for further information:
Bob Schaeffer (239) 395-6773
mobile (239) 699-0468
embargoed for use with 2018 College Board SAT scores — Wednesday, October 25, 2018
“REDESIGNED” SAT FAILED TO SLOW TEST-OPTIONAL MOMENTUM;
130 MORE SCHOOLS DROP ADMISSIONS EXAM SINCE NEW SAT ANNOUNCED;
1,020+ COLLEGES, UNIVERSITIES NOW DO NOT REQUIRE SAT OR ACT SCORES
“Though a massive publicity campaign about the ‘redesigned’ SAT encouraged more students to take that exam, it failed to stem the rapidly growing movement toward test-optional admissions policies, in which neither the SAT or rival ACT are required of most applicants,” said Robert Schaeffer, Public Education Director of the National Center for Fair & Open Testing (FairTest).
Schaeffer continued, “Since plans for the revised test were announced,130 colleges and universities dropped SAT and ACT requirements. That’s a pace of one every two weeks. Schools increasingly recognize they do not need the SAT – old or new – to make high-quality admissions decisions.”
More than 1,020 accredited, bachelor-degree institutions now will evaluate all or many applicants without regard to test scores. The test-optional list includes more than half of all “Top 100” liberal arts colleges and a total of 320 schools ranked in the top tiers of their categories by U.S. News & World Report.
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- See 2018 SAT Scores by gender, ethnicity and parental education below
- Comprehensive free directory of 1,020+ test-optional and test-flexible colleges and universities: https://fairtest.orgdata.com.org/university/optional
- List of 320+ schools that de-emphasize ACT/SAT scores ranked in U.S News’ top tiers: http://www.fairtest.org/sites/default/files/Optional-Schools-in-U.S.News-Top-Tiers.pdf
- Chronology of higher education institutions dropping admissions testing requirements: http://www.fairtest.org/sites/default/files/Optional-Growth-Chronology.pdf
2018 COLLEGE-BOUND SENIORS SCORES ON “REDESIGNED” SAT(2,136,539 Test-Takers in Graduating Class) |
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READING/ WRITING |
MATH | TOTAL | ||||
ALL TEST-TAKERS | 536 | 531 | 1068* | |||
Female | 539 | 522 | 1061 | |||
Male | 534 | 542 | 1076 | |||
Amer. Indian or Alaskan Native | 480 | 469 | 949 | |||
Asian, Asian Amer. or Pacific Islander | 588 | 635 | 1223 | |||
Black or African American | 483 | 463 | 946 | |||
Hispanic, Latino or Latin American | 501 | 489 | 990 | |||
Two or more races | 558 | 543 | 1101 | |||
White | 566 | 557 | 1123 | |||
* scores do not add precisely due to College Board rounding
Calculated by FairTest from: College Board, 2018 SAT Suite of Assessments Annual Report: Total Group |
2018 COLLEGE-BOUND SENIORS SAT SCORES BY PARENTAL EDUCATION
READING/ |
MATH | TOTAL | ||||
No High School Diploma | 473 | 471 | 944 | |||
High School Diploma | 507 | 497 | 1005* | |||
Associate Degree | 526 | 513 | 1039 | |||
Bachelor’s Degree | 566 | 563 | 1129 | |||
Graduate Degree | 599 | 598 | 1197 | |||
* scores do not add precisely due to College Board rounding
Calculated by FairTest from: College Board, 2018 SAT Suite of Assessments Annual Report: Total Group |