With COVID -19 being around in the United States for almost a year now, It’s affected nearly every aspect of our lives. From work, to school, to entertainment. COVID -19 hasn’t seemed to leave anything without a trace. This of course includes college admissions. It’s been said that not only will COVID -19 affect this years college applications, but also every year afterwards even when COVID -19 is completely over. This is detrimental to some students that are applying this year as it will completely change the planning process and strategies for prospective colleges.

The main factor is test scores. COVID -19 began so early in 2020, and as a result many students weren’t able to take their SAT’s and ACT’s. Colleges had to respond to this in some way; students couldn’t be required to take these tests for college admission if the tests themselves are canceled. Most states canceled all or most SAT and ACT exams so that system would no longer be fair. The March, May, June, and August SAT’s were cancelled for more than half of American students according to Forbes.  According to Georgetown University “1,249 of the nation’s 2,330 bachelors degree-granting schools have said they will now require students to submit SAT/ACT scores” Some of these include St. Joseph’s College, Stony Brook University, and even Harvard. Now students would have to be judged in different ways. This year colleges will be judging students more on the grades for their first two quarters.

This could have a huge impact on future years regardless of how long the coronavirus lasts. SAT’s and ACT’s may be permanently deemphasized and colleges may continue to not require them at all. Without requirement, these exams could end up disappearing entirely. This is seen by many as very positive. As it’s seen by a lot of people as unfair to students who learn and understand information differently, or just don’t perform well on tests due to anxiety. Instead if this trend continues, college admissions could be much more based on real merit.