Merit (1920-1945)
Revolution of 1942
During the 1930s, the College Board's program of testing included both essay tests and multiple choice tests. However, the essay examination would not survive after 1942 due to logistical pressures from institutions and testtakers who wanted an earlier examination schedule.
By 1940, colleges and universities and their potential students were wanting admission tests administered earlierin the year than the traditional date of the June essay examination for a variety of reasons.
- To make earlier admissions and scholarship decisions: Institutions and students wanted the test score information earlier in the year so that scholarship decisions could be made before the start of collegiate classes in the fall.
- To recruit students beyond the eastern states: Institutions thought that an earlier scheduled examination would allow them to identify students from the Midwest and the West before the students committed to attend a regional institution.
- To accelerate the collegiate calendar: When Harvard, Princeton, and Yale accelerated their collegiate calendars during World War II to quickly educate men headed for military service, the April multiple-choice examination became heavily used and found more useful for all candidates.
The College Board eliminated the essay examination in 1942 because to many people in the College Board and ininstitutions of higher education, the June essay examinations seemed less useful both for testing reasons and forcollege admissions purposes. The College Board also recognized that essay tests were more costly to administer.
After 1942, the College Board still had subject-tests, but they were multiple-choice examinations.
