As California students struggle to find seats for the SAT and ACT, the widespread unavailability has led some to question the equitability of standardized tests, especially as universities begin to require them once again.
A few elite schools like Stanford, Caltech, Harvard and Yale recently announced decisions to reverse their test-optional and test-blind policies. Stanford will begin requiring either the SAT or ACT for students applying in fall 2025, while students applying for Caltech will need to submit test scores as soon as this fall.
“Probably what will happen is very elite schools that send their kids to the (Ivy Leagues) will continue to offer the test to give their kids access,” said Leslie Reckler, a member of the West Contra Costa County Unified school board. “And maybe everyone else, not so much.”
A larger, nationalized movement aims its frustrations with the SAT not at the the test’s availability but toward the notion that it needs to be administered at all.
Critics of the exam often point to research that demonstrates how, on average, students who receive tutoring and other resources produce higher scores than those who do not.
They also note that the test was created by Carl Brigham, a vocally racist eugenicist who, according to The Atlantic, once wrote that the SAT could reinforce the “racial purity” of White Americans — though he later changed his mind about the test’s ability to measure innate intelligence.
Harry Feder of FairTest, a group that opposed using the SAT in college admissions, argues that a similar “gatekeeper” mentality persists among elite universities, particularly in Stanford’s case.
“Their rationale is that Dartmouth, Harvard and Yale did it – and who is Stanford’s competition?” Feder said in an interview. “These schools depend on appearing exclusive to applicants.”
Reckler, who proctored the exam at El Cerrito High School in 2022, said her time around the test gave her the same impression.
“Doing well on the test depends on whether you have the resources to be able to do well, or if you’re a good test-taker,” she said.
But schools have said the decision to once again require test scores is based off the belief that standardized testing provides useful information about a student’s academic readiness for college.
“We think it is critical that our admissions office and the faculty who are reviewing applicants have available to them all the information that could shape their understanding of a prospective student’s readiness for our rigorous academic programs,” Caltech’s faculty advisory committee said in an announcement revealing the admissions change.
Stanford said a student’s academic potential is the primary criteria for admission and their performance on standardized tests is an important predictor of their success at Stanford.
“The renewed testing requirement will allow Stanford to consider the fullest array of information in support of each student’s application,” the university said in report from the university’s communications team announcing the change.
