Indicator: SAT and ACT participation and performance

What to know about measurement

Amidst ongoing changes in college admissions policies and concerns about the fairness of admissions tests, framework users should be aware of evolving considerations when implementing this indicator. Although differences in educational opportunities can account for some of the disparities in scores among groups of students, and these tests have been validated for use with diverse populations, there is also some evidence of racial and cultural biases within the test questions themselves. Research also shows that test scores are manipulable through test prep; thus, the tests may conflate students’ college-ready skills and knowledge with their access to test prep resources. Disparities in test scores may also be attributable to stereotype threat. Due at least in part to these concerns, some university systems have eliminated their use in admissions policies.ⁱⁱ On the other hand, expanding access to college admissions tests has been shown to help low-income students who otherwise might not take the tests enroll in college at higher rates, leading to questions about the extent to which these measures bar or promote equitable access to higher education.

Although many colleges and universities have recently adopted test-optional admissions policies, a trend which the COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated, we recommend that educational entities continue to track the rate at which students both take and earn college-ready scores on the SAT and ACT, given the gatekeeping role these tests have historically played in access to higher education. Our first recommended metric—participation rate—can shed light on whether students have access to college admissions tests. As of 2018, 25 states required high school students to take the ACT or SAT (which the state paid for). Our second metric uses benchmarks set by the ACT and SAT for the minimum scores associated with “a high probability of success in credit-bearing first-year college courses.” In 2022, the SAT benchmarks were 480 for evidence-based reading and writing and 530 for math. For the ACT, the benchmarks were 18 for English, 22 for math and reading, and 23 for science. As of 2018, at least 11 states included the ACT/SAT college-ready benchmarks as an option for students to meet college and career readiness requirements in their Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) plans. We encourage framework users to stay abreast of further changes in policies and evidence regarding use of the ACT and SAT.

^{ii For example, following a 2019 lawsuit filed on behalf of the Compton Unified School District, the University of California Board of Regents voted unanimously in May 2020 to stop requiring the ACT and SAT as part of admissions applications. The state plans to introduce a new assessment in their place.}