Following Dartmouth, Yale, and Brown, the SAT/ACT standardized tests are reinstated as part of their admission requirements, starting with applications for this fall semester.
This means that next students must submit SAT or ACT scores in their application in order to be enrolled. It is also the first U.S. public university to revert to standardization requirements this year.
Introduction to the institution
Founded in 1883, the University of Texas at Austin (UT-Austin) is the flagship campus of the University of Texas System, located in Austin, the capital of Texas, USA. The university has produced 13 Nobel Prizes, 2 Turing Awards, and 18 Pulitzer Prize winners. The university also has 35 members of the National Academy of Sciences, 52 members of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, and 57 members of the National Academy of Engineering.
UT-Austin is ranked 32nd in the 2024 U.S. News Best Colleges in America, and the 2023 U.S. News Best Colleges in America. In the News World University Rankings, UT-Austin is ranked 43rd. In addition, UT-Austin is ranked among the top three popular majors in computing, engineering and business, and all of them are among the top 10 in the United States, and its scientific research strength has been recognized globally.
UT-Austin has 7 museums and 17 libraries, with a total library of 9 million volumes, ranking 7th in the United States. The Norman Hackerman Laboratory Building and the Computer Complex, built around 2010, are high-tech powerhouses of the school.
Why return to standardization?
Unlike other schools, the biggest reason UT-Austin reinstated is that the school has found that not making submissions mandatory raises a number of questions, and it can be understood that this is aimed at ensuring fair competition for applicants because of the problems raised by not making submissions available to the right program and pinpointing which students need extra help.
The university also said that standardized scores can help predict whether students in school will be able to complete difficult business and engineering courses, so the reinstatement of standardized tests is to help students choose the most suitable majors and who should receive additional academic help.
Principal Jay Hartzell noted that an in-depth analysis of data from students who did not submit standardized test scores showed that they generally performed worse than those who submitted scores in several areas. In the case of 9,217 freshmen enrolled last fall, students who submitted standardized scores had an average GPA 0.86 higher than those who did not submit and performed better in their first semester of college.
The University of Texas at Austin had an all-time high of about 73,000 applicants last year, with nearly 90 percent of applicants taking the SAT or ACT, according to data provided by the College Board, which is responsible for the SAT.
Other application changes
In addition to reinstating standardized score requirements, UT-Austin has made a series of adjustments to the application process. These include: the introduction of a new EA early application round, a revision of the essay title, and a smaller range of recommendation letters.
1. Add EA batches: The deadline is October 15, and the results will be released before January 15 (there is one more school with an early application deadline on October 15).
2. Revise essay titles: Aim to provide more flexible topics and increase opportunities for personalized answers. However, the title of the new instrument has not yet been announced.
3. Reduce the number of questions: Decrease from three to two, keep current topics related to the major, and allow students to highlight their specific activities.
4. Introducing a Waiting List: For students who are not automatically admitted.
5. Limit the scope of letters of recommendation: It is strongly recommended that submitters of letters of recommendation obtain them from sources other than high school, reducing the workload of high school teachers and counselors.
At present, there are 9 schools that require standardized scores:
- School of Science and Technology, Asa Province
- Yale University
- Brown University
- Dartmouth College
- Georgetown University
- University of Texas at Austin
- University of Florida
- Georgia Institute of Technology
- University of Georgia
As more and more institutions reinstate standardized scores, it can be found that in the future, the submission of standardized scores is the general trend. Even the institutions that are still implementing "standardized optional" still submit standardized scores at the time of actual application. Therefore, Senior Sister Mia suggests that you should try your best to get an ideal standardized score when applying to improve your competitiveness.
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