SAT scores still wield a mighty force in our culture and in the psyches of teenagers, even though 760 American colleges and universities, including my own, have made standardized testing an optional part of the admissions process. After admitting three classes of students under a testing-optional policy adopted in April 2005, I was startled this spring when I found it difficult to convince my own daughter, who was disappointed in her SAT scores, that her future is not dictated by the results of a test. She nodded when I, as a college-admissions officer, promised her that there are other, more-accurate measures of ability and success, and that a test score can never convey what she has experienced, learned, and accomplished. But I could see that all she was thinking about was that number.
I was able to assure my daughter without reservation, as an increasing number of institutions consider eliminating their testing requirements. While I admit it’s a scary prospect — as is any major policy change — the benefits far outweigh the challenges and risks for all parties involved.
For any college contemplating the change to test-optional, the report just issued by a commission convened by the National Association for College Admission Counseling is required reading. The commission spent a year examining the impact of standardized testing on the college-admissions process, and its recommendations provide further weight to test-optional policies. The commission advises colleges to scrutinize how they actually use test scores, and it urges institutions to place greater emphasis on students’ high-school curricula and achievements. Our experience at the College of Holy Cross reaffirms those conclusions.
Three years ago, after the new writing portion of the SAT was unveiled, my college announced that it would make SAT and ACT scores an optional part of prospective students’ applications. It was a carefully considered decision, made after several years of discussion and debate over the role that test scores played in our admissions process. Because Holy Cross had long placed more weight on a student’s academic record, high-school course of study, and qualitative evaluations than on standardized-test scores, the move was more a public announcement of an existing process than a dramatic shift in how we made our admissions decisions.
Like other institutions making similar announcements — Wake Forest University and Smith College, most recently — Holy Cross received national media attention. Like them, we were applauded by many guidance counselors, teachers, and parents; and we were roundly criticized by others.
Three years later, I can say that becoming SAT-optional has brought Holy Cross overwhelmingly positive results. The students admitted under the new policy are more geographically and ethnically diverse than previous classes were. Since 2006 the percentage of first-year students admitted from outside New England went from 46 percent to 50 percent; and the proportion of African-American, Latin American, Asian-American, and Native American students went from 17 percent to 21 percent. The three classes since 2006 are also statistically stronger, with more students taking the most-rigorous course loads available at their high schools. Reports from the faculty are positive, describing this group of students as engaged, focused, and truly committed to maximizing their Holy Cross experience.
However, as with any major institutional change, we had to overcome substantial challenges along the way — from the mundane and practical (such as updating printed materials) to the more consequential (responding to the accusations from alumni and others that Holy Cross was lowering its standards). We’re still learning lessons every day. Here are some of the most important:
Be true to your institution. Be honest about the role that tests play in your admissions decisions. You should be able to say with certainty that tests do not fill a void in the process, and that you can get all the information you need to effectively evaluate a student from other sources: transcripts, essays, personal interviews. Critically examine your existing process, taking into account what you know about your students and their success rate in relation to their test scores. Ask yourself what you would be missing if you didn’t require test scores. Do you really use those SAT II scores in admissions decisions? For some institutions, particularly highly technical ones, tests will remain a crucial part of the process. But for a lot of others, tests can be extra noise.
Know your students — and put them first. It can be tempting to let high test scores persuade you to accept students simply to raise your profile or improve an average. It’s even more tempting to use tests as a filter, because doing so requires less time and effort by your staff than a more personal evaluation does. But it’s not in the best interest of your students or your institution. Yes, a more personalized approach does require going the extra mile, but it’s really the only way to truly get a sense of your applicants’ abilities.
We knew from experience that great testers who didn’t do well in high school were not the students who would thrive at Holy Cross, with its small class sizes, close student-faculty interaction, and rigorous academic program in the liberal arts. Classroom work, writing, and intellectual exploration are more important indicators of success for us. We wanted to send the message that those are the things high-school students should be spending their time and energy on — not prepping for a test. In the process, we hoped to eliminate some of the stress that families and students experience in relation to testing.
