Vivek Ramaswamy suggests adding athletic component to the SAT

Author and entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy, who is currently running in the Republican presidential primary, has suggested that the organization behind the SAT should add an athletic component to the exam.

Many colleges consider applicants' SAT scores when making admissions decisions, but the test currently does not measure prospective students' physical conditioning. According to satsuite.collegeboard.org, the SAT consists of three sections: "the Reading Test," "the Writing and Language Test," and "the Math Test."

"Now that the Supreme Court finally ended affirmative action, colleges will only further deprioritize SAT scores in favor of subjective factors because of large racial disparities in test results. There's a simple way forward that will drive excellence and diversity of talent among incoming college classes: the College Board should add a physical fitness section to the SAT, instead of just math and reading sections. This could mirror the 'Presidential Fitness Test' – consisting of a 1-mile run, pull-ups, sit-ups, shuttle run, etc. – regularly administered across American high schools until the Obama White House disband it," Ramaswamy wrote in a post on X.

"This is a pro-merit solution that rewards diverse talents: it's a fact that those who perform well on math & reading tests tend to perform more poorly on the 1-mile run, and vice versa. This would also help address a growing mental health crisis in our country: physical fitness correlates directly with lower rates of depression, anxiety, and drug use. This is not formally part of my Presidential platform but it's a serious proposal to address multiple cultural & health challenges with a single actionable step: most solutions shouldn't come top-down from government," he added.

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