Why the SAT Shouldn't Determine Admissions
As if junior and senior year isn’t already hard enough, we are told we have to take a standardized test that could determine whether or not we actually get accepted into a school.
The SAT is not only another stress to add onto our already heavy workload, but it is also unnecessary. The SAT is a single test that determines whether or not you are competent. I for one chose to opt out. I didn’t take either the SAT or the ACT. I chose to also only apply to test-optional schools, and contrary to popular belief there are actually a lot of them. Over 400 schools let you chose whether or not you want to send your scores.
A lot of professionals believe that one single test is no enough to let them know how smart you are. That is why they have chosen to focus on all of your grades instead. You are able to see how a student has worked over the past four years and see what has been measured from start to finish. They have also found that by using the test-optional option, that they have also improved their diversity. Students that might have not done as well on the SAT because of a lack of financial means to help prepare them, are being accepted into these big schools that wouldn’t have been accepted years ago. Big schools such as The Eastman School of Music, The University of Scranton, and Berkeley College are all test-optional.
Officials believe that a single test cannot really show them how you will do throughout your entire stay at their college. It also lacks in showing how hard you will work. Why would they accept someone who will work hard for a single test but not the entire semester? It just doesn’t make sense. They’ve realized that in the end the SAT does not matter and that a change needs to come.