We also empower prospective students by letting them know that they are active participants in the admissions process. We’re not making a decision based on one test score, which can be skewed depending on factors, beyond a student’s control, like socioeconomic status, parents’ educational experiences, and access to test-preparation programs. Instead we evaluate students based on the four-year story they tell us through their transcripts, essays, and interviews. Their high-school career is concrete and real; they are the authors of their own narratives. By minimizing the distraction that testing brings to the high-school story, we get at the heart of what we know makes a great Holy Cross student — a willingness to work hard and an eagerness to learn.
Be prepared for criticism, but don’t fear it. Most of our constituencies responded very positively to our decision to go test-optional. Right before we publicly announced our policy change, we invited a group of high-school guidance counselors to the campus and decided — quite spontaneously — to give them the news first. The room erupted in a standing ovation. After the announcement, my inbox was flooded with e-mailed compliments from students, parents, guidance counselors, faculty members, and alumni.
However, some people clearly disagreed. The most immediate and unfounded response was that Holy Cross was lowering its standards. Some critics perceived that dropping the SATs from our process would somehow make us less competitive. Such a negative reaction from a small, albeit vocal, minority is a fear that can deter colleges from making changes. Don’t let it.
In reality, Holy Cross became more selective. Our announcement did away with the notion that a stellar test score would secure admission. We sent a clear message that hard work over four years of high school was a better indicator of whether a student was right for Holy Cross. The year we went test-optional, the number of applications jumped 41 percent, and it has continued to increase. (To be honest, such a big one-year hike is probably due to several factors, not solely our testing policy.) This year the college had more applicants than ever before, 7,226. We accepted just over 30 percent to create the 720-member first-year class. The quality of our applicants has improved over the past three years as well. Students are in the top 7 percent of their high-school classes, compared with the previous figure of 10 percent.
Don’t let your guard down too soon. After a college adopts a test-optional policy, it is tempting to attribute any perceived change in the student body — however slight — to that new policy. The many factors at play — increased electronic communications, changing demographics, the drive for diversity, and pressure on our high-school systems to do more with fewer dedicated resources — will have an impact on every entering class.
You might hear, for instance, from faculty members or administrators that students in your first SAT-optional class “can’t write,” and that this is obviously a result of the new policy. Now, I’m still not convinced that being able to correctly fill in little circles with a No. 2 pencil demonstrates that you’re an excellent writer. While the new writing portion of the SAT attempted to resolve that issue, it’s a flawed system that doesn’t give an accurate account of a student’s writing ability: Students are given only 25 minutes to complete the assignment, and the content of the essays doesn’t need to be substantiated or factual for a student to score highly.
There is, indeed, life after the SAT. Whether or not an institution opts for a test-optional policy in admissions, it is vital that our young people understand that a test score does not define them. Colleges have a responsibility to help students see the value in their accomplishments and the opportunities that await.
High-school students need to hear that they have control over their academic future, that the courses they choose and the direction they take in high school truly matter. Those of us in higher education should give them back such control and demystify what can be a bewildering process. Taking the focus off a number and broadening our discussions with prospective students to include high-school course selection and classroom performance benefit both prospective students and colleges. Further, by eliminating arbitrary SAT-score cutoffs from admissions and scholarship opportunities, and steering away from discussions about the selectivity of a college based on a range of SAT scores, all of us — parents, teachers, guidance counselors, admissions counselors — can better serve our young people as they consider their next important chapter.
Even though my daughter had heard me talking at the dinner table for more than three years about the benefits for Holy Cross of moving to a test-optional policy, the power of a number momentarily took the wind out of her sails. Today I’m glad that she is excited about entering her senior year and eagerly anticipating what comes next. Minimizing the emphasis we place on the SAT can only mean maximizing our students’ potential for success and happiness.
Ann B. McDermott is director of admissions at the College of the Holy Cross.
http://chronicle.com Section: Commentary Volume 55, Issue 6, Page A98