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By JILL TIEFENTHALER
There are no objective inputs to the college admissions process. We crave clear tests that offer a fair chance to prove merit. The SAT was conceived for this purpose, but that objectivity has eroded.

We want to believe that, irrespective of our different backgrounds or experiences in life, we are judged based on our work ethic and achievements. At Wake Forest University, this premise has been woven into the fabric of our institution since its founding. We have always sought to provide opportunities to those willing to earn them, without regard to advantages in life or the lack thereof. In order to preserve this important heritage, we have taken a bold stand to acknowledge the absence of objectivity in college admissions and redirect emphasis to the subjective measures that work.

The race for spots at the most competitive national colleges and universities has reached a fever pitch, and families have responded by trying to maximize every input. Standardized test scores provide a great example. These scores generally improve with guidance and repetition, and so the tests have encouraged an industry of test training that takes advantage of the ambitions of students and their families. Test preparation courses have become commonplace, and students take tests over and over to improve their scores. At the extreme, consultants whose fees reach tens of thousands of dollars contribute to an escalating craze.

The goal of evaluating standardized test scores and measures like GPA is to find the applicants with the brightest minds who are motivated to excel and offer meaningful contributions to the learning of their peers. Admissions professionals try to determine which students will be academically successful and make important contributions to the learning community. There is some correlation between standardized test scores and first-year college grades, but high school grades -- even with the differences in curriculum across schools -- are by far the best predictors of college success. When a predictive model accounts for high school grades, adding in standardized test scores does not significantly improve the accuracy of the model. In fact, the SAT is correlated more closely with socioeconomic background than with college success.

For schools that take the extra time and effort to evaluate applicants as individuals, the already marginal value of standardized test scores drops to zero. Students who don't test well often prove themselves by thriving in a challenging academic curriculum, and students who submit exceptional test scores sometimes fail to meet the promise of achievement implied by their scores. Standardized testing also had the insidious function of causing students who would be model members of the Wake Forest community not to apply at all because their scores fell outside the median ranges published in college guides.

Many applicants and families imagine that after an admissions committee finishes reading applications, they quantify them with a numerical quotient, sort in descending order, and then admit the students with the top scores. In a large enough environment, that technique might be necessary.

Wake Forest is different. We strive to build a vibrant academic community that combines a broad range of talents, skills and interests. We seek students who are intellectually curious and hard-working. We want aspiring actors and scientists, future accountants and exceptional athletes, philosophers and students of human behavior. We also seek passionate learners who share a commitment to integrity, work ethic and open-mindedness. None of those things shows up on the SAT, and all of those things are necessary for college to be the time of dramatic personal growth that Wake Forest students and alumni both value and appreciate.

So how have we operationalized this at Wake Forest? We have taken new measures to look at the whole student. For students who submit test scores, we take them into account, though they are no longer required. We also have reintroduced an opportunity for evaluative interviews. We created a set of interview methods for students, tapping electronic media as well as emeriti faculty to spend time with as many applicants as possible.

Insightful interviews

Through our creative essay questions and carefully designed interview model, we give students a chance to share what excites them and what they hope to achieve in the world. They respond to prompts like "what outrages you?" and "Robert Ingersoll said, 'In the republic of mediocrity, genius is dangerous': how are you dangerous?" In person and on paper, applicants are urged to talk about what motivates them and to think beyond routine or "safe" answers. Both applicants and the admissions team have a chance to consider their place in this community with the kind of information only available from more careful evaluation.

Our bold decision has worked. We have admitted one of the most distinguished and diverse classes in our history, and professors consistently share comments about the intellectual curiosity and the positive drive of the students in their classrooms.

We are closely monitoring the links between college grades and SAT scores (students who did not submit them in the application process were asked to send them in after admission to aid in our tracking and reporting), but this decision was never about statistics or short-term effects. It is about honoring the promise inherent in Wake Forest's heritage to be a place of opportunity for applicants who are willing to commit themselves to studying alongside our engaged teacher-scholars and other bright students.

The college admissions process is not objective, and our decision to end the requirement for standardized test scores did not make it any less so. It was the most honest thing we could do as a college committed to opportunity and the development of the whole person as we continually renew our challenging and supportive academic community.

Jill Tiefenthaler is provost and professor of economics at Wake Forest University.