This week in college admissions, UC schools debate using standardized testing in admissions, several top-tier schools are dropping the supplemental essay, and the Educational Testing Service (ETS) acquires the ACT.
The regents of the UC system have until July 14th to decide whether the entire UC system should reverse its test-blind policy. A system-wide committee has recommended re-instituting use of the SAT/ACT in admissions, a move that has been strongly encouraged by university faculty. Data increasingly shows that these standardized tests are strong indicators of college readiness, and critics say that eliminating the tests has resulted in students enrolling in classes for which they are underprepared.
A number of prestigious schools have announced that they will no longer be including supplemental essays as part of the admissions package. Schools such as Tulane, Washington University in St. Louis, UNC, and UMiami have dropped their supplemental essays, while Cornell has retained its school-specific essays but retired the university-wide essay. This trend away from supplemental essays and towards standardized testing may indicate an overall shift from narrative-driven evaluations to more academically focused evaluation methods.
The Educational Testing Service (ETS) has acquired the ACT, increasing its scope as a testing giant that reaches more than 35 million people a year. ETS also owns the GRE and TOEFL; until 2024 it also administered the SAT. ETS says that with the acquisition of the ACT, it will be able to “bring forward its mission” to a wider audience.
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