The era of college subjectivity
Not long ago, most people believed (right or wrong) that a student’s GPA and standardized test scores were the two keys to getting accepted at colleges. There was always talk about ‘holistic’ application reviews, and there still is, but parents and students still reduced colleges and universities to a combination of those two measurements: college A requires a 3.75/1,350 while college B looks for 3.85/1,450. It wasn’t an absolute truth, but it was a good estimate, fairly accurate, and provided a reasonable measurement of what it took, academically, to at least be considered a solid applicant.
Oh, how times have changed. Most colleges are not requiring ACT/SAT scores, while others are “standardized test blind”, and won’t even look at them if you submit them (California Public Colleges). And while GPA used to be considered a better (or at least comparable) measurement of academic success than ACT/SAT scores, the grade inflation brought on by remote learning has rendered it much less indicative than before. As I mentioned in another post, this past June 48% of students at a local high school graduated with honors. Teachers gave out more “A” grades than ever before. One teacher directly told me that in 2020-21 the breakdown for his final grades was about 80%-A and 20%-B, while in prior years the distribution was less than 70% As and Bs combined! Love your student’s high GPA? You’re in good company: almost everyone has one now.
In summary, colleges don’t require (or won’t look at, in some cases) your standardized test scores, and grade inflation has rendered your GPA somewhat meaningless. So, what are colleges using to determine who gets accepted and who doesn’t? Looking at the Common App, they can see your (1) teacher recommendations, (2) essays, and (3) activity list, and with the UC application for California state colleges and universities, there’s not even a required teacher recommendation. Of course, your academic record shows which courses you’ve taken, so taking challenging classes (Honors, AP, IB) is important, but many students now have A grades in those courses. In addition, New York state is looking at possibly eliminating Honors and AP courses from public schools to create a more even playing field. So soon your ability to challenge yourself by taking advanced courses may be limited.
What it comes down to, to a great extent, is subjectivity. Essays and activity lists. Essays are extremely subjective. Unlike comparing ACT scores from two students (34 is better than a 28, period), essays are subjective. Then, when you consider the increased availability for students to get “help” (professional or otherwise) in writing essays, the process doesn’t always lead to smarter students getting preference over average students who benefitted greatly from remote-teaching / remote-learning / remote-cheating. Getting outside help on your essays is on the rise, while it’s close to impossible on cheat on standardized tests (Hollywood elite excluded).
Students who had straight A grades prior to Covid now find themselves with the same GPA as students who received the “Covid A” grades. They can’t distinguish themselves academically. It used to be that ‘richer’ families had the advantage of paying for ACT/SAT prep, and that wasn’t fair to other students. But it’s the same now, as these families simply divert funds from standardized-test tutors to essay-writing tutors. I’ve spoken to a few college students who received “professional help” on their essays and are now attending top-20 universities (with report cards full of Covid A grades). If only there was some way for gifted students to show how they stand out from others academically, on a test measuring their knowledge of subjects like English, Reading, Math, and maybe Science.