TOWSON Md.
Goucher College has dropped the requirement that applicants submit SAT scores, the second four-year institution in Maryland to do so.

Sanford J. Ungar, president of the small, private liberal arts college, said Goucher's decision to experiment with optional SAT scores was influenced by the positive experiences of other colleges.

"The schools that have already done this have found that their applicant pool tends grow larger, be more diverse and to give them at least as good a class as they've had before," he said.

Among those schools is Salisbury University. Officials there said last week that early results suggest the policy is boosting interest in the school from qualified applicants.

A growing body of research has shown that scores on standardized tests, including the SAT and ACT, are no better at predicting success in college than high school grades and achievement tests in individual subjects.

A study published in June of students admitted to the University of California system found that SAT scores "add little if any" predictive information to high school grades, said Saul Geiser, a co-author of the report.

Critics of the SAT also say it puts low-income and minority students at a disadvantage. Such students tend to receive lower schools, in part because of limited access to test-preparation services.

At Goucher, applicants will be able to decide whether to have their standardized test scores count in the admissions process. All students who take the SAT or ACT will still have to report scores before they enroll for academic counseling and research purposes.

The New York-based College Board, which administers the SAT, points out that even when given the option, most students still take standardized tests and submit their scores. It also argues that the SAT provides a safeguard against grade inflation.

"It should also be noted that test-optional colleges are not dropping testing, they are making it optional," spokeswoman Nancy Viggiano wrote in an e-mail to The (Baltimore) Sun. "The most selective colleges, including all Ivy League schools, still require test scores. In addition, the nation's public flagship universities require test scores."