College Board Does Not Care About Its Students
The College Board does not care and has never cared about its students. Their cancellation of SAT subject tests and the SAT with essay only further emphasize their lack of concern for high schoolers around the world.
Upon the sudden cancellation of the SAT Subject Tests, already registered students in the United States were unfairly left with no other options. Months of studying and preparation immediately went down the drain. This is not to say, however, that students were not genuinely learning and were only focused on taking the test, but, rather, it highlights the fact that the SAT Subject Tests were regarded with such high importance in the college admissions process that students would dedicate extra time, money and effort for the sole purpose of doing well. It was also the only option for homeschoolers or students with limited or no access to Advanced Placement curricula, the College Board’s sister program to the SAT Subject Tests.
As for the SAT with an essay option, it was a chance for talented writers and quick thinkers to showcase their ability to write a cogent essay without an editor within 50 minutes. It allowed students to add flair and distinguish themselves among others, but, now, every single test taker is virtually the same—all subject to the same, exact multiple choice questions.
The immediate disposal of the tests, despite all the previously mentioned information, suggests the College Board had no trouble whatsoever overlooking the concerns students would be left with upon test cancellations. They didn’t even allow registered students to take the tests and then mark the end of the SAT Subject Test era. They just suspended the tests right in the middle of the school year.
The College Board disguised this disregard for students by claiming the cancellation was to “simplify and reduce demands on students,” especially amid a pandemic. Some students fell for this false empathy and were overjoyed they had one less test to worry about, one less source of stress.
But do not be misled. The College Board did not cancel the tests for the sake of the students, but rather, for the sake of its own business. The pandemic is just a convenient way for them to make themselves appear considerate.
From 2016 to 2019, SAT Subject Test registrations went down by 8%, and it only further decreased in the past year considering pandemic conditions. This was the perfect opportunity for the College Board to scrap a not-so-profitable program and give rise to AP Tests.
In highly selective college admission processes, AP Tests are major factors for consideration. They’re also more profitable for the College Board at around $95 per test in comparison to around $26 per SAT Subject Test. Therefore, it’s highly predictable that the College Board will push for greater proliferation of AP classes and thus increase AP Test registrations, generating more revenue along the way. The stress due to SAT subject tests might have been relieved upon test cancellations, but this will only amplify the stress due to AP exams. Students will be forced to scramble and stack their classes with more AP programs and take more tests, given that there is no other testing option.
But it’s not as if this is the first time the College Board is demonstrating their business-oriented, unempathetic approach. During the 2019-2020 school year when the pandemic first hit, the majority of tests had to be moved online. Students around the world were forced to take AP Exams at the same time, which compromised the health and ability to focus of international students who essentially became nocturnal. Many students were unable to secure stable internet connections or attain proper testing environments. The merciless 5 minute time slot at the end of the test to allow students to submit answers was an utter failure, requiring many students to sit through another round of tests again. The monthly SAT Subject Tests were cancelled again and again, but the College Board still led students on and allowed for future registrations, just for them to be cancelled again at the last minute. The fact that the College Board allowed any of this to happen is a reflection of their true priority, which is not the students, but its business.
This was true pre-pandemic as well. The College Board has always tacked on additional fees for nearly every service, whether it be a rush score report or an exam date change, making it difficult for low-income students to afford the same services as others. They then earn more money by selling personal data to colleges and scholarships that flood student email inboxes with spam.
As a company, it is clear the College Board continuously relies on exploiting students’ anxieties about standardized tests and college admissions to generate revenue. They were never interested in helping the students. It was always about their personal interests, their business, and their money.