How selective are psychology graduate programs? The effect of the selection ratio on GRE score validity

This study examined the selection ratio for 253 doctorate-level psychology programs. On average, the selection ratio for psychology Ph.D. programs was .11 (SD = .12). This information was used to estimate the existing range restriction on General Record Examination (GRE) scores in validation studies. Results of the investigation showed the importance of correcting for range restriction in GRE validation research. The low selection ratio of graduate programs restricted the GRE variance in the validation sample, decreasing the observed mean correlations with graduate school performance criteria reported in the literature. Appropriate range restriction corrections were made using previous research data. Revised estimates of the GRE validity for predicting performance in psychology graduate programs were computed taking into account range restriction. Results showed that the GRE is a valid predictor of graduate school performance. We offer a GRE range restriction distribution that can be employed in future research on the validity of the GRE.