Test-optional Admission at Christopher Newport University
Beginning with the class entering in Fall 2008, the Board of Visitors, Faculty, and President of Christopher Newport
University have approved a new admissions process that will make the submission of standardized test scores (SAT/ACT)
optional for certain applicants.
Q: Which students will be able to apply under
CNU’s new test-optional policy?
A: Applicants who have achieved a cumulative GPA of at
least 3.5, or who are ranked in the upper 10 percent of
their classes, will be able to decide whether or not they will
submit standardized test scores as part of their applications.
Students exercising this option should be pursuing a
rigorous college preparatory curriculum.
Q: How will test-optional applicants be evaluated
for admission?
A: As with all applicants to CNU, the admissions committee
places the most emphasis on a student’s strength of high
school curriculum and performance - or grades - in his
or her classes. For test-optional students, this will be
especially true with an additional focus on the inclusion of
advanced level courses, trends in grades, and grades in
core academic courses. While all students are asked to
submit a counselor recommendation with our application’s
Secondary School Report Form, we strongly encourage
test-optional applicants to also submit at least one optional
recommendation from a teacher in a core academic area.
In addition to recommendations, an individual student’s
personal qualities will be considered through the application
essay and record of extra-curricular involvement.
Q: How will this new policy impact the
admissions process for all applicants?
A: This new policy serves as a reminder, and a
commitment, that for all students an admission decision
should be based on more than a single score from one
Saturday morning. In short, we believe a more holistic
approach will enable us to find those students most likely to
thrive in an engaging college curriculum, and contribute to a
vibrant and diverse student community.
Q: Are there exceptions or limitations to the test-optional
policy?
A: Students wishing to be considered for the Honors
Program and/or President’s Leadership Program will still
need to submit standardized test scores. We also ask that
all home-schooled students and international applicants
continue to submit standardized test scores.
Q: What did CNU learn while researching this
new policy?
A: Simply put, that grades and high school achievement
matter more than standardized test scores. Research
shows that test scores can have some predictive value, so
we will continue to use them as one of many factors in our
overall evaluation process. Indeed, many of our applicants
may feel their test scores accurately reflect academic
potential. However, test scores are far less predictive than
GPA. Therefore, we feel confident enough that students
who have demonstrated a strong GPA should decide for
themselves whether or not they wish to submit standardized
test scores.
Q: How will this new policy benefit the University?
A: As a public university, we feel providing a test-optional
policy reaffirms our commitment to increasing
access to qualified students from diverse socioeconomic
backgrounds. It levels the playing field for students without
the financial resources to take standardized tests repeatedly
or benefit from expensive test coaching. As a selective
liberal arts university, this policy will allow us to craft a
richly talented, better prepared, and more accomplished
community of students. We are proud to join a growing
trend of colleges and universities determined to reduce the
disproportionate value assigned to standardized test scores
in the college admissions process.