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MIT Requires SAT/ACT

MIT SAT/ACT Requirement Provides Insight into the Truth Behind Test Optional

Apr 27, 2022

MIT’s announcement supports what I’ve been saying for a while now - even though many in college admissions do not view the ACT/SAT as an equitable measure of students’ potential, the test is an important piece of how colleges determine academic abilities. The College Board recently did a study that showed 47% of students have an A average. The College Board is the company that administers the SAT, so there may be some bias in that statistic; however grade inflation is undoubtedly a problem that makes it incredibly difficult for colleges to evaluate students.  

 

Here’s what MIT has to say on the subject:

 

“Our concern is that, without the compelling clarity of a requirement, some well-prepared applicants won’t take the tests, and we won’t have enough information to be confident in their academic readiness⁠.”

 

Students without test scores are at a disadvantage.  And that is not limited to MIT. Unless the school is test blind (does not consider test scores for anyone), it’s a good idea to strive for a strong score you can submit. 

 

Keep in mind that test scores are only one piece of how applicants are evaluated. Students need to make sure they are not focusing on testing at the exclusion of developing their interests. See what MIT has to say:

 

“To be clear, performance on standardized tests is not the central focus of our holistic admissions process. We do not prefer people with perfect scores; indeed, despite what some people infer from our statistics, we do not consider an applicant’s scores at all beyond the point where preparedness has been established as part of a multifactor analysis. Nor are strong scores themselves sufficient: our research shows students also need to do well in high school and have a strong match for MIT.”

 

Check out my other posts/articles for more information about how to approach college admissions with intentionality and purpose. 

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