Many colleges around the country have recently updated the standardized test-optional application policies implemented during the COVID-19 era. Ivy League universities like Harvard, Brown and Dartmouth are shifting back to a policy of requiring SAT or ACT scores for the 2024-25 application cycle.
Before the pandemic, standardized test scores received widespread criticism for favoring affluent students who could afford private tutoring, while discriminating against students from disadvantaged backgrounds. However, shifting to a test-optional policy gives colleges time to evaluate the effectiveness of standardized test scores in predicting student success in college and beyond.
According to a study by Opportunity Insights, standardized test scores exhibit a strong correlation with students’ post-college outcomes. At the same time, high school GPA did little to predict academic success. This may be because standardized tests are, by design, standardized; everyone takes the same test and is graded on the same scale, whereas course grades can widely vary between schools and even between teachers teaching the same class.
When it comes to low-income and minority students, evidence indicates that test-optional policies have been counterproductive in promoting an equitable admissions process. Grade inflation is more prevalent at affluent schools, while many extracurricular activities are obtained through connections, disproportionately benefiting students from wealthy backgrounds, and standardized test scores can help low-income students stand out. Test-optional policies, though, can discourage disadvantaged students who performed well on their SAT or ACT relative to their peers from submitting their scores, as students are told only to submit scores above the 50th percentile of the institutions they are applying to.
While it’s easy to criticize the shortcomings of standardized testing in evaluating students, it is essential to examine the effectiveness of what other metrics would work instead and whether certain policies would make the college admissions process more or less equitable.
