MSU goes test-optional for some students

Missouri State University is seeking to make enrollment easier to navigate through new policies governing admission requirements.

The university is adopting a test-optional policy for students with a high school GPA of 3.25 or higher. That means those students would not have to take the ACT or SAT to enroll at MSU, according to a news release. MSU also will allow students to submit their so-called superscores, representing the highest marks from each section of the ACT or SAT regardless of whether they came from the same test day, in order to enroll.

“It’s our goal to make Missouri State as open and accessible as possible for anyone who wants to pursue a college degree,” President Clif Smart said in the release. “We expect this policy change will help move the needle in that direction.”

MSU joins local schools Drury and Southwest Baptist universities in announcing test-optional policies in recent months.

According to the release, more than 800 national four-year public and private institutions have added test-optional admission policies. An additional 400 universities implemented the option due to the COVID-19 pandemic and cancellation of spring and summer ACT and SAT exams, according to MSU officials.

MSU ranked No. 1 on Springfield Business Journal's list this year of the area's largest higher learning institutions, based on local spring enrollment of 22,073 students. That was up 7.1% from the same semester in 2019.