Brown University to reinstate standardized test requirements
PROVIDENCE — Brown University will again require students to submit standardized test scores when they apply for admission, school officials announced Tuesday.
The university’s policy around tests comes after an internal committee spent the last six months deliberating certain undergraduate admissions practices. The decision to reinstate test scores comes just two weeks after Yale University reevaluated its own policies, and about a month after Dartmouth College announced in early February that it would once again require SAT and ACT scores.
At Brown, the change will go into effect for all first-year applicants starting with the fall 2025 application cycle for the class of 2029.
“I continue to be proud of Brown’s strong track record of national leadership in cultivating diversity and inclusion as core tenets for sustaining academic excellence,” wrote Brown president Christina H. Paxson in a letter.
For decades, standardized tests such as the SAT had been mandatory for high school students looking to apply to college. The requirement across higher education created an entire industry of tutors, books, and test prep. Prior to the pandemic, some debated the efficacy of standardized tests and whether they best reflected a student’s ability to perform in academia. Other critics said standardized tests amplified inequities and favored families who could afford test-prep and tutors.
The concern over standardized tests prompted some institutions to consider test-optional policies. When COVID-19 forced the closure of high schools and ACT/SAT testing centers in 2020, and many colleges decided to drop the requirement.
A few competitive schools have begun reinstating test requirements, including MIT in 2022. At the time, Massachusetts Institute of Technology officials said standardized test scores may improve admissions chances for students from disadvantaged backgrounds.
New research released by the Harvard-affiliated research group Opportunity Insights suggests that tests like the SAT can help identify talented students from low-income backgrounds who may not have access to expensive extracurricular activities, Advanced Placement courses, or guidance counselors with the time to assist with college applications.
In September, Paxson charged a committee of faculty and alumni on the university’s highest governing board — the Corporation of Brown University — to examine standardized tests scores, Early Decision options, and current practices for “legacy” admissions. The group’s work was centered around larger, national conversations about how colleges and universities build diverse classes, particularly after the US Supreme Court’s June 2023 ruling that struck down the consideration of race in admissions.
In their recommendations to the university, the committee found that SAT and ACT scores are among the “key indicators that help predict a student’s ability to succeed” in Brown’s demanding academic environment, said provost Francis J. Doyle III.
Brown will permit exceptions in rare cases when an applicant is unable to take the test, a university announcement said. The university will also remain testoptional for student veterans and transfer applicants.
Also on Tuesday, Brown announced it would continue to offer Early Decision admission and will not change its current practices for applicants with family connections to Brown — which include “legacies” and children of faculty and staff — for now.
Applicants with one or more parents who hold a Brown undergraduate degree (often called “legacies”) and children of faculty and staff do benefit during the admissions process, Paxson acknowledged. Among those in the 2027 graduating class, 8 percent of students are legacies and “1 percent to 2 percent” of students are children of faculty or staff.