When students send colleges their SAT scores in coming years, the admissions office might also get another number that rates the level of adversity applicants typically face –– or privilege they enjoy –– based on crime and poverty data and other demographic information about neighborhoods and high schools.
The “overall disadvantage level,” known in admission circles as the “adversity score,” will be a single number from 1 to 100. With 50 set as the average, under a formula established by the College Board, higher scores will indicate higher adversity. Colleges that use it will see the number on a template called an “environmental context dashboard,” which also includes data on Advanced Placement participation and SAT scores at the applicant’s high school.