Our move signaled to students and counselors alike that Dickinson considered the entire student in the admission process. SAT scores are not entirely out of the picture, since 91 percent of our applicants still choose to submit them. But after 26 years of evaluating applications at four competitive colleges, I know that the SAT is but one factor in selection, and not requiring it emphasizes that. At Dickinson, we consider strength of curriculum, grades, competitiveness of the high school, writing ability, leadership, depth and breadth of activities, and recommendations from teachers and counselors. The hype about the SAT feeds this competitive frenzy.
Students compete for the best score and take courses solely intended to increase their scores.
We should be encouraging students to focus on the excitement of learning, rather than on a score, and to think about the substance of what a college offers. If making the SAT optional in a selective admissions process helps us get there, it is the right thing to do. At Dickinson, students who withheld SAT scores before they were accepted usually send them to us afterward, and by the time the freshmen begin school, we have scores from 98 percent of them. Since eliminating the SAT requirement, we have gained 60 SAT points, on average, in our entering freshman class. Robert J. Massa is vice president for enrollment, student life and college relations at Dickinson College.