Are there any schools/academic programs/curricula in the US at the university level (e.g. Bachelors, Masters, etc) where admission to the program or admission as a student in general is substantially based on performance on an entrance examination or examinations (performance on an examination can mean either passing a custom one, e.g. one made by the school itself, or obtaining a specified minimum score on a national or international exam like the SAT or GRE), rather than past academic performance (e.g. substance of prior coursework/prerequisites, GPA, letters of recommendation from faculty), extracurricular activities, or job/work experience?
For the purposes of this question, if, in addition to the exam score requirement, there is a basic requirement to have a specific degree, I’d like to hear about it. (e.g. a program where the criteria for admission are “Obtain at least 90th percentile on the GRE and have a bachelor’s degree, period.”)
This is simply a factual question - the merits of establishing such admission criteria / whether or not they are an accurate gauge of whether or not a potential student would do well or whether applying to such a program would be a prudent move for an aspiring scholar are beyond the scope of this question.
Note that this question is not asking about getting the degree by exam, only being admitted as a candidate for the degree by examination.
In 1969, at least, SAT scores and grades only permitted you to take the test for admission to Cooper Union, in New York. In the engineering program, you went to Cooper Union and took a test on math and on spatial perception. Results of this test determined if you were admitted. It appears that this is no longer the case, with admission depending on SAT scores and a number of essays. I assume that the Art and Architecture schools had different requirements back then. They do today.
Cooper Union is interesting in that every admitted student gets a full scholarship.
Back in 1969 it was heavily dominated by New Yorkers, so going there for the test was no problem. It seems they have broadened their reach now. There are no dorms.
So, back then it fit the requirements of the OP.
BTW, I got in, and decided to go to MIT much to the financial chagrin of my parents.
Medical school relies heavily on the MCAT in addition to GPA. In general, with an MCAT score below 25 it is exceedingly hard to get into Med school in the US.
I think everybody is ignoring the OP’s question (or am I misunderstanding it).
Are there academic programs that specifically disregard things like GPA and use exam-only admission criteria. I can’t think of any, but it sure would be nice to know if they exist.
Throughout my academic career, in terms of percentile, my GPA was typically standard deviation or two below any of my test results.
eta: a 750 GMAT also got me into a top 25 mba program, but that was after having very good law school grades and was at the same university - so a less useful data point.
My high school GPA was like a zero-point-something before I dropped out and got my GED. I (much later) got into a state university by taking their entrance exam. Once you’ve been out of school 5 years, you’re considered a nontraditional student, and the entrance requirements are different.
Not a test, per se, but various art programs will require an audition/portfolio review. My son went to a fine arts school that had open admission as far as academics, but a brutal review process.
Applicable question to my situation. It’s been 12 years since my bachelor’s degree and I am now studying for the LSAT. I didn’t get a great GPA in college due to too much partying, and clinical depression. However, I have always scored pretty high on standardized tests.
Since it’s been so long since I have been at college, I am hoping that laws schools don’t put too much weight on my GPA. I am relying on mainly my LSAT score to get me in.
Well then we can definitely rule out med school. I can confirm that an overall GPA of 2.8 combined with a pre-req GPA of 3.95 and MCAT of a nearly even 33 is barely good enough to get even a couple of interviews and not good enough to get in:rolleyes: (Hey what do you want, I took the pre-reqs and MCAT 15 years afterwards as a non-traditional student.)
Right. The intent of the question was to ask about programs where it doesn’t matter what GPA you have or whether Organic Chemistry is on your transcript or if your former instructors think you’re good enough, as long as you can pass the entrance exam.
Conventional wisdom is that the longer that you have been out of undergrad, the less emphasis placed on undergrad gpa. Of course, different schools have different admissions people, and people are people - they have their own quirks and ideas.
It doesn’t really matter though - you can’t change how admissions people are going to perceieve things. The only thing that you can affect is your LSAT - so just study for it, apply to a lot of schools so that you increase the odds of finding a couple that don’t rely much on GPA, and see what happens.
I highly doubt it. Just about every program of scholarship has prerequisites, and the only way they can tell that you have those prereqs is if they see your transcripts.