I'm Uncomfortable Getting Rid of the Physics GRE

Traditionally the Physics GRE has been part of getting into a graduate Physics program. However, studies show that a student's GRE score is uncorrelated with their success in grad school and that students from underrepresented groups perform less well on the GRE on average, contributing to a less diverse community. Because of this, a number of Physics departments have not just de-weighted GRE performance but dropped it entirely. While I recognize the bias inherent in the GRE, particularly due to the financial cost, I believe the community is missing an opportunity to address why many otherwise strong students do not perform well on this particular assessment. I'm also concerned that this sends a message to undergraduate students about the value of learning and internalizing material presented in a physics curriculum. I am cognizant of my own immense privilege and biases as a white, cisgendered, heterosexual, neurotyplical male in physics and understand that these biases affect my approach to education. I will elaborate on these thoughts while posing possible alternative approaches for assessing preparation for graduate school.