SAT, ACT test scores are optional at many universities — and fewer Hampton Roads students are taking them

Princess Anne High School junior Victoria Lord said she never considered skipping the SAT.

The Virginia Beach student will take the test although she knows not all colleges she might apply to require it. To her, a good score shows her dedication to getting into a good school and could put her application over the top.

“I just feel like it’s ... a standard part of education,” Lord said. “Standardized tests are always something that I feel like you kind of have to take and you have to deal with.”

This is changing, though.

According to the National Center for Fair and Open Testing, more than 1,800 accredited four-year colleges and universities across the country are not requiring SAT and ACT scores for fall 2023 admissions. This is out of more than 2,200 recognized colleges and universities and an increase from approximately 800 test-optional schools in 2013. Most Hampton Roads higher education institutions have dropped the requirement, including the College of William & Mary, Old Dominion, Norfolk State, Christopher Newport, Hampton, Regent and Virginia Wesleyan universities.

So why take the tests if they aren’t necessary?

Princess Anne High School senior Kerah Howeth said of the 13 universities she applied to, none required a test score. She took the SAT anyway, earning a 1330. She has been accepted to several schools and was offered scholarships. If she were to do it again, the future education major doesn’t think she’d take the SAT.

“I really don’t think it made that much of a difference,” she said, adding that she did not believe the cost and time were worth it.

According to the College Board website, the SAT costs $60, and the tests are generally offered on Saturdays. There are fee waivers for those who qualify. Schools can host SAT School Days to allow students to take the test during school hours. Portsmouth is participating and offering free testing to juniors who register by Friday.

Howeth said several of her classmates were taking the test multiple times to improve scores. However, she thinks SATs and other standardized tests are “such a bad reflection of who you are as a student and as a person.”

Virginia Wesleyan made the shift to “test-optional” when coronavirus restrictions affected access to the tests. Heather Campbell, the university’s vice president for enrollment, said the decision was made to “keep our admission process fair and open to all.”

“We’ve continued with the test-optional practice because it’s become clear that how students perform in day-to-day academic pursuits is a better determinant, versus a test, of their success at the college level,” Campbell said in an email statement.

Virginia Beach Public Schools reported that participation rates in the tests decreased over the past five years. According to a presentation to the school board in December, 62% of graduates in 2017-18 took the SAT and 16% took the ACT. The percentages crept lower over the years. By 2021-22, 41% of graduates took the SAT and just 5% took the ACT; because of COVID, SAT participation that year was 31% and ACT was 4%.

Newport News Public Schools reports a similar trend. In 2017, more than 980 graduating seniors took the SAT. The numbers dipped to 756 in 2020 and dropped to 303 in 2021. The division does not track ACT rates. A spokesperson noted that officials believe this decline is because fewer colleges and universities use the scores.

Chesapeake Public Schools had more than 1,800 graduating seniors who took the SAT in 2018. The rate remained steady until 2021, when it dropped to 676. The participation rate rebounded some in 2022 with nearly 1,300 seniors participating. Portsmouth and Norfolk Public Schools reported similar trends.

Still, Virginia Beach officials encourage those who want to go to college to take at least one of the tests. Even if their top school choice doesn’t require a score, it could still be beneficial depending on the program the students are interested in or for scholarship opportunities.

Lords said she understands why many students wouldn’t take a standardized test, even if it is the right decision for her.

The shift for many schools to test-optional admissions is largely due to the pandemic, though Campbell said these tests have been called into question in more recent years. Standardized testing has been controversial for not being an equitable way to assess student intelligence. The test-optional model bases admission on a student’s GPA and extracurriculars.

CNU boasts on its website that it made its admissions test optional over a decade ago. Like Virginia Wesleyan, the goal is to focus on the student as a whole, rather than a test. The scores aren’t used for admission but can be used for merit scholarship eligibility or when students are “simply eager to share their accomplishments.”

Howeth has taken on leadership roles in band throughout high school from wind ensemble to leading a brass choir. That experience shows universities that she was well-rounded and better reflected who she was as a student.

“My SAT score is one line on my application but my extracurriculars take up half a page,” she said.

Kelsey Kendall, kelsey.kendall@virginiamedia.com