Skip to content
ADVERTISEMENT
Sign In
  • Sections
    • News
    • Advice
    • The Review
  • Topics
    • Data
    • Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion
    • Finance & Operations
    • International
    • Leadership & Governance
    • Teaching & Learning
    • Scholarship & Research
    • Student Success
    • Technology
    • Transitions
    • The Workplace
  • Magazine
    • Current Issue
    • Special Issues
    • Podcast: College Matters from The Chronicle
  • Newsletters
  • Events
    • Virtual Events
    • Chronicle On-The-Road
    • Professional Development
  • Ask Chron
  • Store
    • Featured Products
    • Reports
    • Data
    • Collections
    • Back Issues
  • Jobs
    • Find a Job
    • Post a Job
    • Professional Development
    • Career Resources
    • Virtual Career Fair
  • More
  • Sections
    • News
    • Advice
    • The Review
  • Topics
    • Data
    • Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion
    • Finance & Operations
    • International
    • Leadership & Governance
    • Teaching & Learning
    • Scholarship & Research
    • Student Success
    • Technology
    • Transitions
    • The Workplace
  • Magazine
    • Current Issue
    • Special Issues
    • Podcast: College Matters from The Chronicle
  • Newsletters
  • Events
    • Virtual Events
    • Chronicle On-The-Road
    • Professional Development
  • Ask Chron
  • Store
    • Featured Products
    • Reports
    • Data
    • Collections
    • Back Issues
  • Jobs
    • Find a Job
    • Post a Job
    • Professional Development
    • Career Resources
    • Virtual Career Fair
    Upcoming Events:
    College Advising
    Serving Higher Ed
    Chronicle Festival 2025
Sign In
Students

One University Plays Down SAT Scores in Awarding Merit Aid

By Beckie Supiano August 14, 2011
Rod Smolla, president of Furman U., encouraged his staff to develop new ways to evaluate students for admission and merit scholarships.
Rod Smolla, president of Furman U., encouraged his staff to develop new ways to evaluate students for admission and merit scholarships.Furman U.

Until recently, SAT scores played a major role in Furman University’s merit-scholarship decisions. But for this fall’s entering class, the university went in a new direction.

Like plenty of other colleges looking to enhance their reputations, Furman had spent a lot of money to recruit students with high standardized-test scores. But Furman was putting even more weight on test scores than it meant to, says Rod Smolla, who became the university’s president in 2010. This was just one of several problems Mr. Smolla saw in how the university had been awarding merit aid.

To continue reading for FREE, please sign in.

Sign In

Or subscribe now to read with unlimited access for as low as $10/month.

Don’t have an account? Sign up now.

A free account provides you access to a limited number of free articles each month, plus newsletters, job postings, salary data, and exclusive store discounts.

Sign Up

Until recently, SAT scores played a major role in Furman University’s merit-scholarship decisions. But for this fall’s entering class, the university went in a new direction.

Like plenty of other colleges looking to enhance their reputations, Furman had spent a lot of money to recruit students with high standardized-test scores. But Furman was putting even more weight on test scores than it meant to, says Rod Smolla, who became the university’s president in 2010. This was just one of several problems Mr. Smolla saw in how the university had been awarding merit aid.

Despite using a complex aid-awarding strategy, Mr. Smolla says, Furman had been overshooting its financial-aid budget for years. That complexity also meant “we’d lost our ability to effectively shape the class,” he says. “It was impossible to say if we wanted to increase diversity, what would it cost?, or if we are interested in more students interested in music, what would it cost?, or if we are interested to help more impoverished families, what would it cost?”

It seemed to Mr. Smolla that only the consultant working with Furman really knew how aid was being awarded. It was like being on an airplane that only the computer knows how to fly, he says.

While spending heavily to compete with other colleges and universities that wanted the same high-scoring students, the university, its leaders thought, might be missing out on some great students who did not happen to have stellar scores. By paying a lot of attention to the SAT, Furman favored applicants who could afford test prep or were naturally good test-takers, Mr. Smolla says. In theory, test scores were supposed to count for only 15 or 20 percent of an applicant’s merit ranking, he says. But, because the most competitive students had otherwise similar academic strengths, test scores took on more weight.

Mr. Smolla compares the situation to giving an exam graded on a curve. Say the exam has five parts, each worth the same number of points. If students all perform very strongly in the first four sections, but have more varied scores on the fifth, then that last section will be the curve breaker. In Furman’s scholarship policy, that curve breaker was the SAT.

‘A Stronger, More Talented Class’

All that led Mr. Smolla to encourage his staff to find a different approach. The university’s associate vice presidents for admission and financial aid, who have each been at Furman for about three years, set to work changing how merit scholarships were awarded. They came up with a new system that de-emphasized the SAT and allowed the university to stick to its budget.

