Although the height of the COVID-19 pandemic was three years ago, its impacts are still prominent around the world. It has changed the way we live our everyday lives as well as how we interact with one another. An area that it had a lasting impact on was the college application process — a process that changed little in over 50 years until 2020. With applications missing standardized test scores and about two semesters’ worth of grades and extracurricular activities, college admission teams nationwide had to quickly revise their application process to adapt to these changes. Because standardized tests were canceled nationwide due to the pandemic, colleges adopted a “test-optional” policy that many continue to maintain even to today. The question is, is a test-optional policy beneficial?
For many years now, the College Board has been criticized for bias against low-income and minority students who lack the means to take standardized tests more than once and get test preparation help. With many colleges changing to have their test-optional policy permanent, the College Board has been revising their testing system to adapt — as of this fall, the SAT will only be two hours long, with shorter reading passages and calculator use allowed throughout the math section. Starting in 2024, the SAT will be moved to an online platform through which the College Board will provide accommodations for students with financial needs. Though these changes are occurring, colleges and universities are still developing a newer application process that places less emphasis on standardized test scores or leaves them out entirely.
“I believe that we need to change the narrative around college admissions so that we focus more on who the student is and move away from undue pressure and anxiety around achievement,” said Chris George ’94, St. Olaf’s Dean of Admissions and Financial Aid. “Being test-optional gives the student greater flexibility to highlight their strengths in their application.”
St. Olaf, along with most other colleges and universities, has taken a step towards the “character movement” — the idea of choosing potential students based on their character and how it aligns with the college’s values and mission. To do this, colleges are placing more emphasis on holistic review — a process of viewing a student’s application with consideration to their experiences, attributes, and values to learning that St. Olaf had adopted a while ago.
“We seek students who are looking to be challenged academically…who have challenged themselves and been successful; and who…have a wide range of talents [that] will contribute to our campus community,” George said. Beyond looking more closely at an applicant’s character, going test-optional is beneficial to students. It reduces the stress and anxiety of the application process, evens the playing field for low-income and minority students and allows applicants to not feel confined by the labeling of test scores.
In short, this test-optional policy is beneficial for students. However, most applicants through the 2020-2021 school year chose to submit test scores in due to skepticism of whether or not colleges were truly test-optional. Because of the newness of this test-optional policy, a majority of colleges and universities across the country are still learning how to holistically examine an application without a “weeding indicator” — a factor that can be used to measure applicants next to one another. The college application process will continue to be revised and solidified as more and more institutions stray away from standardized test scores or any numerical scoring.
