By: Valerie Erde
Students and parents frequently ask me how much standardized test scores really matter in the college admissions process. Here’s the upshot….
- The majority of colleges -- especially selective ones -- still require standardized tests; high school programs are difficult to compare as their rigor varies widely.
- Testing policies do not necessarily apply to all groups equally; test optional does not always mean test blind.
- Some colleges use test scores as cutoff points to facilitate wading through thousands of applications and for determining merit award and honors program eligibility.
High School Grades Count More Than Test Scores, But….
High school lasts four years, so shouldn’t colleges care more about your class grades than a number from a single day of testing? The answer to that is, yes, they do care more about your course selection, rigor, and grades, but colleges still rely on standardize test scores because they….
- allow colleges to compare students from schools across a country in which high schools vary wildly when it comes to academic rigor.
- provide schools -- especially ultra-selective ones -- that receive more applications than they can manage, a way to create a cutoff point.
Brent Evans of the Stanford University Center for Education Policy Analysis explains it well: “The exam score therefore functions as a way to compare students on the same scale not only to other current applicants but to past applicants as well. It serves to identify students [who] may be underachievers in high school but have high potential for succeeding in college and students that may have received great grades in high school but not be well prepared for the additional rigors of the college curriculum.”
Read The Fine Print: Test Optional ≠ Test Blind
One admirable goal of changes to testing policies is to try and bring more equity and diversity to the admissions process, and there is evidence that test optional schools are enjoying increases in underrepresented applicants.
Some highly-ranked colleges have been test-optional for several years, including Bowdoin, Smith, Wake Forest, and Wesleyan, among others. Other colleges such as Brandeis, Middlebury, and NYU are "test-flexible," meaning they will consider AP scores and subject tests instead of the traditional SAT or ACT. Parents and students became really excited when one of our country’s most highly selective universities, The University of Chicago, went test optional in 2018.
But if you take a closer look at the University of Chicago’s admissions website you’ll see the following advice: “We encourage students to take standardized tests like the SAT and ACT, and to share your scores with us if you think that they are reflective of your ability and potential.” According to test prep thought leader Jed Applerouth, “the overwhelming majority of students will apply to Chicago with a very strong test score. Most likely ninety plus percent of students who receive an offer at Chicago in this current admissions cycle will have submitted a test score. We know this because of the submission rates at other prominent test-optional schools.”
In other words, the policy is test optional, but not test blind. So at these schools, especially if you come from an affluent and a well-represented background, “optional” really isn’t; you need to take the test.
Colleges testing requirements change frequently e.g. on 3/24/2020, Tufts went test optional - but not test blind - so you need to check each school’s admissions website thoroughly. Think about what other students who may be “benchmarks” for you, based on Naviance or a College’s Common Data Set, are doing. (See more about this below.)
Do Colleges Have Test Score Minimums or Cutoffs?
Yes and No.
Most colleges and universities publish what is known as the Common Data Set which provides a whole host of information about accepted students for each incoming first-year class, including ACT and SAT test score ranges at the 25th and 75th percentiles. Since test scores are part of a bigger puzzle, colleges typically don’t have a certain SAT or ACT score a student must achieve to gain acceptance. There’s some wiggle room here as MIT’s policy makes explicit: “We do not have cut off or recommended scores for the ACT, SAT, or SAT Subject Tests as scores are evaluated within an applicant’s context.”
Sorry to be trite here, but a picture really is worth 1,000 words. As you can see in the chart below from MIT’s 2018-19 Common Data Set, to be in the 75th percentile of MIT’s 2018-19 accepted first years, you had to have at least a 1570 overall SAT or a 36 ACT score. You can also see that ALL accepted first years had a minimum math score of 780 SAT or 36 ACT.
MIT Common Data Set
A recently revealed internal document from the Harvard lawsuit tells the same story: to be a “serious contender” at Harvard students need a “mid-to-high 700s, out of a possible 800 on each part of the SAT. Or at least 33 out of a maximum 36 on the ACT.”
Since your student will typically be compared to other students in their school, you can also glean a lot of important information about the role of test scores in admissions for your high school by looking at the scattergrams in Naviance or Overgrad, or whatever your high school equivalent is.
Take a look at these scattergrams of accepted and rejected students from an affluent, suburban high school to the UNC Chapel Hill and the University of Pennsylvania respectively. Notice there are two green check marks that show lower GPAs/test scores than the for the big cluster. These lower scores, generally for recruited athletes and development candidates, bring down a college’s reported 50% range. That means that unless you are a star on your football team (or other highly recruited sport) the average GPA and test scores required for students like you could be even higher.
Standardized Tests Still Ranked A Top Criterion
As a former Yale admissions officer put it to me recently, “picture standardized test scores like the balance on a scale: great test scores can lift up weaker parts of a college application and poor test scores can weigh them down.”
The 2017 report from the National Association for College Admission Counseling reports that test scores are one of the top factors in admissions decisions for freshmen, both domestically and internationally. Only two things are considered more important, according to surveys of these counselors: grades in college prep courses which 77% rate as considerably important and grades in all courses which similarly rate at 77% and 54% of college admissions counselors said SAT/ACT scores are considerably important, with only 4% saying they don’t matter at all.
(As a comparison student personal essays are rated as considerably important only 19% of the time and recommendation letters just 14.6% of the time.)
Over the past ten years, how much SAT/ACT scores matter has decreased a bit from a high of 60%, whereas overall GPA has become more important. Most other factors have shrunk in influence. Things like class rank, which used to matter a lot, have dropped significantly, as has the personal interview and demonstrated interest in a school. These are general trends, though, and may not hold up for highly selective schools. All the Ivies, Stanford, Duke, and many more of the top-tier universities still require test scores.
The bottom line? Fair or not, scores matter.
Good News: Raising ACT/SAT Scores Can = Merit Awards & Honors Programs
In addition to the fact that with some practice and effort, you can almost always improve your test score, doing so may make you eligible for merit-based scholarships and/or selective honors programs within larger universities. So even if your student has good enough scores and grades to get into a given college, it can be worthwhile to push a little harder. For example, you would be in the 75th percentile for regular acceptance to University of Pittsburgh with roughly a 1330 SAT or a 28 ACT. But to be eligible for the well-regarded University of Pittsburgh’s Honors Program, you’d need a 1450-1500 SAT or a 32-33 ACT (in addition to a higher average GPA).
About Valerie Erde of Veridian Prep:
VeridianPrep is an academic tutoring and test prep company that combines years of subject expertise and experience with evidence-based approaches to teaching and learning. VeridianPrep’s strengths lie in quickly determining each student’s strengths and gaps to offer a personalized, and results-oriented approach that builds skills and confidence to help teens succeed not only in a single class or test, but also in their next journey -- college. Currently, VeridianPrep covers all levels of Math, English, Chemistry, and Physics including AP/ACT/SAT/SAT II, meeting one-on-one with students at home, in offices in Greenwich, CT/NYC, or online. https://www.veridianprep.com
If you are interested in speaking with us about test prep options, please contact us.
For additional information and insights, check out our blog:
What is the Best Time to Take the SAT/ACTs and What is the Best Way to Prepare for Them?
Does My Child Need a Tutor? 6 Signs It May Be Time for Academic Help
How to Help Your Teens Manage Their Time
Meaningful summer activities that enhance college application
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