Current:Home > ScamsYale wants you to submit your test scores. University of Michigan takes opposite tack. -PureWealth Academy
Yale wants you to submit your test scores. University of Michigan takes opposite tack.
View
Date:2025-04-14 14:30:09
Yale University is the latest school to reverse course on its optional policy and require test scores from applicants, starting with students who enroll in fall 2025.
The announcement Thursday makes Yale the second Ivy League college to take this step. Dartmouth said earlier this month that it would return to requiring test scores, citing an analysis finding that high-scoring low-income students often decline to submit their numbers.
More: New digital SAT comingBig changes are coming to the SAT, and not everyone is happy. What students should know.
The vast majority of colleges have gone test-optional in recent years, many after the onset of COVID-19, which made the administration of in-person exams difficult. Other highly selective schools that resumed their test score requirements after the pandemic include the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Georgetown.
Yale’s new policy will be unusual in that it will be “flexible”: In addition to those from the SAT or ACT, applicants will have the alternate option of submitting their scores from Advanced Placement or International Baccalaureate subject-based courses.
Yale's announcement was similar to Dartmouth's, pointing to data suggesting “test scores are the single greatest predictor of a student’s future Yale grades.” That correlation, officials stressed, is apparent even when controlling for a student’s family income and other variables. The change was based on several years of research.
“Tests can highlight an applicant’s areas of academic strength, reinforce high school grades, fill in gaps in a transcript stemming from extenuating circumstances, and − most importantly − identify students whose performance stands out in their high school context,” the school said in its announcement.
Critics, however, question the assertion that test scores are one of the best measurements of a student’s potential. Performing well on an admissions exam often depends on whether a student has the resources to access test prep services. Meanwhile, access to AP and IB courses remains uneven.
Test-optional trend remains strong at most schools
As a minority of schools reinstate their score requirements, many more have said that they're sticking to their test-optional policies.
The University of Michigan is among this larger group. It announced Wednesday that it would stick with its test-optional stance indefinitely, citing research showing participation in rigorous high school courses is a strong predictor of college success.
Other schools that recently announced an extension of test-optional policies include the University of Missouri and the University of Utah.
veryGood! (88)
Related
- Paris Olympics live updates: Quincy Hall wins 400m thriller; USA women's hoops in action
- Water beads pose huge safety risk for kids, CPSC says, after 7,000 ER injuries reported
- Teen pleads guilty in murder case that Minnesota’s attorney general took away from local prosecutor
- Charity that allegedly gave just 1 cent of every $1 to cancer victims is sued for deceiving donors
- Blake Lively’s Inner Circle Shares Rare Insight on Her Life as a Mom to 4 Kids
- Man facing gun and drug charges fatally shot outside Connecticut courthouse. Lawyer calls it a ‘hit’
- With all the recent headlines about panels and tires falling off planes, is flying safe?
- March's full moon will bring a subtle eclipse with it early Monday morning
- 2024 Olympics: Gymnast Ana Barbosu Taking Social Media Break After Scoring Controversy
- Recent assaults, attempted attacks against Congress and staffers raise concerns
Ranking
- Organizers cancel Taylor Swift concerts in Vienna over fears of an attack
- Charity that allegedly gave just 1 cent of every $1 to cancer victims is sued for deceiving donors
- Nearly 8 in 10 AAPI adults in the US think abortion should be legal, an AP-NORC poll finds
- Man pleads guilty in fatal kidnapping of 2-year-old Michigan girl in 2023
- Taylor Swift makes surprise visit to Kansas City children’s hospital
- Polyamory is attracting more and more practitioners. Why? | The Excerpt
- Attention Blue's Clues Fans: This Check-In From Host Steve Burns Is Exactly What You Need
- Behold, Kermitops: Fossil named after Kermit the Frog holds clues to amphibian evolution
Recommendation
New Orleans mayor’s former bodyguard making first court appearance after July indictment
South Africa water crisis sees taps run dry across Johannesburg
Inmate seriously injured in a hit-and-run soon after his escape from a Hawaii jail
Kate Middleton Is Receiving Preventative Chemotherapy: Here's What That Means
JoJo Siwa reflects on Candace Cameron Bure feud: 'If I saw her, I would not say hi'
Megan Fox set the record straight on her cosmetic surgeries. More stars should do the same
Using public funds or facilities for gender-affirming care banned by GOP-led Idaho Legislature
It's not too late! You can still join USA TODAY Sports' March Madness Survivor Pool