Missed Exams and Lost Opportunities: Who Could Gain From Expanded College Admission Testing?

Oct 15, 2026

Uploaded by Cart

The article analyzes how missed college admission testing creates lost opportunities for students and colleges while weighing the costs of testing against potential benefits. Focusing on Virginia as a case study, it estimates that universal testing could substantially increase the share of high school graduates with test scores competitive for broad-access universities and selective institutions, especially among low-income students. The study also evaluates alternative policies that encourage testing among academically prepared students to achieve similar gains with fewer testing costs.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages20

Reading Time50 min

AccessFree to download

Introduction

Policy Context in Virginia

Interpreting Standardized Test Scores

Estimation Strategy and Research Questions

AERA Open April-June 2019, Vol. 5, No. 2, pp. 1–20 DOI: 10. 1177/2332858419855030 Article reuse guidelines: [sagepub.com/journals-permissions](sagepub.com/journals-permissions)[ ](sagepub.com/journals-permissions)© The Author(s) 2019. [http://journals.sagepub.com/home/ero](http://journals.sagepub.com/home/ero) Missed Exams and Lost Opportunities: Who Could Gain From Expanded College Admission Testing? Emily E. Cook University of Virginia Sarah Turner University of Virginia and NBER When students with the capacity to succeed in a 4-year college do not take a college admission test, this represents apotential loss of opportunity for students and colleges alike. However, the costs of testing—both pecuniary and nonpecuniary—may exceed the benefits for students who lack the interest in or qualifications for college attendance. In states like Virginia, access to admission tests varies markedly with district and family circumstances. We estimate that universal testing in Virginia could increase the number of high school graduates with test scores competitive for admission at broad-access universities in the state by as much as 40%—and at the most selective institutions by nearly 20%—with larger increases for low-income students. Alternative policies that encourage testing among students with strong demonstrated academic performance could realize nearly these increases without generating testing costs for students who are unlikely to attend a 4-year college. Keywords: admissions, higher education, postsecondary education, universal testing, college entrance exam, imputation When students with the capacity and preparation to succeed in a 4-year college do not explore their collegiate options, this represents a loss of opportunity for students and colleges alike. Policies that encourage high school students to take college admission tests like the PSAT, SAT, and ACT can help students explore their collegiate options at a critical stage by providing information about the students’ potential for admission at colleges of different levels of selectivity. In addition, institutions can use information provided by testing agencies to assist in targeted outreach and recruiting, which in turn may benefit students by conveying details about specific college options. At the same time, testing isnot free, and the costs—both pecuniary and nonpecuniary—may exceed the benefits when students lack either the interest in or qualifications for attendance at 4-year colleges and universities. As test-taking is a choice affected by state and local policies as well as family circumstances, the focus of this analysis is on the identification of which students take (and do not take) the tests and whether there are students who might benefit from alternative policies that either mandate or encourage test-taking among selected groups of students. The state of Virginia provides the laboratory for this study. In Virginia, 56% of high school graduates took the SAT in 2014 while about 71% took the PSAT.1 There are wide differences among districts in test-taking: Participation in the exams is near universal in some districts, while in other districts, only a minority of students participate. While a number of states have moved to universal testing, states like Virginia leave decisions about student participation in college testing to district policy and parental discretion. Policies differ markedly at the district level, with some districts providing across-the-board access to the preliminary assessment (PSAT) and the college admission test (SAT), while other districts follow student-initiated opt-in for all tests. At the outset, it is important to acknowledge that standardized tests like the SAT (along with the ACT and PSAT) are incomplete indicators of “college readiness” or whether a student is “well-matched” or “admission-eligible” at a particular college. Certainly, the skills and competencies needed for collegiate success transcend te

FAQs

Why does missing a college admission test create lost opportunities?

When students with the capacity to succeed in a 4-year college do not take an admission test, they lose information and pathways that can help students and colleges make better-informed decisions.

What impact does universal testing in Virginia have according to the estimates?

Universal testing in Virginia could increase high school graduates with competitive test scores by about 40% for broad-access universities and nearly 20% for the most selective institutions, with larger increases for low-income students.

How do the authors evaluate alternative approaches to testing?

They consider policies that encourage testing among students with strong demonstrated academic performance, aiming to capture similar gains while avoiding testing costs for students unlikely to attend a 4-year college.

Oct 15, 2026

Uploaded by Cart