|
Winning Personality Ticket to College Admission
Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology is a small polytechnic college situated in Terra Haute, Indiana. It has a student body of just under 2,000, and an acceptance rate of just over half. It also has some innovative ideas about admission.
Their admissions office is considering the possibility of adding a "personality test" to help measure and evaluate potential applicants. The psychology tool is also called the "locus of control" test. It examines the degree to which students believe they are either in control of their destiny or victims of fate. Students who fall somewhere in the center of that spectrum are the types of self-reliant, pragmatic and driven personality types likely to be successful at the college. At least that is the theory.
Rose-Hulman already uses the test to evaluate retention rates from freshman to sophomore year, and in making determinations of scholarship awards. They are also considering using a "curiosity index" test as a supplemental evaluative tool.
Given the traditional litany of test scores, grades and admissions essays, these ideas sound a bit unconventional. But the evaluation concept is very much the same. In order to succeed in college, students need to be both determined and humble. They need to be ready for challenges and have the stamina to push through them.
These kinds of approaches are becoming more common at smaller colleges around the country, usually (but not always, as here) liberal arts institutions. Tweets, videos, and test-optional applications are just some of the progressive concepts being tried on for size.
Clearly, approaches such as these are unlikely to be mainstreamed, but they may give the larger institutions some creative ideas about better evaluating prospective students. For those capable students who don't test well, who've suffered academically, or been otherwise derailed on the road to college, these open-minded approaches should be a welcome change.
Labels: Winning Personality Ticket to College Admission
|
|
|
|
