University of Michigan-Ann Arbor Goes Permanently Test-Optional

[MYOS1634]

There’s no automatic admission in MI so students are evaluated individually.
You’re correct wrt Texas, especially at UT, students are automatically admitted to the university if they reached top 6% in their HS but they’re not guaranteed the requested major and some majors are especially competitive- although I doubt a student from a similar rural HS in TX would have any trouble with any major if they were among the few that took precalculus and got an A. The difference would likely be that at some HS only 2 or 3 top 6% students are qualified for the competitive majors (ie., took precalculus&got an a, for instance) whereas at other HS all top 6% would be and would have courses well beyond that as offered at their HS.

[Collegequestions5]

We know a kid who got in this year EA TO. OOS, public school, high GPA, strong rigor, good ECs. Tons of kids from our school apply, most with scores, so clearly they are evaluating holistically. Good luck to your daughter!

[Amom2022]

University of Michigan has this program called the HAIL scholarship that started as a study back in 2015. The university was looking for a way to increase enrollment of low income Michigan residents. It’s not really a scholarship, but a program that takes the aid a low income student would normally receive and repackages it as a full tuition scholarship offer. The theory was that low income Michigan residents didn’t even consider applying to UofM because they mistakenly believed it was out of reach financially … so the students (and their parents and high school principals) selected in the study were sent the offer of a HAIL scholarship in the fall of their senior year as a way to encourage them to apply. The HAIL offer didn’t guarantee admission, but students were guaranteed at least free tuition (and likely help with room, board and books) if they did get admitted.

Targeted students were identified as those who received free or reduced lunch, had scores of 1100+ on the school day SAT (it’s a mandatory test for juniors in Michigan) and a self reported GPA of B or better … the higher the SAT the lower the GPA threshold and vice versa.

It’s been a successful program.

The average HAIL student at the UofM has something like a 1260 SAT.

So, my takeaway is that the UofM has already been studying the success rate of “low” SAT admits for close to a decade. They know that it’s possible to be a successful student at the UofM with a 1200-range SAT score.

I have no proof, but I’d be willing to bet that most high achieving TO applicants have SAT scores above 1200 (or even 1300).