Is it Time to Say Goodbye to the SAT?
The Official SAT Study Guide
The SAT should continue to be optional or removed altogether from the college application moving forward.
Before COVID drastically changed the college application process, the SATs were a major part of it. Since testing became difficult, many colleges became test-optional. This means that you can submit your SAT scores, but the lack of submission will not impact consideration by the admissions committee. By February of 2020, a month before the pandemic, 77 percent of people who applied to college using the Common Application had submitted their SAT or ACT scores. In February of 2021, only 44 percent of those using the Common Application chose to submit scores. The severe decrease in submissions shows how challenging schooling was in 2020 and 2021 and that removal of the SAT is a viable option.
For some, submitting an SAT score can feel reassuring. Lux Concannon, a senior at Pennridge said, “I definitely felt more confident about getting in when I submitted my SAT score.” However, the pros of permanently leaving the SAT as an optional submission on college applications substantially outweigh the cons. Firstly, not every student is a good test taker. The ability to take tests doesn’t determine a person’s intelligence or their likelihood to do well in college. This is why it doesn’t make sense why for so many years a student’s SAT score could make or break their chances of getting into certain schools. Many students know their capability and it shows in their GPA, but they are unable to prove it in their SAT scores. Victoria Archibascio, a 2015 Pennridge graduate had promising grades but she didn’t score as well on the SAT as she would have liked. “I felt limited on what schools I could apply to,” she explained. “It would have been less stressful if it was also optional back then.”
Most students who score exceedingly well on their SAT benefit from months of tutoring and studying. Parents spending copious amounts of money in order for their child to succeed on the SATs is fine. The problem is that most students are unable to afford tutoring, giving them a disadvantage. If a student comes from a lower-income family and is not a great test taker, the prospect of success on the SAT seems hopeless. For the future generation of students, they should be guaranteed the option to not submit the SATs. This permanent alteration would give students much less stress and more options while applying to colleges.
Sources:
https://standardizedtests.procon.org/
https://fortune.com/2021/03/02/covid-sat-act-college-admissions-2021/
Taylor Archibascio, Grade 12. Interests/hobbies include listening to music, hanging with friends and family, snowboarding, walking her dog, and going to...
