High participation systems (HPS) of higher education (HE) are common throughout the world. The consequences of HE expansion has attracted enough academic attention; however, much less discussed is the impact of the HE expansion on retaking the college entrance examination. Drawing upon China's provincial panel data, a battery of econometric…

This paper aimed to investigate how the diversity of scientific methods is represented in practical items of college entrance examinations from three science subjects in China. The study was conducted based on the theoretical framework derived from Brandon's Matrix consisting of four types of scientific methods. National Papers for comprehensive…

In response to a call for research on using the SATs and ACTs for U.S.-based college and university admissions, researchers systematically interrogated the literature surrounding both tests, using a framework for validity evidence built upon the "Standards of Educational and Psychological Testing" and Kane's contemporary view of…

In this article, the author updates his prior studies of LSAT® scores (Nieswiadomy 1998, 2006, 2010, 2014, 2017) using current data for 2022-23 law school applicants, finding that economics majors remain at or near the top of all applicants. Results of the previous studies showing economics majors scored well on the LSAT® have often been posted on…

Higher education institutions need to develop valid, fair, and objective selection methods. Current literature reporting the development and validation of new national large-scale selection tests is scarce. This two-phased study aimed to (1) develop and (2) evaluate the validity of the Finnish digital Universities of Applied Sciences Entrance…

Scientific methods have received widespread attention in recent years. Based on the analytical framework derived from Brandon's matrix consisting of four categories of scientific methods, this paper aims to conduct a content analysis to examine how the diversity of scientific methods is represented in college entrance chemistry examination papers…

Many institutions were forced by the COVID-19 pandemic to change admissions policies as a response to logistical challenges around testing. However, even as logistical challenges have resolved, pandemic-era changes to higher education testing policies which reduced or eliminated testing requirements have remained in place in many schools. Now,…

Well-designed admission criteria can predict the likelihood of students succeeding in the medical program. This study aims to evaluate the predictive capability of the admission qualifications used in the Pamantasan ng Lungsod ng Maynila (PLM) College of Medicine concerning the academic performance of first-year medical students. Data from 1,203…

Higher education is a powerful tool for migrant integration into destination countries. This paper presents an empirical comparison between native and migrant students in Chile, focusing on their trajectory through different transitions: high school graduation, performance on university entrance exams, and decision to enroll in technical or…

Reading comprehension constitutes an important part of the Chinese National Matriculation English Test (NMET) which influences English teaching practice greatly. Despite the focus of many studies on NMET reforms, content validity, and washback effects, there remains a notable gap in research regarding the genre of reading texts in NMET. Drawing on…

In 2020, the onset of COVID-19 greatly restricted access to admissions testing in higher education and required innovative solutions and flexibility such as at home testing with remote proctoring, reducing testing time, pop-up locations, and additional testing dates. Increased focus on social justice, diversity, and fairness continued to concern…

This study uses administrative student data from Chile to explore the transitions of urban and rural students to higher education. We find that urban students are more likely to register to take university entrance exams than rural students. Among those who do take the exams, urban students perform significantly better. Even though both groups of…

Background: The current study aimed to investigate the associations between cognitive abilities, grit, and academic achievement in high school STEM studies. The study utilized a natural sample of excelling STEM students (N = 814) who underwent a selection process to join elite undergraduate STEM programs. Through this selection process, the…

Those who compete in the Gaokao, China's College Entrance Exam, are often referred to as Gaokao zhanshi, or warriors. Based on long-term ethnographic research, this article examines how Gaokao warriors combine two types of agency that are conventionally considered contradictory: the docile cultivation of virtue and the struggle against social…

The present study examined the relationship between working memory capacity (WMC) and comprehension on a multiple text assessment from the ACT test for college preparedness in which texts are available during question answering. Specifically, it was of interest whether differences in relations would be seen across different question types. Only…