Members of the higher educational community who had not previously assessed the relevance of these tests and their ability to predict college success for their applicants, are doing so now. Many studies on this have been conducted, and the conclusions vary depending on who you ask. I am not, however, going to weigh in on that complicated and controversial subject. Instead I would like to address what these changes might mean to current high school students and what their individual testing plans might be.
Control what you can control. This is not my original thought. I have heard it over and over again from admissions professionals from a wide variety of colleges. So much is now out of your control, and there is no reason to let those things cause you anxiety. Decide what you can control and let the rest go. Colleges are aware and are being more flexible than ever.
Testing is truly, truly optional. If, due to COVID, you are not comfortable sitting in a room for three hours with many other people, then don’t. There was a report of a testing center in Oklahoma where many were exposed. Your health or a parent’s or grandparent’s health is not worth it. Test cancellations may be continuing to happen until well after your deadlines. If you have already tested and aced it on your first try, congratulations, but if you have a score that you were hoping to improve, make peace with it. Decide how or even if you are going to use it should an opportunity to retest not happen. You are not alone, many of your peers were also planning to retake and get higher numbers.
If you have not yet taken a SAT or ACT, you do have options and choices to make. There are only a few schools who have yet to alter their SAT/ACT requirements, but they, too, are being flexible. With each canceled testing opportunity, the demand for the next available date increases. I’m sure you can do the math. Spending hours on a website is not fun and don’t even think about trying to call them. My advice would be that if you are well prepared and feel good about your practice test scores, then pursue it. A good test score is still an added value to an application. If you are honestly not confident that you will do as well as you’d like, then the choice is yours. Try to take it just to see and don’t send if you are not pleased with the numbers, or move on and concentrate on other parts of the application.
Coming up: my next blog covers what colleges are considering instead of test scores. Hint: Character.
Update: Boomer is an accomplished swimmer now.
For questions regarding standardized testing or about the college admissions process in general, please contact me. I am an Independent Educational Consultant specializing in helping students and their families navigate the college application process.