On Friday, Jan. 24, Claremont McKenna College faculty members voted in favor of a motion to recommend the suspension of their current test-optional admissions policy. In the wake of discussions surrounding this issue, TSL examined and compiled standardized testing data from CMC students before and after the college dropped its testing requirement.
CMC temporarily implemented the policy in 2020 due to COVID-19, following national trends in response to a widespread lack of access to standardized testing.
Since the requirements were lifted, the number of admitted students who have opted to submit standardized test scores has steadily decreased. During the 2024 admissions cycle, only 26 percent of admitted students submitted an SAT score, and only 13 percent submitted an ACT score, according to TSL’s findings.
Henry Fina CM ’25 agreed with the goals of the faculty motion.
“I trust the Claremont faculty to make the right decision regarding the caliber of students they teach,” he wrote in an email to TSL. “If they believe, based on the information given to them, that the test-optional policy produced admissions outcomes that did not align with the academic standards CMC should expect, then it makes sense to revert to requiring test scores.”
Eli Weiss CM ’25 said that he saw the benefits of standardized test scores but questioned what factors contributed to the faculty’s decision.
“I’d be curious to know what the faculty’s reasoning was,” he said. “I guess my attitude about it is that standardized tests actually serve a good purpose sometimes, and can be a good way to measure the quality of an applicant.”
Weiss did not submit standardized test scores when he applied to transfer to CMC in the fall 2023 term.
“I probably benefited from the fact that CMC was test-optional when I applied because I wasn’t the best standardized test taker,” he said.
While the precise proceedings of the CMC faculty meeting are confidential, philosophy professor Dustin Locke recounted arguments he heard around campus both for and against test-optional policies.
Many people were concerned about long-standing issues regarding equity in standardized testing. However, according to Locke, “Proponents of the motion think that it is among the least biased ways of evaluating students.”
Fina is among those who believe that standardized test scores can serve as an objective metric to evaluate students for admission.
“The claims that standardized tests are biased have merit,” he wrote. “Students with greater access to test prep can raise their scores to a degree. However, the college admissions process is highly subjective, and standardized tests provide a universal metric that allows colleges to contextualize disparities between schools.”
Additionally, some were concerned that requiring standardized tests may dissuade prospective students from applying.
“There is also a worry that there aren’t many West Coast colleges that have brought the test back,” Locke said. “The worry is about reducing the number of applicants.”
The University of California campuses practiced test-blind admissions for applicants considered to be admitted in fall 2024. Stanford University, however, reinstated its standardized testing requirement for students applying for entry in the fall 2025 term.
Fina, who applied to CMC in 2020 when standardized test scores were required, echoed this concern.
“I imagine if I felt no need to take the tests, but one school on my list required them, then I would not apply there,” he said.
However, those who support a standardized test mandate feel that such requirements may be attractive to applicants.
“The argument is that some students will [apply] because they want to be in a certain academic environment,” Locke said.
While fewer students submit test scores to be considered for admission, the averages of scores submitted have risen.
In 2020, the 25th percentile average composite SAT score was 1330, and the 75th percentile average composite score was 1500. During the last admissions cycle, those scores increased to 1490 and 1550, respectively.
Similarly, the 25th and 75th percentile average composite ACT scores each increased by two points between 2020 and 2024.
There is no straightforward answer as to whether the test-optional policy has affected student performance.
“COVID had a big impact on education,” Locke said. “It is impossible to separate out what are the effects of COVID versus what are the effects of requiring the test.”
While the future of standardized testing requirements at CMC remains to be determined, Scripps, Pomona and Pitzer Colleges have permanently dropped test requirements for admissions. Harvey Mudd is the only other Claremont College that is still reevaluating its test-optional policy.
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