Yet another school makes SATs optional

Parents Forum
1

<p>I just read the following information on the Union College website:</p>

<p>"Admission to Union is merit based and driven by years of academic success, as reflected on the transcript. Union seeks students with excellent academic credentials. Those credentials are, primarily, transcripts. To underscore that belief, recently Union dropped its requirement that students submit the SATs or ACT. We do not want to discourage student from submitting data that will help us best understand their abilities; we do want to give students the choice of what to present, understanding that all candidates will receive a careful, holistic review of their application."</p>

<p>Not surprising, since Union's new President came from Holy Cross, which dropped their SAT requirement last year. Providence College has also made the SAT optional, and it has been optional at Bates for years.</p>

<p>Anyone think this trend is spreading? I hope so! My kid worked hard for 4 years and got great grades, I'd hate to see a 630 on the Math SAT keep him out of a top LAC.</p>

<p>I've heard some people who are cynical and think that the colleges are just trying to move up in the USNWR rankings. Their thinking is that only kids with high SAT scores will submit them, thus inflating the SAT of accepted students and raising the school's rank. BUT, at an open house I heard one student - onstage - say to an adcom that he would never apply to a school that didn't require SATs, since it was obviously not a very selective school. That would seem to shoot the "move up in the rankings, appear more selective" theory in the foot.</p>

2

<p>Yes it is spearding in school that can not increase their mean SAT scores range (score is way below the top universitty). So to look different they are droping it. If these school hate SAT then why not ask for student's SAT II or AP scores.</p>

3

<p>In many cases kids take AP classes Senior year, the scores aren't available until June - way after admission deadlines. Also many hs limit admission into AP classes, so only a few kids would have the chance to take them anyway.</p>

<p>Should also note that Union requires a graded piece of writing submitted in the student's Jr or Sr year. It can be a photocopy, but the teacher's grade and comments should be on it. I think its a great way of checking for grade inflation, and confirming that the student's college essay writing matches the quality of work actually submitted in hs (in other words, that the student actually wrote their own essay!)</p>