Elizabeth City State University, Fayetteville State University and North Carolina Central University are part of the pilot, which would launch in fall 2015.
Karrie Dixon, vice president for academic and student success, said that General Administration staff studied more than 80,000 UNC-system student records and determined that high school GPA was a better predictor of college success than SAT scores — which mirrors national research results.
A large number of colleges and universities nationwide — around 900, Dixon estimated — have moved away from SAT requirements, either going SAT optional or telling prospective students SAT scores won’t be a major factor in admissions decisions. Critics have argued that standardized tests disadvantage low-income students who can’t afford test preparation materials or courses.
The minimum admissions requirements for all UNC-system schools, approved in 2011, are a 2.5 high school grade point average and a combined score of 800 on the reading and math sections of the SAT.
The pilot would implement a sliding scale, where students with an SAT score of 790 could be admitted as long as they had at least a 2.6 GPA, and a student with a 750 SAT would need a 3.0 GPA.
J. Craig Souza, chairman of the educational planning, policies and programs committee, said he supports the pilot. The change is not a direct effort to increase enrollment on the campuses, he said.
“What we’re going to trade is a little lower SATs for substantially higher grade point average to help some of the kids who don’t come from wealthy school districts,” he said.
