ACT Newsroom & Blog

By: Lisa King, director, American College Application Campaign

For many high school seniors, the college application process can be a daunting task. ACT’s American College Application Campaign (ACAC) aims to make it easier with the support of school counselors, educators, and community partners by coordinating college application events across the country that meet students where they are. This year, more high schools than ever before participated, helping more than 467,000 seniors submit at least one college application in school, during the school day.

IOWA CITY, Iowa — The “COVID cohort” of students who entered college between 2019 and 2021 were more likely to be placed in developmental or remedial courses based on their high school GPA, according to a study released today by ACT, the mission-driven provider of assessments, research, and work-ready credentials designed to support education and workplace success.

“This is another data point showing that using multiple measures of readiness for course placement decisions is better for students,” ACT CEO Janet Godwin said. “A holistic approach, rather than relying on either high school GPA or test scores alone, aligns with best practices and can lead to a more equitable and effective education journey for students.” The study, Has the Relationship Between College Readiness Measures and Developmental Course Placement Changed in Recent Years?, explored how course placement decisions at one state’s colleges are related to high school GPA and ACT Composite score, and how those relationships have changed over time. The study also determined how students’ general readiness related to developmental course placement and highlighted the differences in likelihood that students of varying GPAs would be placed in developmental courses. Developmental, or remedial, education courses are designed to develop the reading, writing, or math skills of students who are deemed underprepared for college-level courses.

As expected, as GPA increased, the likelihood of developmental course placement decreased. However, there were substantial differences in the likelihood of developmental course placement for students with the same GPA prior to and after the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, with students with the same GPA being more likely to be placed in developmental courses after the onset of the pandemic. This was not the case for ACT Composite scores: Increases in ACT Composite scores were associated with a decrease in the likelihood of developmental course placement, with no difference for students before and after the onset of the pandemic.

“The changes that were observed and the relationship between high school GPA and developmental course placement suggest that colleges might be adjusting their interpretation of high school grades due to grade inflation,” said Dr. Edgar I. Sanchez, a lead research scientist at ACT and author of the report. “Colleges seem to be requiring higher and higher GPAs to show the same level of academic preparedness and college readiness. And it seems as though this shift is affecting students with lower high school GPAs more than students with higher high school GPAs, because it is those students who are more likely to be placed in developmental courses.”

Prior ACT research by Dr. Sanchez found that the average high school GPA increased from 3.17 in 2010 to 3.36 in 2021, with particularly rapid and dramatic rises in grade inflation since 2016, especially in mathematics courses. One of the problematic causes of grade inflation is the increasing variation in grading standards across high schools. In the college admissions context, this means that a 4.0 from one school may not indicate the same level of content mastery as a 4.0 from another school. While high school GPA is still an important predictor of future student outcomes, grade inflation reduces its usefulness in evaluating college applicants. Key Findings

• In the entering 2017–2020 college cohorts, the probability of developmental course placement increased each year. This trend continued for the incoming 2021 cohort for students who had a GPA of 3.3 or higher. For students in the 2021 cohort who had a GPA below 3.3, the probability of developmental course placement was lower than that for the 2020 cohort and similar to that for the entering 2019 cohort.
• There were substantial differences in the probabilities of developmental course placement for students with the same GPA across cohorts prior to and after the onset of the pandemic in 2020. This suggests that colleges may have been adjusting their interpretation of GPA due to grade inflation.
• The ACT Composite score was better able to predict developmental course placement in comparison to GPA. On the ACT Composite scale, there was very little difference in the probability of developmental course placement for the cohorts immediately before the onset of the pandemic (the 2018 and 2019 cohorts) and the 2020 and 2021 cohorts after the onset of the pandemic.
• Increases in ACT Composite score were interpreted by colleges as an increase in college course readiness.
• Colleges seem to be interpreting ACT scores as more stable over time for students with higher GPAs, relative to students with low GPAs. In the context of a grade inflation lens, it may be that colleges are more concerned about grade inflation at lower levels of GPA than at higher levels of GPA.

About ACT
ACT is transforming college and career readiness pathways so that everyone can discover and fulfill their potential. Grounded in more than 65 years of research, ACT’s learning resources, assessments, research, and work-ready credentials are trusted by students, job seekers, educators, schools, government agencies, and employers in the U.S. and around the world to help people achieve their education and career goals at every stage of life. Visit us at www.act.org.  

Contact: Allie Ciaramella; allie.ciaramella@act.org

For students pursuing their postsecondary goals, the ACT test offers more than just a score, says Noah Janke, a mechanical engineering major at the University of Nebraska, Lincoln. Noah took the test in seventh grade, where he earned a 26, and in high school he twice earned a perfect 36. He says his scores opened doors to academic and scholarship opportunities that he and his family could not have imagined.

“My college-going journey would be very different if I hadn't received the scholarships,” he said. "I was offered, obviously, a very good scholarship here at the University of Nebraska that got my tuition paid for. I believe my admittance into the Raikes program – which is another several thousand dollars a year – as well as a specially designed academic program, was also heavily dependent on my ACT score."

Noah says his parents’ non-traditional education, going back to school as adult students, inspired him to pursue college. He shares how his parents returned to college to earn degrees in their respective passions while raising children on their family farm. Reflecting on how higher education can change a person’s career and life trajectory, Noah says their story exemplifies the importance of perseverance and the joy of achieving your goals.

Watch the video to hear more from Noah about his college-going journey.

ACT established the ACT Scholars program to nurture the academic talent of graduate and community college students at the University of Iowa and Kirkwood Community College, respectively. ACT emphasized scholarships for students from populations for whom the cost of higher education could have presented a significant barrier to college access and accomplishments.

To commemorate their journeys from application to graduation, ACT has invited these scholars to share their stories. Linh Tong is a student at Kirkwood Community College who is pursuing an associate of science degree and plans to graduate this spring.

Who was your motivation for going to college?

I have a self-interest and a self-driven motive to study. Socrates once said, “All I know is that I know nothing.” I enjoy learning, so knowledge is never enough for me. It both serves and has its own intrinsic value beyond academic and professional achievements.What are you studying? What degree do you hope to earn?

With strong logical and mathematical skills, I have developed my interests in STEM subjects, from which I decided my favorite field to study: mathematics. At Kirkwood, I plan to obtain an associate of science degree at the end of spring 2024. In the fall of 2024, I wish to transfer to the University of Iowa to major in actuarial science and earn a bachelor’s degree. I’m also considering a minor in computer science.
What does this ACT scholarship mean to you? How does it affect your education journey?

My heart was marching and filled with the richest form of gratitude when I received a congratulatory letter for the ACT scholarship at Kirkwood Community College. At that moment, I thought right away of sharing the news with my mother and father, who would be the happiest souls seeing me succeed.

The ACT scholarship has been a huge financial assistance for my academic and professional life. With this generous fund, I can let go of my financial stress and put my concentration into everything that I set out to achieve, and – no doubt – that is to succeed. I’m still a student whose life is currently loaded with academic and community missions, but these funds definitely support my journey.

IOWA CITY, Iowa — ACT, Inc., the mission-driven provider of the assessments, research, and work-ready credentials designed to support education and workplace success, today announced that it has completed its formation of a new Delaware public benefit corporation and closed on its partnership with Nexus Capital Management, a Los Angeles-based private equity firm.