalla, N.Y., – Effective immediately, the Graduate School of Basic Medical Sciences (GSBMS) at New York Medical College (NYMC) will no longer require applicants to provide scores for the Graduate Record Exam (GRE) as an admission requirement for its Ph.D. programs. In recent years, the utility of the GRE as an admission criterion and a predictive metric of success in graduate school has come under scrutiny. Multiple studies suggest that the GRE is not a reliable predictor of student success and doesn’t effectively measure advanced quantitative skills. Additionally, the cost of preparing for the GRE, the cost of the test itself and the associated score reports, and the cost of travel to test sites are disadvantageous to students of low and modest economic means, and to students from rural and/or remote geographic areas.
NYMC joins other leading graduate programs in abandoning the GRE as an admission requirement.
“A diverse student body is essential to the mission of New York Medical College,” said Marina K. Holz, Ph.D., Dean of GSBMS. “Removing this barrier of entry will open the graduate program to a wider pool of applicants, and will allow us to recruit many more motivated students.”
In place of the GRE requirement, applicants must provide three letters of reference that emphasize the applicant’s research potential. Applicants may still provide the GRE scores if they choose; however, the scores will be considered part of the holistic application. This change applies only to GSBMS Ph.D. programs; applicants to other programs will continue to provide the standardized test scores specified by these programs.
New York Medical College
Founded in 1860, New York Medical College is one of the oldest and largest health sciences colleges in the country with nearly 1,500 students and 330 residents and clinical fellows, more than 2,600 faculty members and 23,500 living alumni. The College, which joined the Touro College and University System in 2011, is located in Westchester County, New York, and offers degrees from the School of Medicine, the Graduate School of Basic Medical Sciences, the School of Health Sciences and Practice, a School of Dental Medicine and a School of Nursing. NYMC provides a wide variety of clinical training opportunities for students, residents, and practitioners.