SAT/ACT testing has long been an integral part of college admissions; many have considered these tests rites of passage for high school students. While there are colleges that have not used them in the admissions process, the most selective colleges have relied heavily on these standardized tests to assist them in determining the strongest applicants. However, the COVID-19 pandemic radically changed things due to a lack of access to these tests. As a result, over 600 U.S. colleges became test-optional for the 2020-21 application year while others did not accept test scores. This has prompted close scrutiny and assessment of the fairness and accuracy of standardized tests and their role in determining college admissions and at present, about 1700 U.S. colleges are test optional. It can be argued that the SAT/ACT tests favor those in higher socioeconomic groups while placing minorities and the poor at a great disadvantage. Requiring the SAT/ACT tests for admissions has prevented some applicants, particularly those from disadvantaged backgrounds, from applying to more selective colleges. Additionally, other studies have shown there are much better predictors of college success than SAT/ACT testing. Based on these facts, it is apparent that SAT/ACT testing should cease to be a significant factor in college admissions.
A study by Mark Kantrowitz, an expert on financial aid and scholarships, found that those who are white/Asian or from higher socioeconomic backgrounds routinely perform better on SAT/ACT tests than those from lower-income families or other races. Wealthier families are more likely to hire private tutors where their children will have an improved ability to prepare and score better on the test. SAT/ACT tutors and prep classes can be very expensive and cost-prohibitive for many. Tutors can cost upwards of hundreds of dollars an hour and SAT/ACT prep classes are also expensive; the total costs of SAT/ACT prep can easily cost thousands of dollars. Those who can afford to hire tutors and teachers to help review SAT/ACT prep material are clearly at an advantage, which is evidenced by higher test scores in more affluent areas. One University of California regent even refers to these tests as a “proxy of privilege.” Additionally, the SAT/ACT widens the gap between long-standing academic inequities in schools and students’ backgrounds. NPR reporter Elissa Nadworny states that SAT/ACT testing is reflective of the “deep inequalities that we have in our system” and “have to be used with incredible caution.” The use of these tests may only serve to compound the advantages and disadvantages of groups of students, widening the gap between them. If these tests are used to award scholarships and admit students to colleges, large groups of students may not benefit from monetary awards and will not gain admission to the more elite and selective colleges, which may result in further ramifications. These scholarships and top colleges serve as stepping stones to graduate school and higher-paying jobs, further perpetuating disparities between these different socioeconomic groups. Finally, the National Education Association states that these tests have been steeped in racial bias since their inception and have been used to limit students of color in elite colleges. Ibram X. Kendi, the author of How to be an Antiracist, asserts, “Standardized tests have become the most effective racist weapon ever devised to objectively degrade Black and Brown minds and legally exclude their bodies from prestigious schools.” Indeed, one of the key players in the development of the SAT was Carl Brigham, a psychologist and eugenicist who believed that those of Nordic background were superior to those from other backgrounds, such as those of African-American descent. With this history in mind, the appropriateness of these tests in today’s society becomes even murkier. Therefore, these tests may discriminate against those from minority backgrounds, rather than being used to fairly admit students.
Some believe that college success can be most accurately predicted by grades and GPA. This is because coursework reflects a more prolonged and comprehensive effort, spread over four years of high school, with more diverse skills assessed and more widely distributed testing opportunities. This type of effort is most comparable to what is encountered and needed in college. This is in stark contrast to SAT/ACT scores, which are a result of only one day’s or several days’ effort. In addition, the skills tested on the SAT/ACT may not be as broad or as reflective of the day-to-day skills needed for college success. Preparation for SAT/ACT testing may be a more narrow and a less accurate assessment of one’s overall ability to complete coursework needed for college success. A study by Allensworth and Clark assessing 55,000 students in Chicago Public Schools found that incremental increases in GPA were directly correlated with an increased chance of graduating college; they found that students with high school GPAs less than 1.5 had a 20% chance of graduating from college while those with GPAs of 3.75 or greater had an 80% chance of graduation.
