By Luka Oatman
STAFF WRITER

Test-optional college applications sound like a dream. Applying to your first-choice school without having to submit an SAT or ACT score is enticing. It feels nice not to worry about taking a test for your application. Realistically, though, students everywhere fall victim to the negative effects of this newly developed procedure.

Test-optional applications gained popularity during the COVID-19 pandemic. They were introduced as an option for students who were unable to take standardized tests due to the global restrictions at the time. Although test-optional policies were expected to be a temporary solution, they have since remained as an alternative for applicants who feel less confident in their test-taking abilities and wish not to declare their scores. What some students fail to recognize, though, is that in many cases it is more harmful than beneficial to withhold their scores when applying. In fact, it is often helpful to include an ACT or SAT score in situations where the applicant is uncertain.

The primary issue with test-optional applications is that their academics are more heavily scrutinized than those with a test score attached. William Hutchins, a guidance counselor at AHS, said, “What I usually say to my students is that if a school is test-optional, then other aspects of your application, such as your college essay, become more important.” The lack of a score gives admissions officers one less area of focus and increases the importance of a student’s transcript, admissions essay, and supplemental essays. Applicants are told that applying without standardized test scores will not affect their application results, and while it may be true that officers will not base their opinion on whether or not a student submits their results, their overall interpretation of the application will change if a score is not sent in and the weight of other aspects increases.

Applicants on a global scale face drawbacks from test-optional policies. Since 2020, some schools that implemented and maintained test-optional applications have seen a sizable rise in average scores for the SAT and ACT among their students. This is the result of selective submissions, only including scores that match or exceed the school’s average. As students begin neglecting to report lower scores, there is a steady increase in test result averages. This trend occurs when students stop including their standardized tests in their college applications out of fear that they do not measure up to the rest of the applicant pool. While some colleges avoid this by collecting test scores post-admission, many neglect to do so. Allowing students to apply with undeclared test results catalyzes this problem which, if it continues in this manner, will eventually render standardized test results as utterly meaningless numbers in a sea of schools boasting perfect 1600 average SAT scores.

Test scores function as an equalizer for college applications. Hutchins mentioned, “It can be tough sometimes to compare states against states, or schools against schools… If you have a 4.2 GPA at Andover, that’s not necessarily the same as a 4.2 GPA at North Andover.” He elaborated that standardized test scores do exactly what their title suggests by standardizing an aspect of the application process. The SAT and ACT exams are designed in such a way that they measure students’ capacity to take one similar exam and bypass factors such as teaching policies, available resources, or academic rigor that vary by school, and provide a simple, unchanging criterion for a college application.

I find that these combined effects of test-optional applications hinder the success of students and justify the eradication of the policy as a whole. Disallowing students from withholding standardized test scores would lead college admissions officers to view all applicants through the same lens. It would lower average scores at schools across the country and universally benefit students by increasing the likelihood of their results exceeding the school’s benchmark. 

I am guilty of refusing to provide my test results on some of my college applications, but each time I have chosen not to submit them, I have wished they were a required element. Test score mandates would not only reduce the stress of deciding whether or not to submit but would also create more opportunities for applicants of different strengths to be admitted to the college of their choice. I feel as though this obligatory report would diversify the applicant pool and greatly improve students’ acceptance probability, easing the process for people of varying academic success.