아이비리그 중 코넬 대학이 가장 먼저 옵셔널
美 대학, 200여 개 옵셔널 채택
칼리지보드 SAT 홈 테스트 포기
코넬 대학에 이어 아이비리그 대학인 다트머스와 컬럼비아 대학도 2021학년도 입시에서 SAT-ACT 시험 점수를 선택적으로 낼 수 있는 테스트 옵셔널 정책을 채택했다고 블룸버그 통신이 6월 3일(미국시간) 보도했다. 이에 따라 8개 아이비리그 대학 가운데 3개 대학이 테스트 옵셔널 정책을 채택했다.
다트머스대학은 지난 5월에 SAT 서브젝트 시험을 recommend에서 옵셔널로 바꾼것에 이어 이날 SAT-ACT 시험을 require에서 optional로 바꾸었다. 따라서 2021년에 다트머스에 지원하는 학생들은 표준화 시험 점수를 제출하지 않아도 된다. 또한 아이비리그 대학 가운데 하나인 컬럼비아 대학의 경우 Columbia College(학부)와 공과대학(Engineering and Applied Science, Fu Foundation School) 지원자에게는 SAT-ACT 시험 점수 제출을 옵셔널로 한다고 밝혔다. 이 조치는 2021년에 한한다.
현재까지 미국의 200개 이상의 대학들이 SAT와 ACT 요건을 옵셔널로 했는데, 바이러스의 확산으로 인해 시험 센터가 문을 닫을 수밖에 없게 되면서, 일부 대학들은 무려 3년 동안 SAT와 ACT 요건을 보류했다. 아이비리그 멤버로는 가장 먼저 코넬대가 테스트 옵셔널 정책을 채택했었다.
한편 칼리지보드는 코로나19가 가라앉지 않을 경우 실시하려던 홈 테스트 추진을 포기했다고 발표했다.
■ 다트머스 홈페이지에 나와 있는 SAT 테스트 옵셔널 뉴스
Dartmouth Adopts a Test Optional Policy for Class of 2025 | Dartmouth Admissions
(https://admissions.dartmouth.edu/follow/blog/lee-coffin/dartmouth-adopts-test-optional-policy-class-2025)
This morning, the College Board called upon its member institutions to "offer flexibility in admissions this year to reduce anxiety for students." It is a remarkable request that matches our remarkable moment.
The Board acknowledged its struggles to meet surging student demand for upcoming administrations of the SAT during the ongoing global health crisis. It noted access to test registrations is especially compromised in the "densely populated areas hardest hit by Covid-19." In its statement to member institutions, the College Board noted students from these areas "will face the greatest challenge in finding open seats because of scarce test centers" and the social distancing such centers now require. From an admissions perspective, that is an untenable situation that requires an immediate institutional response.
Effective immediately, Dartmouth College is enacting a one-year suspension of our standardized testing requirement for candidates seeking undergraduate admission. Dartmouth College is now test optional for the Class of 2025.
In normal circumstances, standardized testing offers useful statistical context for the holistic evaluation of a student's academic record as well as our essential assessment of preparation for the curriculum we offer. But this moment is not normal. As I noted in an earlier blog post, we promised to adapt our admissions requirements as the situation evolved and as warranted. The situation has evolved, and a policy pause is now warranted. However, our commitment to academic excellence and intellectual curiosity has not changed.
"Optional" is not a trick word. It is not a wink that signals a continued institutional preference for the upcoming admissions cycle. This is not a moment for euphemisms or gimmicks; there should be no parsing of intent with this amended testing policy. It is a clear response to an unprecedented moment that requires admission officers to reimagine some of the elements we have historically required as we reassure anxious students about their upcoming applications. Worries about oversubscribed test sites, anxiety regarding limited registration access and the incongruity of test prep during a quarantine can be set aside.
At Dartmouth, we will welcome any testing element a student chooses to share — the SAT, the ACT, a subject test, an AP score — or none at all. Our admission committee will review each candidacy without second-guessing the omission or presence of a testing element. As with the other optional components of the application — an alumni interview, a peer recommendation — the decision to share testing as an element of holistic review is purely an individual one. For students who wish to submit an SAT or ACT score, we recommend just one test session.
We strongly advise students to focus on the many holistic elements of the application that showcase academic excellence in a more qualitative way. In addition, Dartmouth will not report a testing profile for the Class of 2025 to the campus or national media nor will we share one in our publications or on our website. If the goal is to "reduce anxiety for students," let's reduce the spotlight on testing during these uncertain times. Test prep and multiple test sessions are not good uses of a student's time, money, or emotional energy during an ongoing public health crisis.
In this 100th anniversary of holistic admissions review at Dartmouth College, that ancient ideal of the whole person is more urgent and relevant than ever. Testing is not universally available right now, and it is time to adjust our requirements, our priorities, and our focus. Other matters demand our collective energies right now.
NOTE: Dartmouth will continue to follow the guidance and policies of the Ivy League regarding testing requirements for applicants who expect to participate in the varsity athletic program.
■ 컬럼비아 대학 SAT-ACT 옵셔널 정책 채택 뉴스