UT again will need applicants’ test scores

The University of Texas at Austin once again will require standardized test scores from applicants for undergraduate admissions after four years of a pandemic-induced policy that waived the practice.

The state’s flagship public university joins other elite universities in reversing so-called “test-optional” policies and affirming that it regards standardized tests as a key indicator of student success, even as many schools have moved in the opposite direction. At Ut-austin, the change will apply to students submitting applications starting this fall.

“Our goals are to attract the best and brightest students and to make sure every student is successful once they are here,” Utaustin President Jay Hartzell said. “Standardized scores, combined with high school GPA, support this goal by improving early identification of students who demonstrated the greatest academic achievement, the most potential, and those who can most benefit from support through our student success programs.”

Ut-austin and institutions around the country waived testing requirements for undergraduates in spring 2020, prompted by limited testing availability during the pandemic. Under test-optional policies, students are allowed to submit SAT or ACT scores for consideration, but they’re not required to do so, and the absence of a score should not be used against them.

Colleges and universities largely maintained such policies in the years since the pandemic, and that was considered a major win for those who contend that test requirements help students from affluent families, disadvantage underrepresented populations and don’t provide a true measure

of college readiness.

The University of Texas at San Antonio went test-optional during the pandemic and has yet to change that policy.

Ivy Plus schools, in contrast, have led the way in reinstating requirements for test scores. Yale and Dartmouth are the latest to do so.

“We’re playing, in some sense, in a competitive game for talent,” Hartzell said. “And if one university moves in a way that’s fundamentally different than the others, then I think you have to worry about if that puts us at a disadvantage for recruiting top talent.”

Ut-austin has become increasingly competitive over the years, and Monday’s decision came after an admissions cycle with an all-time high of 73,000 applicants. Ninety percent or more of those applicants took standardized exams, indicating that the tests and their cost largely did not pose a barrier, according to the university, which cited data provided by the College Board. About 42% of applicants actually submitted test scores.

A university analysis found that students who submitted standardized scores performed “significantly” better on those exams and in their first semester of college, compared to those who did not take the test or chose not to have their scores considered in the admissions process. Those who submitted test scores had an estimated average GPA of 0.86 grade points higher during their fall semester, according to the university.

The admissions office also found that students’ high school GPAS had become clustered within a narrow range, making it difficult to distinguish between applicants, UT officials said.

“Adding in an additional component just makes that whole process stronger for us,” said Miguel Wasielewski, vice provost for admissions.

Ut-austin accepts 75% of instate freshman applicants automatically, by admitting the top 6% of Texas high school graduating classes. The remaining 25% of instate applicants, who ranked outside the top 6% of their high school classes, and out-of-state applicants compete for admission in a “holistic” process that considers a variety of factors.

Admissions officials say they still expect to capture socioeconomic diversity, especially because the automatic admissions policy can pull in students from every high school in Texas. The holistic admissions process takes students’ backgrounds, including the academic quality of their high schools, into consideration, Hartzell said.

“We appreciate that a student who might have a certain test score, for example, but comes from a high school that may be less well-resourced or not have all the same training that they can provide ... might come in with a different score,” the president said. “Our ability to put those scores in context, I think, is important.”

Other changes this fall include a waitlist for students who are not automatically admitted, and an earlier deadline in a new “early action” program.

The early action applications will now be due by Oct. 15 and a decision will be communicated by Jan. 15. The regular deadline will remain Dec. 1, with a decision communicated to students by Feb. 15.

The required essay will also change to provide more flexibility in topic choice, and short-answer responses will reduce from three to two. Students will still be asked about their preferred major, but a new prompt will allow students to highlight an activity of their choice, UT officials said.