Vol, 6, No. 30: October 8, 2007		Get SEAchange by email

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6. Study: grades better predictor than test scores

According to a study by University of California researchers, high school grades are a better predictor than SAT scores of whether a student will succeed in college. The study examined the fates of nearly 80,000 students who entered the University of California system as freshmen from 1996 to 1999.

Standardized-test scores do add a "small but statistically significant improvement in predicting long-term college outcomes," the authors concede. But they argue that SAT scores are so intertwined with students' socioeconomic status and add so little predictive value that their use in college admissions should be minimized. "High-school grades provide a fairer, more equitable, and ultimately more meaningful basis for admissions decision-making," they write.

The study: http://cshe.berkeley.edu/publications/publications.php?id=265

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Last updated on 10/8/2007