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Marietta College adopts test-optional admission policy for 2021-22

Temporary suspension to be re-evaluated next year

by Tom Perry

Marietta, Ohio (05/29/2020) — Any student - first-year or transfer - who applies to attend Marietta College as an undergraduate in the fall of 2021 or the spring of 2022 will have the option to submit or not to submit SAT or ACT scores.

The College's Office of Admission adopted this policy as physical distancing requirements and state-by-state guidelines from health officials during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic have compelled officials to cancel SAT and ACT testing in the spring and summer of 2020, and it is unclear when and how this testing will resume.

"Everyone is having to make adjustments during these unprecedented times and we believe this is the best way we at Marietta College can help our prospective students," said Scot Schaeffer, Vice President for Enrollment Management. "Because of our holistic review of every applicant, we are confident that we will be able to effectively evaluate the prospective students on their academic achievements and extracurricular accomplishments - and more importantly identify students who will succeed at Marietta College."

For students who apply during the 2020-21 academic year and do take the SAT or ACT, they can still submit their score to be considered as a part of the evaluation process. Applicants who opt not to take an exam or not to submit their score, it will not negatively influence the evaluation of their application.

"It has become clear that the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic will limit the opportunities high school seniors will have to take the ACT and/or SAT, therefore a temporary policy needed to be installed now," Schaeffer said. "We also believe this will give some students the confidence and incentive to apply to who feel they have all of the intangibles that make Marietta College one of the best educational experiences in the nation."

In spring 2021, Marietta College's Office of Admission will review the policy and will determine if the test-optional policy will extend to students applying to enroll as undergraduates in fall 2022 and/or beyond.

To apply: www.marietta.edu/apply.

Located in Marietta, Ohio, at the confluence of the Muskingum and Ohio rivers, Marietta College is a four-year liberal arts college. Tracing its roots to the Muskingum Academy back in 1797, the College was officially chartered in 1835. Today Marietta College serves a body of 1,200 full-time students. The College offers more than 50 majors and is consistently ranked as one of the top regional comprehensive colleges by U.S. News & World Report and The Princeton Review, as well as one of the nation's best by Forbes.com. Marietta was selected seventh in the nation according to the Brookings Institution's rankings of colleges by their highest value-added, regardless of major. Marietta College has also been named a Great College to Work For two consecutive years (2018 and 2019).

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