Furman began to use new measures to find students who were hungry and passionate learners, and who had grit, says Brad Pochard, associate vice president for admission. The university paid more attention to letters of recommendation from counselors and teachers, and to admissions interviews. Furman made interviews available to all of its prospective students for the first time in this past cycle, Mr. Pochard says, and is considering requiring them in the future.

The result? Furman’s average SAT score dropped about 25 points for this entering class compared with the year before, Mr. Pochard says, bringing it back in line with its average from several years ago.

Now Furman is looking at different markers of success it can track from year to year, like the numbers of valedictorians and student-body presidents, Mr. Pochard says. “From here on, we can argue we have a stronger, more talented class based on things we’ll be able to measure.”

It was also important to Furman that the incoming class was diverse, and the university did make some gains in gender balance, the percentage of students who are nonwhite, and the number of students from other countries, Mr. Pochard says.

ADVERTISEMENT

The new approach to merit aid is not the only change Furman is making. Several years ago, the university started allowing students to submit other test scores, like those from AP exams, instead of an ACT or SAT score, Mr. Pochard says. But for the class it’s recruiting for next fall, Furman will be entirely test optional. This move shows that the university really is serious about looking at students more holistically, Mr. Pochard says.

As for the finances, Furman came in under budget on its financial aid for the first time in years, while also bringing in a larger class. The university, which is no longer working with its consultant, has a new aid-awarding strategy that was designed by its own staff. The system has built-in checks to prevent overspending, says Forrest M. Stuart, associate vice president for financial aid. This, he says, will free up money for offering the students it recruits a better academic experience once they arrive on campus.

We welcome your thoughts and questions about this article. Please email the editors or submit a letter for publication.
Share
  • Twitter
  • LinkedIn
  • Facebook
  • Email
Supiano_Beckie.jpg
About the Author
Beckie Supiano
Beckie Supiano is a senior writer for The Chronicle of Higher Education, where she covers teaching, learning, and the human interactions that shape them. She is also a co-author of The Chronicle’s free, weekly Teaching newsletter that focuses on what works in and around the classroom. Email her at beckie.supiano@chronicle.com.
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT

More News

Protesters attend a demonstration in support of Palestinian activist Mahmoud Khalil, March 10, 2025, in New York.
First-Amendment Rights
Noncitizen Professors Testify About Chilling Effect of Others’ Detentions
Photo-based illustration of a rock preciously suspended by a rope over three beakers.
Broken Promise
U.S. Policy Made America’s Research Engine the Envy of the World. One President Could End That.
lab-costs-promo.jpg
Research Expenses
What Does It Cost to Run a Lab?
Research illustration Microscope
Dreams Deferred
How Trump’s Cuts to Science Funding Are Derailing Young Scholars’ Careers

From The Review

Vector illustration of a suited man with a pair of scissors for a tie and an American flag button on his lapel.
The Review | Opinion
A Damaging Endowment Tax Crosses the Finish Line
By Phillip Levine
University of Virginia President Jim Ryan keeps his emotions in check during a news conference, Monday, Nov. 14, 2022 in Charlottesville. Va. Authorities say three people have been killed and two others were wounded in a shooting at the University of Virginia and a student is in custody. (AP Photo/Steve Helber)
The Review | Opinion
Jim Ryan’s Resignation Is a Warning
By Robert Zaretsky
Photo-based illustration depicting a close-up image of a mouth of a young woman with the letter A over the lips and grades in the background
The Review | Opinion
When Students Want You to Change Their Grades
By James K. Beggan

Upcoming Events

Chronfest25_Virtual-Events_Page_862x574.png
Chronicle Festival: Innovation Amid Uncertainty
07-16-Advising-InsideTrack - forum assets v1_Plain.png
The Evolving Work of College Advising
Lead With Insight
  • Explore Content
    • Latest News
    • Newsletters
    • Letters
    • Free Reports and Guides
    • Professional Development
    • Events
    • Chronicle Store
    • Chronicle Intelligence
    • Jobs in Higher Education
    • Post a Job
  • Know The Chronicle
    • About Us
    • Vision, Mission, Values
    • DEI at The Chronicle
    • Write for Us
    • Work at The Chronicle
    • Our Reporting Process
    • Advertise With Us
    • Brand Studio
    • Accessibility Statement
  • Account and Access
    • Manage Your Account
    • Manage Newsletters
    • Individual Subscriptions
    • Group and Institutional Access
    • Subscription & Account FAQ
  • Get Support
    • Contact Us
    • Reprints & Permissions
    • User Agreement
    • Terms and Conditions
    • Privacy Policy
    • California Privacy Policy
    • Do Not Sell My Personal Information
1255 23rd Street, N.W. Washington, D.C. 20037
© 2025 The Chronicle of Higher Education
The Chronicle of Higher Education is academe’s most trusted resource for independent journalism, career development, and forward-looking intelligence. Our readers lead, teach, learn, and innovate with insights from The Chronicle.
Follow Us
  • twitter
  • instagram
  • youtube
  • facebook
  • linkedin