MAJOR FIELD TESTS
Colleges and universities use the Major Field Tests to
measure student academic achievement and growth and
to assess the educational outcomes of their major
programs. In addition, academic departments use the
Major Field Tests to evaluate their curricula and to
measure the progress of their students. The tests also
provide students with an assessment of their own level
of achievement within a field of study compared to
that of students in their program and to national
comparative data.
Background
Development of the Major Field Tests began in 1989,
modeled on the development of the Graduate Record
Examinations® (GRE®) Subject Tests. However,
unlike the GRE Subject Tests, the Major Field Tests do
not serve as a predictor of graduate school success, but
are designed to measure the basic knowledge and
understanding achieved by senior undergraduates in
their major field of study. Each test is revised
approximately every five years. Experienced teaching
faculty members representing all the relevant areas of a
discipline participate in determining test specifications,
questions, and types of scores reported. ETS
assessment experts subject each question to rigorous
tests of sensitivity and reliability. In addition, every
effort is made to include questions that assess the most
common and most important topics and skills within
each major field of study.
Test Content
The Major Field Tests are designed to assess mastery
of concepts, principles, and knowledge expected
of students at the conclusion of an academic major
in specific subject areas. In addition to factual
knowledge, the tests evaluate students’ abilities to
analyze and solve problems, understand relationships,
and interpret material. The tests may contain questions
that require interpretation of graphs, diagrams, and
charts based on material related to the field. Academic
departments may add up to 50 additional locally
written questions to test areas of a discipline that may