<p>Now that more schools are making SATs/ACT optional, how will merit scholarships be awarded? Will the colleges just consider all high schools as equal in instruction and grading? Will they distribute academic merit awards by looking at gpa, without considering the high school where that gpa was achieved? There seem to be high schools where many students have a 3.8+, but cannot score higher than a 1100/1650. At other high schools, students with a 3.2+ might typically score a minimum of 1200/1800.</p>
<p>I know that at least one test-optional school (Muhlenberg) requires the tests for their merit scholarships.</p>
<p>Ahh, that is interesting. It is only fair that there should be an objective way to measure who gets an academic scholarship.</p>
<p>A book I read recently quoted a Bowdoin officer as saying DON'T assume that because a college says test scores are optional that test scores aren't interesting to that college.</p>
<p>Interesting to the school is not important to me, but an objective way of determining who should get merit aid is important to me. I don't see how that is happening at SAT optional schools, unless students who don't submit scores, don't get merit awards. I doubt that this is occuring at too many schools, afterall, they do want students to attend their school.</p>
<p>Excellent question. I'm going to try to see if I could find out from various colleges. </p>
<p>I think colleges try to keep information like this secretive.</p>
<p>Like the OP says, there could be a student in the top 20% of his/her high school class with a strong academic record and good SAT scores. Yet, someone could come from a high school that a lower percentage of students with high intelligence so students with weaker academic records could rank in the top 10% for example. In the latter case, the student may have a SAT score of 1080.</p>
<p>"It is only fair that there should be an objective way to measure who gets an academic scholarship."</p>
<p>If the SAT/ACT are good and fair objective measures for scholarships, wouldn't that also be true for admissions?</p>
<p>One thing that would be unfair is if some colleges lower their standards for awarding merit scholarships toward certain racial groups.</p>
<p>Then colleges shouldn't make SAT scores test-optional in the first place. There really is no purpose to make them test-optional. The ones who make them optional use it as an excuse to admit more Black and Latino applicants, who may have scored much lower than other admitted applicants. Not having to use the lower SAT scores of some admitted students allows these colleges to accept those students without their scores affecting the 25%/75% reported to USNews. </p>
<p>What's your take on the issue?</p>
<p>They are objective measures. They aren't the only measures used. It's really dumb of colleges to make them SAT's optional. Since many high schools no longer report class rank, there's even less information available to compare applicants. SAT's were never the only indicator used in admissions--one of the many indicators. But if a college wants to be respected, it's inexcusable for them to say they won't require them because their goal is to accept some applicants who would have had to otherwise submit low scores over some applicants who score higher.</p>
<p>^Stantheman, I agree with you. What will happen to the middle class kid who went to a competitive high school and has a 3.3 gpa? Is he going to be out of luck in getting merit money, unless he searches for a school where the SAT is still required? Is he going to have to go to his instate public, b/c he can no longer get merit money since it is going to graduates of high schools with grade inflation? I am very concerned as the parent with a student a few years away from college.</p>
<p>If your student is only a few years away, you shouldn't be too concerned right now. As a student, I could tell you that from what I've observed over the years, too often parents put too much pressure on the college admissions process. Too many parents on this board probably put pressure on their kid to try to get into a college such as Harvard. There are tons of colleges so parents shouldn't be putting that kind of pressure on their kid(s). </p>
<p>You talk as if instate publics should be scorned. Middle class kids are sometimes able to get some need-based financial aid. </p>
<p>All colleges that do offer merit-money have different requirements to earn a scholarship. Often, colleges that award merit-scholarships grant them in different amounts so some admitted applicants would get offered more than others. </p>
<p>For when it's time for your kid to apply and then select a college to enroll at, is your goal to find one that iwll cost the least for your kid?</p>
<p>Wow, I am behind the times. Exactly how many and what schools are already making tests optional? Tier II, Tier III? State schools? LACs? And of those that are, how many do not require test scores for merit aid? Just trying to get a handle on whether we are making mountains out of molehills at this stage...</p>
<p>No, it is not my goal to find a school that costs the least. It is my goal to find a good fit for my kid, where he can be happy, learn, reach his academic goals, and I can pay the bill and still not eat dog food in my retirement. That about sums it up.</p>
<p>I don't scorn public schools at all. My older kid attends an oos public university, and it is excellent. I just think that a kid graduating from a competitive hs, should have an equal chance at merit awards at a kid going to a less competitive high school.</p>
<p>scansmom, To find SAT/ACT optional schools you can look at the fairtest website. I don't know about how it works for merit aid at these schools. This is what I am inquiring about.</p>
<p>I wonder if the SAT optional schools will award merit scholarships to those who choose not to submit a SAT/ACT score. I agree that an objective criterion must be used because there's a large disparity in the GPA, courseload, and difficulty level among the various high schools. It could be that AP scores could enter the equation since they'd be objective but not all students take them or take the same ones.</p>
<p>btw - My kids were only primarily interested in the UCs even though they were both at the top of their class. State schools (at least the UCs) do offer merit scholarships in the form of Regents scholarships (full tuition) for some.</p>
<p>The UCs tend to have a fair system.</p>
<p>There are some people who post on this board who actually believe colleges should lower their admissions standards for their kids solely based on their race--affirmative action. </p>
<p>Now look at it from a point of merit-scholarships. If a Black or Hispanc scores gets a high SAT score and an Asian-American scores the same and if they all have similar academic records, they deserve the same merit-scholarship. However, if an Asian-American scores a 1550 while a Black scores a 1250, with the 1550 also have a better academic record, do they really deserve a merit-scholarship worth the same amount? </p>
<p>Some of you will answer yes because you want to receive benefits of affirmative action where colleges lower their academic standards for certain applicants.</p>
<p>
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Exactly how many and what schools are already making tests optional? Tier II, Tier III? State schools? LACs?
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</p>
<p>Probably the most concentrated cluster of SAT/ACT-optional schools is in the moderately selective LACs (for a ballpark idea, around #40 in the USNews rankings on down). A quick check of a handful of these institutions suggests that almost all of the SAT-optional schools require standardized tests from applicants who want to be considered for merit scholarships. I found only one exception out of the 6-7 I checked out quickly: Drew University, which doesn't require submission of a standardized test score for merit applicants.</p>
<p>MarathonMan, Thank you for this information.</p>
<p>Bates, Bowdoin, Sarah Lawrence and Antioch College are all SAT/ACT optional schools.</p>
<p>Anyone in line for merit scholarships would probably test well, and therefore would want to submit test scores. My son is submitting both Acts and SATs to all his schools because he did well on both and thought it couldn't hurt to show consistency.</p>
<p>Bates and Bowdoin rely almost exclusively on need-based FA, though.</p>