We will Interpret the Results in Light of Students' Educational Opportunities
We are often asked why we still require three SAT Subject Tests now that the SAT includes writing. The short answer is twofold: (1) more information is always helpful in admission and (2) we hope to encourage more of America's and the world's best students to challenge themselves broadly.
The challenges faced by the generations ahead will be ever more complex. The ability to master a wide range of subject matter and to make connections across disciplinary boundaries will grow in importance. While the term "globalization" has become a bit of a cliche, the applicant pools of many colleges and universities around the world demonstrate each year the reality of an increasingly international playing field. In our applicant pool, we see everything from totally unstructured schools to those with the most rigid curricula imaginable. Some students are ready to achieve great success in many SAT Subject Tests or any set of standardized tests. Others, because of a lack of opportunity or because of the educational choices they make, are less well prepared for standardized tests. While we find that students who do well on standardized tests are more likely to achieve academic success here, there are those who perform as well or better without such credentials.
One of the great strengths of the large and heterogeneous array of secondary schools around the world is the diversity of methods they use to educate their students. But not all methods are equally effective in preparing students for standardized tests. If some students believe they are not well prepared to take a third SAT Subject Test because of a lack of opportunity at their school or because they have made other, thoughtful educational choices, all they need to do is submit a statement explaining their choices, to help us interpret their test performance. In such cases, it would be helpful for their secondary school counselor reports to corroborate the reasoning behind those choices.
Although some students whose first language is not English are ordinarily well advised to avoid taking an SAT Subject Test in their native language, there are exceptions to this general rule. For example, some students who are preparing for the International Baccalaureate here or abroad or for national examinations in their own countries might be less well prepared for certain SAT Subject Tests. So, too, might students who attend schools that generally do not prepare students well for specific SAT Subject Tests. Such students might wish to get the advice of their counselors about whether to take an SAT subject test in their native language, which might well support their academic credentials.
Harvard does not use a rigid formula for admission. Indeed for many decades we have offered applicants the opportunity to send portfolios or other evidence of their attainments beyond standardized tests and grades. It is no accident that Howard Gardner (of the Harvard Graduate School of Education) works next door to our office. His theory of multiple intelligences is a paradigm of what our Admissions Committee has been thinking for many decades.
Our admissions process is the opposite of a formulaic approach that would penalize a student for doing less well on one aspect of our application requirements. We encourage parents and secondary schools to work with students to devise the educational path that makes the most sense for them. We trust students will make sound educational choices and present excellences of various kinds in addition to our testing requirements.