College Board Cancels May SATs Over COVID-19 Concerns

The College Board, which administers the SAT exam, announced today (March 16) that it would be canceling the May 2, 2020 SAT amid concerns of the coronavirus (COVID-19). It will also be canceling the March 28th makeup exams after the March 14 exams were canceled. Registered students will be receiving refunds, according to the announcement, which can be read in entirety here. As of now, the College Board says the June 6, 2020 exam has not been canceled but the spread of the virus could cause them to cancel that SAT as well at a later date.

The announcement does say the College Board will continue to work with schools to create weekday administrations of the SAT and PSAT. The potential issue with that is many school districts have also been canceling classes, so it’s unclear how a partnership could be reached.

“Together with our member schools and colleges, we will be flexible, thoughtful, and collaborative in exploring ways to continue to support student learning and provide opportunities to test during this challenging time,” the announcement said. “In the coming days, the College Board will share additional information and details directly with registered students and test centers.”

GRADUATE SCHOOLS ALREADY PULLING BACK ON USE OF STANDARDIZED TEST SCORES

It’s unclear how universities will respond to the current climate of standardized testing. At the graduate level, France and Singapore-based INSEAD, announced last week it would be extending application cycle deadlines as well as evaluating applications without standardized test scores. Many universities across the country have already been dropping standardized test scores from admissions criteria.

This will be a developing story and we’ll continue to update it as news from the College Board and other universities continues to trickle out.

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