Reply to Is it me or are test scores now more important than ever?

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]Despite (or perhaps because of) the rise of test optional, it seems there is more intense focus than ever on small differences in test scores. Thread after thread here, you see people saying things like a 33 disqualifies a student from a top 20 and maybe even a 34 (shouldn’t even submit!) This seems crazy and contrary to the idea of the test optional movement. But it also seems to suggest that test optional is only there to make admissions easier for a certain type of student (hooked). The result is that it makes testing even more important for the other types of applicants (unhooked) because the schools are leaning on these students so they can post a high median test score (among the 51 pct that submit). I actually believe in the value of these tests to a large extent but separating kids by a point or two is really ridiculous (esp given the abuses with untimed testing). [/quote]

33 vs 34 on ACT is not a small difference on average (but there is random variation that blurs the difference) The scaled score range is very narrow.

Of the 33-34 cohort, half of them scored 34.

Of 4 million HS seniors, about 80K score 33, and 40K score 34 (or equivalent  on SAT). Probably fewer, considering high school dropouts and others not taking the test.

About 50K enroll in a T20, but that's biased toward UCLA and UCB public  schools in California, together admitting about 20K

https://www.usnews.com/best-colleges/rankings/national-universities

There is no abuse in untimed testing. The *timed* tests are abusive. [/quote]

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