Cornell
College making test scores optional for admission
September 14, 2015
Cornell
College has started a three-year pilot program that makes submitting
standardized test scores optional for admission, a move that administrators say
will broaden the reach of the college and attract more students.
The
new option will allow for greater flexibility and creativity on the part of
students, and is designed to appeal to motivated students who might not have
otherwise considered Cornell College, said Cornell President Jonathan Brand.
“We
want strong students from a broad range of backgrounds—regardless of their
standardized scores—to know that we’re interested in them and that they may be
a good fit here,” he said.
Students
applying for admission for the 2016-2017 academic year will have three options:
completing the Common Application, which allows students to choose from among
400 colleges; a Cornell College-specific application that requires an essay and
standardized test scores; and an alternative Cornell-specific application that
asks students to submit a portfolio of work and complete two short-answer essay
questions.
In
lieu of test scores, students can represent themselves through video, photo
journal, writing, art/music, or other creative content—or they may create a
profile page using ZeeMee, a free service used by students to showcase
themselves for college admissions and scholarship opportunities. The ZeeMee
option is also available to applicants sending in their test scores.
More
than 150 top-tier liberal arts colleges are now test optional or test flexible.
Within the Associated Colleges of the Midwest, to which Cornell belongs, Beloit
College has recently joined the test-optional group, and Knox College and
Lawrence University have been test-optional or test-flexible for about 10
years.
Analysis
conducted by Cornell College statistics Professor Ann Cannon concluded, “The
bottom line is that while both SAT and ACT are of some use as predictors of
success at Cornell, there is a lot of variability among students and these test
scores are only a small piece of the puzzle.” Instead, she said, that
determining a student’s fit with Cornell and their overall work ethic would be
as good or better at predicting success. A separate analysis conducted by
psychology Professor Melinda Green concluded, “Consistent with past research on
predictors of collegiate success, the multiple regression analyses conducted on
Cornell data indicate high school GPA is the strongest predictor of grade point
average at Cornell College.”
National
studies have also pointed to the need for more flexibility for students when
applying to college. A study conducted by the University of California at
Berkeley found that high school grade point average was the best predictor of
student success.
“Our
admission process has always been holistic,” President Brand said. “This pilot
allows us to make the process even more flexible, and consider a student’s
portfolio, high school grade point average, and the strength of his or her core
curriculum. It also lets us look at an applicant’s motivation and fit at our
residential liberal arts college distinguished by our One Course At A Time
curriculum.”
