The last decade has seen a major shift in the college admissions process with applicants being evaluated more holistically and factors such as socioeconomic status, race, and gender constituting a larger part of the application. To address historical injustices and remedy the disparities experienced by underprivileged students, numerous universities have taken steps towards test-optional admissions or eliminating the requirement for standardized test scores. This movement has since gained traction to include over 1,800 colleges. Despite criticisms and acknowledged biases, standardized testing, particularly the SAT, should be reinstated as a significant factor in college admissions processes, as it offers a more equitable assessment of academic aptitude compared to the subjective evaluation of extracurricular activities, which often favors affluent applicants more than any test.

While the intentions to uplift low-income and minority students are pure, removing standardized testing from applications is counterproductive to achieving greater equity. Tests such as the SAT offer a standardized measure that enables colleges to assess applicants from diverse backgrounds on an equitable basis, minimizing the influence of subjective factors like personal biases, grade inflation, or variations in scoring among high schools. Rothstein and Jacobsen's research in 2006 highlights how standardized tests effectively identify talented individuals from underprivileged backgrounds who may lack access to enrichment opportunities. (doi.org/10.1177/003172170608800405) Moreover, findings from Bowen and Bok's study in 1998 demonstrate that integrating SAT scores into admissions decisions significantly enhances the chances of admission for low-income and minority students, thereby mitigating the impact of socioeconomic status on college admissions outcomes. (eric.ed.gov/?id=EJ575726) As the evidence suggests, standardized testing remains the most equitable measure of academic aptitude.

Consider, for example, a winning Regeneron Science fair project from last year: a novel method of detecting distant exoplanets. While achievements like these are extraordinary, it is clear that not all students have the same access to expensive equipment and professional mentors. A low-income high schooler may have parents who are unable to drive them to extra-curricular opportunities or lack the connections to pursue their research passions in a lab. All too often, these patterns can cause admissions officers to unintentionally favor applicants from affluent backgrounds who have had access to a wider range of extracurricular opportunities.

Although standardizing tests maintain their flaws and are subject to socioeconomic and racial factors, removing them from the application process and thus further emphasizing the importance of extracurricular activities only benefits the privileged and represents a setback in the pursuit of equality. With recent research proving that the SAT remains the best indicator of graduation rates and student retention, many colleges have returned to requiring test scores, once again considering it along with many other factors. (journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/0956797612438732) This step backward is indeed progress forward.