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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]

Third to last question (not second) which says “Wesleyan will not require any matriculating student who did not take an ACT, SAT, or SAT Subject Tests to take exams prior to enrolling.” That means scores are not required.

As already mentioned, their SAT % per CDS is roughly 50%. Their ACT is roughly 20%.  Even if those are completely separate groups with no overlap (they aren’t), that’s ~70%.  If comparing scores to another school, also compare the % reporting. The magically higher bottom of their profile is silent on the % reporting, but the best explanation in light of the CDS is that the profile was averaged over a smaller and more self-selecting group.

Wesleyan is a great school and none of this changes that.  But of course the best way to compare school stats between schools is with the CDS.  That’s why it exists.

[/quote]

I think part of the confusion in this thread is that a few schools (e.g. Wesleyan, Bowdoin up to last year) require entering students to provide all available test scores whether those scores were submitted as part of their application or not. The best way to confirm this is to compare the CDS data, which gives schools some flexibility about how they present their data, with the IPEDS data (accessible via College Navigator) which has uniform reporting standards.

So for Wesleyan's class entering fall of 2023, 
the CDS data shows that 52% submitted SAT scores, 
the 25/50/75 scores for SAT EBRW were 660/710/750,
the 25/50/75 scores for SAT math were 630/710/760,
while the IPEDS data shows that 28% submitted SAT scores,
the 25/50/75 scores for SAT EBRW were 720/750/770,
the 25/50/75 scores for SAT math were 730/760/770.

The difference reflects the obvious fact that students who don't submit test scores with their application tend to have significantly lower test scores than those who do. Reported scores from schools which show <50% score submittal rates (ACT+SAT) in their IPEDS data should probably not be taken too seriously. Amongst the highly ranked SLACS, most have score submittal rates in the 55-60% range (Amherst, Bowdoin, Colby, Hamilton, Haverford, Swarthmore, Williams) but some have significantly lower submittal rates in the 40-45% range (CMC, Middlebury, Pomona, Wesleyan).[/quote]

The 28% for SAT and 14% for ACT are likely the missing submission rates from the bottom of their profile, so thank you for that!

Wesleyan may [b]request[/b] admitted students who have taken tests and didn’t submit do so if choosing to enroll, but that’s certainly very different from the earlier comments that all enrolled students are [b]required[/b] to submit test scores. I also don’t think those who have taken but didn’t submit during the appplication phase are later required to do so. The sum of SAT and ACT submit rates from the CDS tells us 30% or more either never took the test or that they did but didn’t worry about the consequence of not submitting. I think it’s very unlikely a third of Wesleyan students never even tried either the SAT or ACT. I think it’s far more likely Wesleyan simply requests but doesn’t truly require (let alone have a way to enforce) submission of scores for those matriculating, other than requiring official records for those who self-reported on their apps. Imagine the uproar and liability if a test optional school rescinded a student’s admission months after they made their deposit and declined other schools when they never self-reported any scores in the first place and believed the “we won’t penalize you if you don’t report” assurance during the college search and application process, all because they didn’t submit a score they didn’t use.  There would be no grounds for that, as the student never wanted scores used in the first place, the school said they were optional, and the only possible grievance on the school’s part is they didn’t get to have another institutional research data point on a test they themselves say is optional. It would be about as crazy as rescinding admission of a student who selected the option not to disclose race on their app then was told after the fact that they are required to for institutional research purposes but didn’t comply.  I think the term “required” was used too loosely earlier in this thread, and a college wouldn’t want to misuse the term on things that aren’t truly required as it would set a terrible precedent for things that truly are.

But the more important point was always their higher scores on the bottom of the profile reflected a smaller population than that of the CDS which itself was also a smaller population than the whole class.  [/quote]

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