Test Optional, but Not Really

[easypeasy]

Most schools bonus kid is applying to are test optional right now.

In looking further, I see that, like last year, they are test optional *except* for homeschoolers, who are required to submit test scores.

I'm curious - many scholarships that USED to have a minimum ACT/SAT score can no longer implement that because of the test-optional policy.

Do you think the scholarship committee will place heavy significance on a homeschooled student's test score (since they can SEE it)?

It's interesting that a public school student with a hidden 27 ACT might be "seen" for a scholarship opportunity**, whereas a homeschooled student with a 32 might not because he was required to submit his score for consideration for admission (**for a scholarship that used to have a 34 ACT minimum to apply, for instance).

Anyone else curious about this?

[teachermom2834]

Yeah I thought about this for my 2021 grad. He only wanted to attend our state flagship. Their automatic scholarships weren’t great. The highest one previously required a 34 ACT but then they went test optional except homeschoolers.  Ds was getting 34 or 35 on practice tests but after multiple cancellations and then odd pandemic testing conditions he ended up with a 33. So he was awarded only about a $5000 scholarship. Test optional kids were awarded scholarships at the same increments just based on the discretion of the committee. So definitely kids with hidden test scores getting those scholarships (I know because I saw parents posting about them on College Confidential). I thought ds had the resume for the highest level but he was limited by that test score.

Turns out, at the end of April he got a phone call and was awarded a full ride tuition+ room and board + perks scholarship that an original winner had declined. (A different scholarship program than the automatic awards referenced above). So it worked out for him in the end. But I was also right that he had an extremely strong application and without the limiting test score probably would have gotten the higher initial award. So it worked out but if that other kid hadn’t declined the big scholarship, ds would have had a pretty meager one based solely on the test score while he had an application that otherwise put him in the top .25% of incoming freshman. 
 

So, yes, it was definitely a disadvantage to ds to not be able to go test optional for scholarships like his peers. 

 

[fourisenough]

I suspect you might be right in some cases, but my feeling is that there is really no way to know. Test optional admissions/scholarships has made an already opaque process even less transparent. And I think there is going to be so much variability between schools that any generalizations are rendered even less likely to be accurate than usual. 

[GoodGrief3]

I do know that Baylor told us that my daughter would not qualify for certain scholarships that required a minimum SAT score since she had not gone test optional. Her SAT is very good but not great, and she was admitted with it.  The situation with test scores and scholarships this year is very interesting.

[GoodGrief3]

13 hours ago, teachermom2834 said:

Their automatic scholarships weren’t great. The highest one previously required a 34 ACT but then they went test optional except homeschoolers.  Ds was getting 34 or 35 on practice tests but after multiple cancellations and then odd pandemic testing conditions he ended up with a 33. 

 

Very similar to our situation, and it's frustrating. My daughter took it three times, and is generally a decent test taker. First two times, she was dealing with pain (she has endometriosis, finally had surgery recently) and the masking and tense atmosphere in pandemic testing conditions impacted her score. The third time, she prepared very well, and practiced in a mask. But she had a major misnumbering error and didn't take the proper steps to fix it. At this point, it was too late to retake for the early action admission cycle.

[teachermom2834]

At my son’s school non-homeschool applicants could choose to apply to the test optional scholarship program or the traditional test scored based. Both programs have the same scholarships levels ($3000/$5000/$8000). You needed a 34 for the $8000. But they did award many of the $8000 to test optional students. And obviously those kids didn’t have 34 or they would have applied to the guaranteed one. And my ds did have a resume outside of the test scores that qualified him for the premier full ride program as an alternate. So I feel confident if he could have gone test optional he would have had the highest level. 
 

I guess it is most annoying because it is not as if students were unable to test in our state. There were cancelled dates but still plenty of opportunities and they were willing to accept scores all through the summer. They stuck with the setup for this year so I think it helped their stats to go test optional- testing is readily available now but they are sticking with the format. I understand needing something to judge homeschoolers by but I don’t think I would have ever stopped being annoyed if he hadn’t come up with the other one.

 

[AEC]

My DS has a high ACT score but is mostly looking at universities that do not provide any merit-based scholarships. Does anyone have a source for outside (e.g. not through the university) merit-based scholarships based on test cores?

[GoodGrief3]

On 11/17/2021 at 3:00 PM, AEC said:

My DS has a high ACT score but is mostly looking at universities that do not provide any merit-based scholarships. Does anyone have a source for outside (e.g. not through the university) merit-based scholarships based on test cores?

There are competitive scholarships that screen initially on test scores, like the CocaCola Scholarship, though there are other requirements once you get further into the competition. My suggestion would be to look for local scholarships. In our area, various community organizations and businesses have scholarships. Not typically based solely on test scores, but that will likely be part of it.

[Sebastian (a lady)]

I wanted to share this article from Inside Higher Ed, Some Colleges Slow to Drop Testing for Homeschooled Students.

