Pandemic may change high-stakes testing for college

The coronavirus pandemic has created a domino effect in education that may permanently alter how SAT and ACT tests influence college admissions decisions.

School closures across the country in mid-March occurred at the same time that high school juniors typically take the SAT and ACT tests. The SAT is postponed until August and may become an online test at that point. The ACT is postponed until at least June. Because of these changes, many post-secondary institutions have dropped the tests from their admissions requirements for the high school graduating class of 2021.

Over the past several weeks, nearly 20 colleges and universities have adopted test-optional admission policies. Some institutions, such as Boston University and the University of California system, have done so for class of 2021 applicants. Tufts University and other institutions will try a test-optional policy for a few years.

But many institutions have permanently adopted a test-optional policy. Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, the University of Oregon, and Oregon State University had already been considering a test-optional policy when current disruptions in SAT and ACT testing accelerated their decision. And in coming weeks, other schools are likely to become test-optional either temporarily or permanently. This is in addition to more than 1,100 colleges and universities that had already been test-optional, according to the National Center for Fair and Open Testing.

This pandemic may be the turning point in the importance of high-stakes tests for college admissions. Many institutions already de-emphasize test scores as a way to improve equity in admissions, especially for underrepresented groups. Trying to predict college success from a collection of academic and non-academic factors is tricky business. Research typically shows that together high school GPA and test scores explain only a small proportion of the variability/differences among first-year students in their GPA.

The adoption of temporary test-optional policies has created a unique opportunity for researchers to determine the level of importance of SAT and ACT scores on college success. What happens if studies show that institutions can predict first-year college success just as effectively without these tests?

In the post-pandemic world, many more institutions may decide to become test-optional, and as a result, high school students may opt not to take the SAT or ACT. Standardized tests would assume a smaller role in college admissions.

But the tests won’t go away for good, and they shouldn’t. No single indicator by itself can accurately predict a complex outcome like college success. I teach my students that we should never make a decision based on a single score. We need to take all data into account.

The rush to adopt testoptional policies due to COVID-19 may lead colleges and universities to look at the qualifications of applicants differently. They may place less emphasis on test scores and more on the overall picture of a student’s potential.