<p>I don’t think there’s any ambiguity regarding Middlebury’s reason for not counting SAT I scores for all students pre-2008. The former admissions director clearly thought that if SAT I scores weren’t used to evaluate those candidates who chose not to submit them, then they shouldn’t be lumped together with the SAT I scores of students who did submit them. Right or wrong, this policy did have a beneficial effect on the college’s reported SAT I averages. </p>
<p>The new admissions director decided that all scores should be listed, even if the admissions office used other standardized tests (SAT IIs, ACT, IBs) to evaluate the applicant (per their wishes).</p>
<p>There was one benefit to applicants in doing things the old way–they had a better idea of what would be considered a good enough score to submit for evaluation. Take, for example, a student who scored a 1300 on the old SAT I. Should that student submit a score of 1300, or use another test to satisfy the testing requirement? If the average SAT I score of kids who choose to submit them for evaluation is 1410 (as is most likely the case considering the college’s older SAT I profiles), then a 1300 might not seem like the best option. If the college publishes the SAT I scores of all enrolling students, regardless of whether they were used for admissions or not, and that average is closer to 1350, then a 1300 doesn’t sound so bad. This can be misleading to the student who doesn’t realize that the college doesn’t consider the lower SAT scores of kids who choose other standardized test options. </p>
<p>Does that make sense?</p>