UNC System schools won’t require SAT/ACT test scores for students applying in fall 2022
Students looking to attend a university in the UNC System in the fall of 2022 will not have to submit SAT or ACT test scores with their application.
The UNC System Board of Governors voted Thursday to extend a waiver for standardized test requirements because of the ongoing cancellations and disruptions to testing availability due to COVID-19. Last summer, the board waived the testing requirement for students applying for admission through 2021.
UNC-Chapel Hill, N.C. State and the other institutions will continue to be test-optional and students can still submit SAT and/or ACT scores with their applications.
Board of Governors member Temple Sloan said this waiver is necessary to keep things fair because North Carolina students had inconsistent educations last year, with some in classrooms and others in virtual classes. Sloan chairs the educational planning committee that brought the waiver forward for a full board vote.
Sloan said the vast majority of UNC System chancellors and provosts support this one-year waiver. He also noted that 1,400 others schools around the country also made this move, including the University of Texas System, the University of Virginia and Ivy League schools.
Other board members noted the cost and accessibility of standardized tests, particularly for students in rural, low-income and underrepresented communities.
Ray Palma, the new student member of the board, said these tests bring a lot of stress and anxiety to students.
“This past year has not been representative of a normal year,” Palma said. “The scores are likely not representative of students’ capabilities or readiness for college.”
Some board members opposed waiver
It was a robust discussion, with several board members voting against the waiver. Some said the inconsistency in education and grading across schools this year is a reason to require standardized tests.
Steve Long argued against the waiver, saying it is an important tool to gauge a student’s ability to be ready for college. He proposed an amendment to allow students to submit an exception saying they were not able to take two standardized tests. But the amendment was not approved by a vote.
Joel Ford also argued that this waiver is a “slippery slope” toward lowering standards of the university system and that will set students and families up for failure financially and academically.
“I don’t want to deny any student in the state of North Carolina a higher education,” Ford said, “but we have a responsibility to make sure they’re prepared and that they belong there and that they graduate.”
Ford, Long, Marty Kotis, Terry Hutchens, Art Pope and Michael Williford voted against the waiver.
At the meeting Thursday, the board recognized Kotis, Long, Doyle Parrish and Dwight Stone, who are leaving the board.
This story was originally published May 27, 2021 at 11:22 AM with the headline "UNC System schools won’t require SAT/ACT test scores for students applying in fall 2022."
