To attract and enroll a more diverse student body, the University of New Hampshire is making the submission of SAT or ACT scores optional for admission beginning in the fall of 2020.
The pilot program exempting students from submitting the standardized test scores with their application will remain in force for three-years. More weight will be given to students’ individual high school performance.
The university made the decision after reviewing admissions and the first-year academic performance data for past entering classes. The test-optional resolution received overwhelming support from the Faculty Senate.
“The data consistently shows that grades earned in high school over four years bear a much greater relationship to how well a student will do in college than standardized test scores do,” said Rob McGann, director of admissions and interim vice president for enrollment management. “Standardized testing certainly has some predictive value, but not as much as a student’s high school GPA.”
However, students may still opt to include test scores with their application, but that won’t contribute to the final selection.
According to the National Center for Fair and Open Testing, in recent years more than 1,000 four-year colleges and universities have switched over to SAT or ACT scores optional policy, including the University of San Francisco, University of Chicago, American University, Ball State University, and Wake Forest University.
University of San Francisco Makes Standardized Tests Optional