Graduate admissions processes have undergone historic and unprecedented shifts in the COVID-19 era with the rapid expansion of test-optional admissions policies and holistic review practices. Given the early testing center closures and general uncertainties, the COVID-19 crisis led many schools to adopt test-optional graduate admissions policies,…

Educators have recently highlighted the importance of social science courses for students entering the medical field. This has led to the inclusion of sociological theories and concepts on the Medical College Admission Test (MCAT), a requirement for any student seeking formal medical training. Using open-ended survey data responses provided by…

We audited the websites of all 57 undergraduate medicine course websites at UK universities for 2020 entry, looking in particular for the clarity of information regarding contextual admissions (CA). 49 programmes featured 47 distinct CA policies, using 26 different contextual markers, 8 programmes had no CA policy. Half (51%) of these courses with…

Using original data collected from a national survey, this research examines the perceptions of administrators in the functional areas of Admissions, Dean of Students, and Student Affairs regarding the use of criminal history questions in undergraduate admissions. We use a lens of equity mindedness to analyze whether administrators connect…

Fluent transitions to higher education are a common concern, especially in highly selective Finnish teacher education (TE). This study examined the fit between the matriculation examination (ME) results and the selection criteria applied in TE. We studied the accepted applicants in Finland in 2013-2015 (n = 5116), and both the accepted and…

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to investigate how COVID-19 impacted overseas students' decision to apply for an undergraduate degree at UK universities. Design/methodology/approach: This study compares the number of university applications from overseas students in summer and autumn 2020 with those in the period 2011-2019. Multivariate…

Based on the life and educational histories of sixteen high-achieving, working-class girls applying to high-tariff universities, this paper rekindles debates about the role of agency within the decision-making process of young people who might not otherwise be expected to apply to such institutions. It draws on Margaret Archer's theorising to…

While a substantial body of work has shown that higher-SES students tend to apply to more selective colleges than their lower-SES counterparts, we know relatively less about "why" students differ in their application behavior. In this study, we draw upon a sociological approach to educational stratification to unpack the SES-based gap in…

Writing a college-application essay has become a rite of passage for high-school seniors in the United States, one whose importance has expanded over time due to an increasingly competitive admissions process. Various commentators have noted the disturbing evolution of these essays over the years, with an ever-greater emphasis placed on obstacles…

Today's post-secondary institutions in the United States are seeing the continuous decline of enrollment. In Fall, 2020, there were 19 million students enrolled in college according to the National Student Clearinghouse Research Center in 2020, which is a decline of 4.4% from the prior year. While the decline can partially be attributed to the…

Admission criteria for principal preparation programs vary from state to state and even amongst universities within the same state. Despite the recommendation nearly two decades ago to connect admission criteria to leadership standards, little research has been done to help develop such criteria. This study examined principal preparation program…

This study illuminates the male advantage in test-based admissions to higher education. In contrast to many other countries, admission tests in Germany are optional, and test-free programs are available. This context offers a unique opportunity to investigate whether the male advantage in test-based admissions is caused by gender differences in…

The SAT and ACT have held a controversial place in American education for generations. The conventional wisdom has come to suggest that these college entrance tests are harmful to educational equity because they discriminate against students from low-income families and other students whose backgrounds may put them at a disadvantage, such as…

Admission professionals have come to recognize the potential of widening the admission criteria beyond standard academic measures-- such as high school transcripts, grade point average, and summative scores on college entrance exams--to understand student contexts, mindsets, and "college-ready" competencies, such as higher-order thinking…

Although a college degree is an increasingly important gateway to economic advancement in the United States, high school students with disabilities enroll in postsecondary education at lower rates than nondisabled students. The disparities in college access for these students indicate that there may be differences in how they are navigating the…