I will repeat something I wrote a while back - admissions to “elite” private colleges isn’t a “prize” that a student receives for having done well in high school. A valedictorian does not “deserve” to be admitted to Harvard any more than a C-student who spent their spare time watching cat videos online.
Private colleges admit incoming classes based on their calculations as to which set of students will provide the most benefit to the college. They do not admit students based on how “deserving” that student is of admission.
So an applicant with an SAT of 1500 is not more “deserving” of admissions to Harvard than an applicant with an SAT of 1300. So if TO means that the latter is much more likely to be admitted, that is their good luck, not some serious infringement of the rights of the former.
But they were, and still are. the only portion of the application where everyone is the same (unless of course you’re cheating). My kid is a perfect illustration of the fact that one can get a very high score without expensive test prep (although there is no question that expensive private one-on-one test prep can certainly help), as long as one has learned the high school material and is willing to independently prep for the test. Grades are subjective. Recommendations are subjective. Extracurriculars are largely subjective. But standardized test scores are exactly that - standardized - and they have a purpose in the application process.
So far, from what we have seen at our kids’ school, TO has been a great benefit to URM (even very wealthy ones, who are perhaps 1/16th minority), first-gen (who aren’t really first-gen (1 parent may be)), and kids with a supposed “good story” who had ample opportunity to test, didn’t do well, so didn’t submit a score, and a detriment to extremely bright kids with the best rigor who submitted scores and excelled throughout high-school, not for the attainment of a particular college, but because that’s who they are.
It appears to have allowed kids who would not meet the most minimal bar in the past to get in, which then leaves fewer spots for the rest. I can cite examples, but won’t. Suffice it to say that in some places where you need certain skills to succeed (for instance, in highly ranked business schools, you normally need to be somewhat good in math) some kids will lack those.
Would we do something different? I don’t know what that would be. No, because our kids took tests (all kids at our kids’ school had ample opportunity to test, though many are now applying TO), one of our’s did test prep- which really helped, the other didn’t, and both applied where they wanted, the results will be what they will be, and nobody ever said that life is “fair.”
I hope colleges will see whether allowing everyone to be TO, even those from an expensive private school who took tests and didn’t do well, and didn’t even have high rigor, is a good idea. Maybe these kids will succeed, maybe they won’t. Can’t say I’m happy about it. But, I don’t make the rules.
Actually, I think the reverse is true. It’s the kids from the lower or “mediocre” high schools that are at a disadvantage.
AdComs know certain schools better than others. If a high school sends several kids to “elite” colleges/univs. every year, AdComs can be confident that a 4.0 GPA means the student can succeed at a high academic level. They know the high rigor in the HS’s curriculum, and can be reasonably confident that the high GPAs will translate into success at their college. For example, every year my D20 and S23’s public, NE, suburban high school has at least 5 students admitted to Cornell, and another 2-3 into Dartmouth. Admittance to T20 colleges/univs. is not an anomaly at all. It’s clear the AdCom’s know the high school, and our students have had success there. If anyone applied TO this year, the AdComs don’t have to worry about how they’ll perform if admitted. They know our curriculum and GPA range well.
I get concerned about kids from other high schools that aren’t as well known, or don’t send several kids to T20 every year. In past years, they could prove their GPA wasn’t due to lack of rigor, preparation, or a “fluke” by performing well on SAT/ACT tests. AdComs would be willing to “take a chance” on kids from underperforming high schools because they could put a high SAT/ACT score along with their GPA for a higher level of confidence in their ability to handle the work load. If students were unable to test due to the pandemic, I think they could be at a severe disadvantage if they are not from a strong high school.
In terms of “was [test optional] the right choice?”, the answer to that is that it was probably the only choice if the college did not want to exclude numerous applicants who were unable to take the tests ordinarily desired by the colleges (test cancellations due to COVID-19, or not having the test cancelled but being unable to go because of forced quarantine when exposed to a classmate with COVID-19).
In terms of “disservice to kids”, test optional helps some but hurts others in the competition for admission, assuming a college where test scores are ordinarily a significant factor in admission selection, and the students in question are competitive for admission in other aspects considered by the college.
Test optional helps:
Students whose test scores are in the lower end of the college’s test score range.
Students who were not able to take the test (for COVID-19 or other reasons).
Test optional hurts:
Students whose test scores are in the lower midrange to midrange of the college’s test score range.
Test blind hurts:
Students whose test scores are in the higher midrange to higher end of the college’s test score range.
I agree that test optional was probably the only choice colleges could make this year. But, could they have implemented it better by asking students why they are applying test optional?
A student with a low test score will probably make up a plausible other reason to answer such a question. For example, if the student had a low test score from a previous year wanted to retest but was prevented from doing that by COVID-19-related cancellations, the student could (truthfully, but not telling the full story) write that the reason was COVID-19-related cancellations.
I think the fact that your kid had a letter of recommendation from the Harvard symphony conductor who wanted him at the school played a much bigger factor in his acceptance than the ACT score.
