Though most students don’t give their SAT scores a second thought after high school, many recent or soon-to-be graduates are discovering that it is common practice for employers to require them on job applications.

According to Mike Schaub, executive director of Georgetown’s Cawley Career Education Center, certain consulting firms have asked job applicants to submit their SAT or ACT scores as part of the criteria for evaluating a candidate.

“I have routinely seen some employers ask for SAT [and] ACT [scores] over the years,” Schaub said. “If a job requires exceptional quantitative skills, for example, college admission test scores may provide one standardized source of data about the candidate’s quantitative abilities for the employer toevaluate.”
Nonetheless, he does not believe that Georgetown students, who he said tend to perform relatively well on standardized testing, face a disadvantage because of this increasingly common practice.

“It is important to remember that most employers consider a range of criteria when evaluating candidates for jobs,” Schaub said. “For some employers, standardized test scores provide just one piece of the puzzle. … The employer is likely to consider other measures of the candidate’s quantitative ability, such as grades in courses that integrate applied math, when making selections.”

Some students were comfortable with the idea of being required to include their scores on their job applications.

Daniel Feitel (LAW ’14) said that he would have no problem sharing his SAT scores with potential employers.

“Personally, I would be happy if an employer asked about my SAT scores, since it would be a chance to share my score without resorting to … actually putting it on my resume,” Feitel said.

On the other hand, Benjamin Mishkin (SFS ’13), who has applied to top consulting firms, wondered whether it was fair for employers to base even part of their decision on a few hours of performance four years before.

“One’s university achievements should absolutely override one’s SAT scores or what happened in high school,” Mishkin said. “Students should have the opportunity to mature, figure out what they’re interested in and good at and demonstrate it in college, and then be judged on that, instead of on how well they figured out the College Board when they were 17.”