 

The independent educational consultant quoted, Rebecca Stuart-Orlowski is a friend and professional colleague who homeschools and has worked with a lot of homeschoolers over the years. It was really nice to see an article like this quoting someone who actually understood the issues that homeschoolers are dealing with.

[easypeasy]

16 hours ago, Sebastian (a lady) said:

I wanted to share this article from Inside Higher Ed, Some Colleges Slow to Drop Testing for Homeschooled Students.

 

The independent educational consultant quoted, Rebecca Stuart-Orlowski is a friend and professional colleague who homeschools and has worked with a lot of homeschoolers over the years. It was really nice to see an article like this quoting someone who actually understood the issues that homeschoolers are dealing with.

That was a really interesting read, thank you for sharing!

Since I posted the OP, I have verified with two acquaintances whose homeschooled students applied for scholarships and/or programs that (in a previous year) they would not have been eligible for. In one example, the program required a 33 to apply and the other required a 31. One student had a 29 while the other had a 32 and they were *required* by the university to post their scores.

The 32 student was invited to the program with a min. 31, but not the one with min. 33. The 29 student was not invited to either program.

They have three friends from church who applied test-optional who were invited to both programs. The three public schooled have nearly identical GPAs than the homeschooled girls' (but the hs girls have dual-enrollment GPAs as well) and two DID take the ACT (but chose not to report) and both were lower than the homeschooled girls' scores. Their extracurriculars, etc are all very similar because they are involved in many of the same things.

Very, very frustrating for them right now to be happy for their friends getting into the programs they really hoped to get into themselves.

It's the only rock-solid confirmation I've seen in my own circles so far, but I have to imagine it's happening elsewhere, yk? Cuz...

[BusyMom5]

11 hours ago, easypeasy said:

That was a really interesting read, thank you for sharing!

Since I posted the OP, I have verified with two acquaintances whose homeschooled students applied for scholarships and/or programs that (in a previous year) they would not have been eligible for. In one example, the program required a 33 to apply and the other required a 31. One student had a 29 while the other had a 32 and they were *required* by the university to post their scores.

The 32 student was invited to the program with a min. 31, but not the one with min. 33. The 29 student was not invited to either program.

They have three friends from church who applied test-optional who were invited to both programs. The three public schooled have nearly identical GPAs than the homeschooled girls' (but the hs girls have dual-enrollment GPAs as well) and two DID take the ACT (but chose not to report) and both were lower than the homeschooled girls' scores. Their extracurriculars, etc are all very similar because they are involved in many of the same things.

Very, very frustrating for them right now to be happy for their friends getting into the programs they really hoped to get into themselves.

It's the only rock-solid confirmation I've seen in my own circles so far, but I have to imagine it's happening elsewhere, yk? Cuz...

Have you reached out and asked about this?  I sometimes wonder if administration is even aware of the differences placed on homeschoolers.

[Sebastian (a lady)]

17 hours ago, BusyMom5 said:

Have you reached out and asked about this?  I sometimes wonder if administration is even aware of the differences placed on homeschoolers.

I agree with bringing policies like this up and pointing out the effects when possible. 

There are some colleges with so many applicants that they might not care. But most colleges do actually want to attract good students to apply and enroll. Many do care about access and don't always realize the difficulties some homeschool students have accessing things like dual enrollment or Advanced Placement. 

But if we aren't telling them, how do they learn about these issues? 

[easypeasy]

On 12/14/2021 at 11:54 AM, BusyMom5 said:

Have you reached out and asked about this?  I sometimes wonder if administration is even aware of the differences placed on homeschoolers.

They weren't my kids so, no. I encouraged the parents to, but the one with the 32 ACT doesn't want to negatively affect her shot at the program she WAS invited to. Maybe the other one will, but they haven't yet. They were just really frustrated.

[easypeasy]

On 12/15/2021 at 5:31 AM, Sebastian (a lady) said:

But if we aren't telling them, how do they learn about these issues? 

I agree, but MAN someone should think about it when making the rules! lol Homeschoolers aren't the rare unicorns they used to be. I often wonder if it's just an entirely separate committee who makes the homeschool rules vs regular admission rules because it so often seems that the left hand has no idea what the right hand is doing, yk?

[Roadrunner]

I dislike test optional policies for that reason. Either test everybody or nobody. 
 

[Sebastian (a lady)]

12 hours ago, easypeasy said:

I agree, but MAN someone should think about it when making the rules! lol Homeschoolers aren't the rare unicorns they used to be. I often wonder if it's just an entirely separate committee who makes the homeschool rules vs regular admission rules because it so often seems that the left hand has no idea what the right hand is doing, yk?

I think that often people just don't consider that circumstances elsewhere are different. They might not have thought about the fact that homeschoolers have to find a place to take an AP test, because they don't have to think about test availability for their own kids (or they are fresh out of college and only have their own experience to go by).

Similarly, admissions offices may not have an accurate sense of what is available in a rural high school or urban high school. Or what military students go through when they change high schools a couple times.