The SAT and ACT have long been criticized as weak indicators of a student’s potential performance on the college level. Furthermore, many colleges and universities believe that the SAT is downright discriminatory against certain students, including minorities and those who come from low-income families. In order to attract a more diverse community of scholars, more and more schools are waiving the test requirement in favor of a more holistic application review.

Like other standardized tests, the SAT and ACT were designed to be quantifiable ways for students to prove their mettle for college. However, many students would agree that the only thing these tests do is cause a sense of dread that starts long before they pick up their #2 pencils and remains until the scores are released. Test prep programs can certainly help mitigate anxiety, but what happens if you can’t afford to pay for one? As a result, the daunting SAT and ACT has turned away many students who have poor preparation for the test or who simply do not test well—and many schools have suffered from a lack of diversity on their campuses.

It’s not surprising, then, that schools adopting the test-free policy have enjoyed an increase in application pools. Research has shown that the level of academic performance of incoming classes has increased at public schools that do not require the SAT or ACT. However, this might not happen at some elite private colleges that use high scores as benchmarks for narrowing down the application pool. 

Proponents of the no-test policy, including the National Center for Fair & Open Testing, say that it pushes schools to look more closely at the student’s GPA, school activities, and recommendation letters, which are better assessments of academic prowess. Critics of the no-test policy say that between grade inflation and different curriculum standards, it is impossible to use grades as the only quantifiable aspect of a student’s application.

An interesting note is that the schools enforcing the no-test policy are finding that many of their applicants are still submitting test scores with their applications. This could be because students have to take the test for other schools, and so they just submit another score report. It could also be that students are not ready to back down from the SAT and ACT, which are both steeped in the tradition of being a major part of a competitive application process. Only time will tell how much longer the SAT and ACT will cast a shadow over college-bound students.  

Thought the SAT was tough? Be grateful you're not in China. Forbes recently translated the essay prompts from China's national college entrance exam, a high-stakes test that could offer students a spot at "a prestigious university or a major with good employment prospects -- or relegate them to staying behind in high school to retake the exam next year." The test comes in two versions (sciences or non-sciences) and covers Chinese, math, and foreign languages. Students choose the version they take based on the track they chose in high school.

The following essay prompts are translated from China's 2009 College Entrance Exam Nationwide:

Essay Prompt 1

The rabbit is the reigning champion sprinter of the small animal sports games, but he can’t swim. One time, the rabbit was chased by the wolf to a river and almost got caught. The Animal Management Bureau wants small animals to develop in a well-rounded way, and sent the rabbit to a swim class. In the same class are the dog, the turtle, the squirrel, among others. The dog and the turtle learned how to swim, adding to their skills. They were very happy. The rabbit and the squirrel spent a long time learning but failed, and they were upset. The instructor, the wild duck, said “My two legs can swim, but your four legs can’t? Sweat makes up 90% of success! Go! Quack, quack!”

The analyst, the frog, let out a big sigh: “The rabbit’s forte is sprinting! Why do we only combat weaknesses but not develop strengths?” The intellectual, the crane, said: “Survival requires more skills than one! The rabbit can’t learn to swim, then he can learn to dig holes! The squirrel can’t learn to swim, then he can learn to climb trees!”

Please select a point of view and make clear your position. Choose your essay style and give your own title. Don’t stray from the provided material and its ideas. Don’t plagiarize.

Additional Essay Prompt For Beijing Test-Takers

There's a song that goes: "I have a pair of invisible wings / that let me fly, give me hope. / I have a pair of invisible wings / that let me fly, fly far away." Using "I have a pair of invisible wings" as your topic, write an essay of no less than 800 words. Select your own literary form, excluding poetry. [The lyrics are from the popular 2006 song, "Invisible Wings," by Taiwanese pop star Angela Chang.]

If you’ve ever dreamed of the SAT or ACT vanishing into thin air, you’ve got your wish . . . sort of. Many colleges and universities who believe that these standardized tests are not the best way to determine a student’s potential have voiced their opinions in a pretty big way: they are removing the SAT and ACT from their application requirements.

If you are a strong student but freak out when it comes to major tests, this is definitely a time to rejoice. In fact, you are the reason that more and more schools are moving towards making the SAT and ACT optional. These schools question the validity of standardized testing in assessing a student’s future success in college. When you think about it, it does make sense—how could a three-hour test possibly sum up all the skills you have learned during years of schooling? Critics of these tests also point out that standardized testing is prejudiced toward minority and economically disadvantaged students. Much has been said about establishing a test that will be a fairer assessment than what is currently in place with the College Board and the ACT.

Stop doing your happy dance for just a moment and check out this list of SAT-optional schools from Fair Test, an organization dedicated to creating fair and effective admissions standards. Pretty impressive, huh? There are dozens of small liberal arts colleges across the country that are shedding the SAT and abstaining from the ACT, but what’s really making people’s tongues wag is the fact that there are also more and more competitive schools that are appearing on the list, such as Bard College, College of the Holy Cross, and Bowdoin College.

Although the list of test-optional schools is getting longer each year, that doesn’t mean that you should burn your SAT or ACT practice books just yet. There are still plenty of schools—including the Ivies—that are not ready to budge on the testing issue. You may find that you’ll still have to take the SAT or ACT, but you’ll only have to submit scores to a few of the schools on your list. It’s enough to take a bit of the nervous edge away, now that you know there are colleges and universities out there that will look at you as a person and not just a verbal or math score.

You may resume your happy dance now.

 Image by dieselbug2007 and used under a Creative Commons license.

Everyone wants to do well on standardized tests, but what's considered a "good" test score can vary dramatically from person to person. If you're wondering, "What is a good score on my ACT or SAT?", there is no hard and fast answer to the question. The notion of good depends on what you want to accomplish and, in the case of college admissions, getting in to the college that is right for you is good.

A good score is pretty much defined as the score that puts you in the top 25 percent of the incoming class and a not-good score places you in the bottom 25 percent of the applicant pool. Remember, not all colleges rely on the score much (or at all) in deciding who gets in. College admissions counselor Todd Johnson recently wrote a great article addressing the question: “What is a good ACT score?” Here are a few points from his blog:

• Private colleges tend to take educational background into account when deciphering test score strength. Johnson says that kids from small rural high schools might have their scores viewed with a little more lenience than kids from top private schools whose privileged backgrounds give them an edge on the ACT in general.
• Public colleges tend to just evaluate the ACT scores without considering educational background.
• To find out how your test score fits within your top college choice’s admission range, Johnson recommends using College Navigator, a tool developed by the US Department of Education, to find the published ACT/SAT score ranges for the top 25 percent of enrolled students and the bottom 25 percent as well.

I took Johnson’s advice about using College Navigator to find the score ranges from my alma mater.

Here is how you can find out too:

1. Go to College Navigator.

2. Type in the name of the college that you are considering.

3. Click on the college title link in the results.

4. Find "Admissions" in the options.

Under “Admissions Considerations”, you will find the 25th percentile scores which are the average scores for the top 25 percent of the freshman enrollments. You will also find the 75th percentile that reflects the score averages for the bottom 25 percent of enrolled students.

So, what is a good ACT or SAT test score? If your scores are the same or higher than the 25th percentile, then you have favorable odds of getting in. If your scores are comparable or lower than the 75th percentile, then you have a lower chance of being accepted to a college that relies heavily on test scores to determine admissions. Keep in mind, however, that it all depends on how much individual institutions emphasize test scores.