If you are a regular reader of the Admissions Blog, you know that OSU and our Insight Resume have been on the leading edge of measuring non cognitive abilities in university admissions. So much so that many schools have adopted or are moving to adopt our Insight Resume into their admissions process. Now, the College Board is ready to join the movement.

Here’s a little tidbit from the Newsday article about OSU’s Insight Resume success:

Other institutions have begun to fundamentally question the premises of either type of standardized test as a measure of academic ability. Oregon State University and Tufts, for instance, are using new types of assessments that measure “non-cognitive” traits in students, such as leadership skills, drive and motivation that predict college success as well or better than traditional academic tests.

In Oregon State’s case, students are simply asked to write a few sentences each on a handful of questions called the “Insight Resume,” which is incorporated into the college application and scored by teams of readers. The prompts ask students to describe leadership skills and experience, examples of overcoming adversity, experience and accomplishments in a field of knowledge or creativity, and so on.

Since implementing the Insight Resume, the university has found that for every one point increase on an applicant’s Insight Resume score, the odds of that student’s staying in college increases by 10 percent. The enrollment of disadvantaged students has increased under the new admissions system, as has academic performance of the entire campus – the result of a more motivated, more directed study body than what Oregon State got under the old paradigm.

Leave your questions and comments below!

-jm

Here’s a message from OSU sent last week to those in the affected areas:

It is our sincere hope that you and your family are safe from fires that have engulfed the San Diego area. We send our thoughts and best wishes.

We encourage you to do what is necessary to regain some sense of normalcy for your life. If you were/are planning to apply or enroll at Oregon State University, we will work with you to move forward with this process in any way that we can including flexibility with deadlines and paperwork. If you have extenuating circumstances, please contact us so that we may assess how to help.

Sincerely,
Oregon State University

College Board, administrators of the SAT exam, also have plans in place for those affected by the fires:

The College Board is concerned for students and our members who have been affected by the wildfires in Southern California. With families worried about their futures, we want students to know that educators across the country are aware of the challenging situations they are experiencing.

We feel confident that members of the higher education community will be as flexible as possible regarding admissions timetables, particularly when making Early Decision/Early Action decisions. The SAT Program has taken steps to ensure that we serve these students as well as we possibly can. You can view details at Important Information for Students Affected by the Fires in Southern California.

Contact Us
If you have any questions related to possible repercussions for students, please contact the Western Regional Office or call our Educator Helpline at 888 SAT-HELP (728-4357). You are also welcome to email us at sat.help@info.collegeboard.org.

Sincerely,
Jim Montoya
Vice President, Higher Education Relationship Development
The College Board

If you are affected or know those that are, please contact us.
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