The COVID-19 pandemic prompted many colleges and universities to introduce test-optional admissions policies. Schools that adopted the policy during the pandemic did so out of precaution, but prepandemic adopters viewed test-optional admissions as a way to increase diversity and equity on campuses by removing standardized testing from the admissions process. Institutions that implemented these policies during the pandemic are more selective, less expensive, and more diverse than those that offered test-optional admissions before the pandemic. And though prepandemic test-optional adopters were mostly liberal arts colleges, the pandemic has led more public institutions with varying institutional profiles to adopt test-optional policies.
Key Numbers
The number of four-year universities and colleges with test-optional policies has more than tripled from 288 to 927 since spring 2020.
Fifty-two percent, or 299, of the institutions that adopted test-optional policies during the pandemic are public institutions.
The average tuition of institutions that adopted test-optional policies during the pandemic is $25,256, higher than the average tuition of institutions that did not adopt policies ($19,344) and lower than that of institutions that adopted polices before the pandemic ($30,334).
Schools that adopted test-optional policies during the pandemic have an average admissions selectivity rate of 64 percent, which is more selective than both the institutions that did not adopt policies (69 percent) and institutions that adopted polices before the pandemic (68 percent).
Nineteen, or 3 percent, of institutions that adopted test-optional policies during the pandemic are historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs), representing 30 percent of all HBCUs.
Implications
An increasing number of selective colleges and universities are also dropping standardized test score requirements. Prepandemic test-optional adopters have only a slightly higher selectivity rate than nonadopters, but both have a higher acceptance rate than pandemic adopters. And although the policies adopted during the pandemic were primarily implemented to keep applicants safe, maintaining a test-optional policy could increase the number of applicants from different backgrounds. The pandemic has also prompted more institutions with lower tuition to adopt test-optional admissions policies. The tuition differences between nonadopters and adopters are still large, but the pandemic has increased access to these test-optional institutions, which often have higher graduation rates. The expansion of test-optional policies during the pandemic will provide more opportunities for students who are seeking to enter college without standardized test scores and could lead to a more diverse pool of applicants.
Explore the Data
GitHub
FairTest
Education Data Portal: Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System
Additional Resources
Test-Flexible Admissions Policies and Student Enrollment Demographics: Examining a Public Research University
Untested Admissions: Examining Changes in Application Behaviors and Student Demographics under Test-Optional Policies