According to a recent article in the Washington Post, high-achieving students can now apply to George Mason University without taking the SAT.

Admissions officials said high school students who rank in the top 20 percent of their class and have a grade-point average of 3.5 or better can apply without submitting SAT scores. Instead, the students will be required to submit two extra letters of recommendation from their teachers and will have to write an essay.

The dean of admissions says that SAT scores are "a poor predictor of how those students would fare at the university" for students who did well in high school. Hopefully, if other large institutions follow suit, it will begin to alleviate some of the excessive pressure currently placed on standardized tests.

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