Dropping The SAT

By Amanda Peralta Assistant Editor Wake Forest University is one of many colleges that will no longer require applicants to summit SAT and ACT scores, hoping to call the importance of standardized testing into question. According to CollegeBoard.com, the SAT Reasoning Test is the nation’s most widely used admissions test among colleges and universities. It tests students’ knowledge of subjects that are supposedly necessary for success on the collegiate level. The test is an important resource because it’s purpose is to predict how well a student will do in college. However Wake Forest Questions the necessity of the SAT. According to The Associated Press, Wake Forest admitted 38 percent of its 9,000 applicants in the fall. The university is just one of the latest strings of colleges that no longer require standardized test and feel it is not the best audit of academic potential. Wake Forrest Director of Admissions, Martha Allman, told AP that she has seen students at the top of their class who excelled but did poorly on the SAT and didn’t get into Wake Forest. Allman also stated that by doing away Dropping The SATwith the standardized tests they hope to create more diversity among students at the university. Wake Forest plans to focus more on personal interviews, academics and extracurricular activities. College Board spokesperson Alana Klein was horrified with the idea of doing away with the SAT. Klein told CNN that Wake Forrest’s decision is an isolated incident, not a trend. “The news media have focused on recent moves to make the test optional,” Klein said to CNN. “Schools have been doing this for decades, and SAT test volumes are up two percent from last year.” Klein also told CNN that the poor performance of some low-income and minority students has to do with their lack of access to quality education, which is a national problem, but does not relate to the test itself. In defense of the SAT, Klein says not only is the SAT a fair test, the test is a critical tool for college and the workforce. According to CNN.com, since spring 2005, 34 Colleges and Universities have made the Standardized Achievement Test optional on student applications. Four other schools have made other changes such as lowing GPA requirements. Wake Forest’s new policy will not go into effect until fall 2009 for enrolling freshman.