This House would replace the SAT with portfolio-based admissions.

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Test-optional policies have not improved diversity at top schools as much as advocates predicted. Portfolios reward students with the resources to build them. Both directions face uncomfortable evidence.

Background

Over 1,800 US colleges went test-optional during the pandemic. By 2024, MIT, Yale, Brown, and Dartmouth had reinstated requirements after their own research showed standardized scores predict college performance better than high school GPA; and crucially, they predict it equally well across income brackets when contextualized. The Opportunity Insights study by Raj Chetty showed test scores actually surface high-potential low-income applicants who get filtered out by extracurricular-heavy admissions, because portfolios reward students with the time and adult support to build them.

Government opens with

Standardized tests measure tutoring access more than ability.

Opposition responds with

Portfolio admissions measure adult mentorship even more than tests measure tutoring.