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42 University of Wisconsin Applicants Got False SAT Scores

Posted on: Friday, 10 March 2006, 12:00 CST

By Megan Twohey, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

Mar. 10--The University of Wisconsin-Madison contacted more than 40 applicants on Thursday to inform them that their SAT scores were among thousands miscalculated last fall. But the university said that corrected scores provided the College Board this week would not affect admissions standings.

Only eight of 42 applicants with inaccurate scores had been denied admission, said Tom Reason, UW-Madison's associate director of admissions. He said that in almost every case the corrected score wasn't high enough to change the university's decision.

After The New York Times reported Wednesday that the College Board had miscalculated 4,000 SAT scores, UW-Madison received a flurry of calls from concerned students.

Reason said that unless they have heard from the College Board or the universities to which they applied, students should assume their scores are correct. The College Board told universities about the mistakes on Tuesday. It e-mailed students with incorrect scores on Wednesday.

"If you haven't been notified, it's a pretty safe assumption that you're OK," Reason said.

It is unlikely that many students from the Midwest were affected because most take the ACT instead of the SAT as a college entrance exam. Marquette said only one of its applicants -- a student who already had been admitted -- had a miscalculated score.

The inaccurate scores were for SAT exams taken in October, said Jennifer Topiel, a spokeswoman for the College Board. She said they were caused a malfunction in one of the scanning machines that grade the SAT answer sheets.

Pearson Educational Measurement, a Midwest company that operates the scanning machines, said in a statement Thursday that the inaccurate scores, which were off as many as 200 points, were due to "technical factors." Some answer sheets contained an abnormal amount of moisture. Pearson said it identified the problem in early February.

Topiel said the College Board asked for the October scores to be rescanned after two students complained in late December that their scores were wrong. Tests taken after October were also rescanned and turned up no errors.

When asked why the College Board waited until this week to come forward with the 4,000 miscalculations, Topiel said: "The process of rescoring the exams took time. It took time to figure out the exact scope of the problem and exact students and institutions that were affected."

Topiel added: "We certainly feel for students who were affected."

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Copyright (c) 2006, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

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NYT,

Source: The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

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