Others have proposed a more comprehensive system to most accurately profile applicants, taking into account their socioeconomic backgrounds and their unique talents. After research teams from California State University analyzed SAT results, scores from the Smarter Balanced assessment, and CSU’s 2016 freshman class GPA, they proposed a multifactor admission score of 21 factors that best represented the talents and skills of their applicants. These 21 factors would differ by campus and include work experience, leadership roles, extracurricular activities and special status such as foster youth, first-generation or military. These variables combined may better predict a student’s preparedness for college.
It has been widely debated whether elite schools, those that only accept a very small percentage of applicants, can maintain their high caliber of students by admitting students without SAT/ACT testing. MIT, amongst the most selective of schools in the nation, recently reinstated the use of these tests in its college admissions process. MIT argued that instead of preventing those from lower socio-economic backgrounds from being admitted, eliminating testing does the opposite. MIT stated that the SAT/ACT helps them to better identify students with academic promise. Stu Schmill, the dean of admissions states, “Our ability to accurately predict student academic success at MIT is significantly improved by considering standardized testing—especially in mathematics…not having SATs/ACT scores to consider tends to raise socioeconomic barriers to demonstrating readiness for our education.” However, MIT’s argument seems contradictory to what the vast majority of studies show: that those from higher socioeconomic backgrounds tend to do much better on these tests than those from underprivileged backgrounds.
Interestingly, a faculty task force at the University of California found that taking the SAT/ACT actually improved the chances of admission for some black, Hispanic, and low-income students. They also found that “including the SAT and ACT in the formula for admissions helped some black, Hispanic, and low-income students by offering an additional metric for those who might have been rejected based on grades.” This argument does not appear to be very convincing since only “some” of the minority and lower-income students were helped, rather than the majority of them. Grades are the best predictor of college readiness because of the direct similarities between college and high school, specifically related to the ability to handle various assignments, tests, and coursework consistently over several years. Per the University of California website, they “no longer consider SAT or ACT test scores when making admissions decisions or awarding scholarships and state that “if you choose to submit test scores as part of your application, they may be used as an alternative method of fulfilling minimum requirements for eligibility or for course placement after you enroll.”
Supreme Court Justice Scalia has suggested that elite schools have to decide whether they want to be highly competitive institutions attracting the strongest candidates based on things like SAT/ACT scores, or lower their standards overall to accept a more diverse student body. He has stated that elite schools such as the University of Michigan Law School cannot “have their cake and eat it too,” meaning they must decide on one approach or the other, but cannot merge both. They may find that to build a successful, diverse student body, they need to consider various factors that do not include SAT/ACT testing.
Currently, the majority of colleges do not require SAT/ACT testing in their admissions process; it is estimated that at present, 1700 U.S. colleges are test-optional. More than half of U.S. colleges admit two-thirds or more of students who apply. Applicants from many public and community colleges do not require test results. The key role of SAT/ACT testing is one that primarily affects the top 50 colleges, which represents only 3% of colleges and universities according to the Pew Research Center. The majority of U.S. colleges are successfully using alternative determinants besides SAT/ACT tests to admit their student bodies; these statistics should help us to keep perspective on the issue.
The SAT/ACT debate is one that has been years in the making. However, based on the evidence, it is obvious that the use of these tests is obsolete and unnecessary, and is inherently biased against those from lower socioeconomic backgrounds. A multi-factor point system like the one used at California State University appears to be a much more effective way to create a successful, diverse, and flourishing student body. This system can enable colleges to get a more accurate assessment of the strengths of applicants, in the setting of their unique socioeconomic backgrounds. Eliminating the SAT/ACT will eliminate the unfair advantages afforded to those from higher socioeconomic backgrounds, who may already have advantages due to their parents’ legacies and connections. Without the SAT/ACT, there will be a more level playing field for all applicants, enabling those with the strongest attributes, including grades/GPAs, leadership positions, work experience, and extracurricular activities, to be granted access to the colleges of their choice.
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