TL:DR - “Score optional” can sometimes mean “score blind”, and often means “score preferred” - these nuanced differences make a significant impact on a student’s chances of admission.
Let’s talk score optional admissions. Because there is a TON of misinformation out there, and it’s the students who end up suffering when they don’t get proper guidance. (Bear with me, this one is long…but worth your time!)
Yes - more than HALF of the schools in the USA are now considered “score optional”. And that’s a good thing – because students are more than a “snapshot score” of a single day in time. Holistic admissions advocates are applauding the shift (https://www.highereddive.com/.../over-1900.../652392/). And while colleges are reaping the rewards of increased applications and the appearance of higher selectivity due to increased interest, savvy consumers would be wise to be a bit skeptical - because the practice is not always as generous as it appears.
Let me give you a few examples.
Although UNC Chapel Hill says they're test-optional, in a deep dive of their 2022-2023 Common Data set, they ranked test scores as "required" and "very important" and in reviewing the data of who got in - 85% of admitted students submitted scores. We call this sort of position “score strongly preferred”, as NOT submitting a score appears to significantly lower a student’s chance of admission.
A bit closer to home, LSU boasts “test-optional” and even highlights that this policy brings their admission policies “into line with 48/50 of the nation’s flagship state universities” (I tried very hard not to laugh as I copied that...) In the 2022-2023 admissions cycle, 100% of students admitted to LSU had submitted scores. Not a single student who applied score optional was admitted.
And to complicate things further, some schools try to show “generosity and availability” by outlining criteria for which students should submit scores. For example, Auburn University (with a generous admission rate of 71% of students) is “score optional” but allows students with a GPA of 3.6 and above to skip the tests. That looks like a good deal if you’re a great student but not a stellar test taker, right? Maybe… but let’s read the fine print. To be considered for merit scholarships (which a student with a 3.6 GPA is very likely in the running for at this school), you’ll need to submit a competitive test score. As a result of those merit opportunities – a full 95% of the students that were admitted in 2022-2023 submitted a score. The excellent 3.6+ GPA student not submitting a score is at a distinct disadvantage.
To be transparent, not every school that claims to be test-optional is test preferred. There are a few that are truly test blind, and even some that hold a “do no harm” policy if scores are submitted and aren’t helpful to a student’s profile. But figuring out who is who in the ever-changing college admissions landscape can be daunting for parents and students.
Applying to college is more complex than ever before, and students are looking to the adults in their lives to help them navigate the complexities.
May high schools have a 1:500 counselor-student ratio, and those counselors are responsible for ensuring each student meets the requirements of graduation, being first-line for mental health or immediate crisis issues, addressing learning differences, scheduling and attending parent-teacher conferences, and keeping compliance with state and federal guidelines. All for over 500 students. Expecting a high school counselor to understand the nuances of the ever-changing admissions policies of over 4,000 colleges and universities is simply unreasonable.
Why am I telling you all of this? Because I genuinely care about all of our students. The mental health hit of *thinking* a school will be a good bet, then getting rejected because a student didn’t know what they didn’t know is devastating. (I often receive calls from these families late in the admissions cycle, and it is heartbreaking to learn that if I had worked with these students earlier, we could have deployed some smart strategy in their process.)
So, here’s my heartfelt plea to parents – if your student is planning on applying test-optional, PLEASE either hire a consultant or get VERY involved and educate yourself on the targeted colleges’ policies.
Here to help. Ask me anything - because a student's mental health (and yours) is worth my time. ALWAYS.
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