Congrats to your D! Like you, I didn’t initially believe it when colleges said it won’t be a detriment to submit without scores. I’m very happy to have been proven wrong. My D didn’t get into her ED1 but I honestly don’t feel it had anything to do with test scores.
I don’t think there was another option. Request documentation from every test-optional applicant that test centers were cancelled? How big a radius? How many test dates?
Lots of kids take the test multiple times, only reporting the best score. If a student did take it once fall of Junior year but then was cancelled on all subsequent dates, does that count?
My daughter went TO. She has high grades, works her butt off and doesn’t test well. She is very involved in school and has leadership positions. I also imagine her letters of Rec. were very good, teachers like her because she works hard and is a rule follower (to a painful extent). But again, she does not test well. She has a IEP because she didn’t say a word at 2 years old. She had early intervention, lots of tests to find out what was wrong with her and finally they diagnosed her with a processing disorder. She had trouble finding words, which effected her social relationships and kids were mean about it. Thus she then had social anxiety and generalized anxiety which conributed to not testing well.
So did schools being test optional work to her advantage this year. Yes, it absolutely did. She’s gotten into 11 schools (every school she applied to) and had she had to submit scores, my guess is she would not have. Even though she has a strong GPA (due to her strong work ethic), her test scores were way below average.
But with that right now comes tremendous guilt she is having. She feels like she is almost “cheating” or getting a pass as she knows some that have been deferred or denied from schools she got into and they all submitted test scores.
Test scores do not measure what a good student she is and what a good addition she (or anyone else who has shared here) would make on any college campus. Test scores don’t measure her drive and work ethic or most importantly her good soul. And if this taught us anything perhaps this is the way it should be and we should do away with these tests and the pressure they put youth on and maybe realize the mental health crisis we have on our hands as it is.
Sounds like your daughter will be a great addition to whichever campus she selects!
As far as the test situation, how does that translate to a college setting where big, stressful, timed tests are the norm? I’m not asking to judge at all. I’m just genuinely wondering if colleges make accommodations for kids who struggle with testing situations.
This is a great success story and with all the crap going on with CV-19 was a silver lining for your student.
Unfortunately, our lives are filled with all kinds of tests so requiring them for college admissions to me isn’t unreasonable, in normal circumstances. If you want to drive a vehicle, you take a drivers test, if you apply to medical school, you take the GMAT, if you want to practice law, you take the Bar exam. Whether we like it or not, there is a purpose to having people (whether it’s students, employees, professionals, etc.) take tests. Like your child, my son has accommodations (504) and does not always test well, smart kid but he takes a long time completing fast-paced, timed tests. He is very reluctant to use his 504 accommodations and probably will not if/when he takes the PSAT, ACT or SAT.
He is only a HS freshman but I am secretly hoping that when it comes time for him to apply to colleges, many schools will keep their TO policies and focus on evaluating him for his school work, LORs, essays and ECs?
It’s usually not a problem. Students who have a documented disability receive accommodations.
At the start of every semester I get a letter from Accessibility Services for each student enrolled in my course that has a documented disability. The letter contains a list of their accommodations. The most common are time and a half (or double time) on all quizzes and tests, and access to a distraction-reduced or distraction-free environment for exams. I also have students that have designated notetakers in class, and those who get study guides before exams. I even have students that are allowed to leave the class at a moment’s notice, without explanation, if they get overwhelmed. Most recently, I’ve had students that receive special accommodations over Zoom classes due to anxiety. There is a long list of accommodations for students that need them.
I don’t think colleges needed to request documentation. A simple question would have sufficed: Why are you not submitting test scores?
In the example you gave, I’d just have my child say “I took the SAT in the fall of my junior year but did not achieve a desired score. I subsequently registered for the exam on the 5 following dates, all of which were canceled due to covid.” It’s the truth, so nothing to hide.
Maybe not a perfect solution but i think it would have given the colleges a more complete picture. I’m just seeing so many kids at our local high school that got sub-desirable scores but are applying test optional in the hopes that they will blend in with the kids who never had the opportunity to test.
I dunno…I think taking a test to get into college is a ton of pressure. The bottom line, if a kid gets into college they have to do well in their classes or they fail out, waste a lot of money etc… Most normal people are not going to want to continue to spend all that money after failing out one semester. Thus those kids drop out and only those with the drive and determination continue on and graduate. So at the end of the day, those that earned the degrees do so and those that can’t truly handle college do not. But to have all of that determined by ONE test to get you admissions? Thats why we have to look at the “whole child” not just a 4 hour test score.
Yes fortunately for mine she does have an IEP and with that transfers into getting accommodations in college. Not every college does it so well but I can speak from experience in that my older daughter is a college sophomore, also with a learning disability (yea me) and her college has been amazing and I can’t say enough about how wonderful her professors are. Now granted, at 20 years old she has to advocate for herself and reach out when she’s struggling to which she has. She currently has a 3.4 and is doing great.
BUT again, its not just about tests. For many classes its also about showing up and doing the work, the projects, the participating.
I’m just genuinely wondering if colleges make accommodations for kids who struggle with testing situations.