any colleges moving to "test aware"?

[Anonymous]

What is test aware- that the school will look up student score if student took test, whether or not student submits the test results?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:What is test aware- that the school will look up student score if student took test, whether or not student submits the test results?

No. That a school will assume a student didn't submit a test score because their scores weren't high enough.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:What is test aware- that the school will look up student score if student took test, whether or not student submits the test results?

Colleges cannot "look up" a student's score. The student can choose to report it or not. The college does not have access to testing agency databases (College Board and ACT).

[Anonymous]

I thought that was what test optional meant. Only test blind meant it was not factored in.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I thought that was what test optional meant. Only test blind meant it was not factored in.

Colleges say that test optional means that students who do not submit a score will not face a disadvantage in admission decisions. It's just a missing data point, with no assumption made about what the score might have been if they had taken a test.

OP's question about test aware refers to colleges that really do still want to see scores, and if a student doesn't submit a score, that may be somewhat detrimental to their chances, as a score that is low will be assumed.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I recently heard a podcast where the Dartmouth dean of admissions said they were moving from test optional to test aware. Basically saying, yeah, of course we'll notice if you don't send in a score and if you're coming from a UMC high school. That was the tone I was picking up. He was also saying, just send it .. it's better than you think. (which I'm not so sure is true)

I'm looking for more test aware schools. Has anyone else heard of schools moving that way?

If a school is "test aware"...seems like if you score a 1400+ you should send the score. I don't know what the 25 - 75 range was prior to TO, but it was likely starting in the 1400s.

The description above would imply that not sending test scores means you are probably in the 1200s. It also seems to imply that TO is only for disadvantaged kids...and that honestly, an UMC kid should just apply somewhere else vs. TO.

Again, prior to TO, almost no UMC non-athlete, no hook kid would even have wasted their time applying to Dartmouth with a 1200.

Not a shock that MIT applications dropped 30% when they went back to requiring test scores last year.

[Anonymous]

a lot of colleges that said test optional really meant test blind. if you send it, we'll look at it. if you don't, we won't consider it.

now some colleges may be moving to a test optional policy that is more test aware. meaning, this isn't Georgetown and you dont have to send in your score, but if you don't we may draw our own conclusions about that

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What is test aware- that the school will look up student score if student took test, whether or not student submits the test results?

No. That a school will assume a student didn't submit a test score because their scores weren't high enough.

NP here
Well...yeah. I mean isn't that the only reason not to submit a test score? This isn't fall of 2020, THOSE kids (high school class of 2021) have a legit reason not to submit a test score, because many of them couldn't take SAT/ACT because of Covid. But everyone since then (and yes, I have a HS class of 2022 kid) had plenty of opportunity.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:He was also saying, just send it .. it's better than you think. (which I'm not so sure is true)

I'm looking for more test aware schools. Has anyone else heard of schools moving that way?

I heard that comment too. One way to look at it is that the scores do give admissions offices information, so of course they'd like them. Their 25th-75th percentile range for last year for admitted was 1500/1580, so the midpoint would be 1540. It's true that not submitting a 1530 is probably foolish--it's a great score and would probably only be seen as a positive. But, if a straight-A student with excellent extracurriculars submits a 1200, I can't imagine that that would help their application, and more likely would hurt it. It would be great if admissions offices would tell us to submit everything above a particular score, but that's against their own interests.

Should the 1200 even be applying?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:a lot of colleges that said test optional really meant test blind. if you send it, we'll look at it. if you don't, we won't consider it.

now some colleges may be moving to a test optional policy that is more test aware. meaning, this isn't Georgetown and you dont have to send in your score, but if you don't we may draw our own conclusions about that

Test blind means they won't look, period.

[Anonymous]

Lower ranked schools are doing the opposite. They specifically do not want to see the score unless it raises their profile.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:He was also saying, just send it .. it's better than you think. (which I'm not so sure is true)

I'm looking for more test aware schools. Has anyone else heard of schools moving that way?

I heard that comment too. One way to look at it is that the scores do give admissions offices information, so of course they'd like them. Their 25th-75th percentile range for last year for admitted was 1500/1580, so the midpoint would be 1540. It's true that not submitting a 1530 is probably foolish--it's a great score and would probably only be seen as a positive. But, if a straight-A student with excellent extracurriculars submits a 1200, I can't imagine that that would help their application, and more likely would hurt it. It would be great if admissions offices would tell us to submit everything above a particular score, but that's against their own interests.

Should the 1200 even be applying?

Nowadays they do because they can test optional. Plenty of kids don’t take AP tests too. So they can have a great gpa from a so-so high school (or one with grade inflation) and get into an Ivy. Seems more common though for wealthy folks and/or urms to be successful.

[Anonymous]

If not test blind, then they are or will become test aware. Colleges don’t want to keep offering middle school and high school math courses for kids with 4.0+ GPAs who were passed along with As across the board.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:If not test blind, then they are or will become test aware. Colleges don’t want to keep offering middle school and high school math courses for kids with 4.0+ GPAs who were passed along with As across the board.

A friend who teaches chemistry at Yale has been puzzling over the rise in the number of students who haven’t mastered high school math in his classes. What a mystery…

[Anonymous]

Test Blind = We don’t care what you got.

Test Optional = Send scores if you feel they help you, but it’s not the prime determinant of admission.

Test Aware = We would like to see the scores but in today’s market we are not going to force you. Scores have some weight.

Test Required = Scores are an important part of applicant review.

Anything beyond what the school actually says publicly is just your brain talking to your brain.