Rowan Used Exclusions to Gain SAT Edge on Rutgers
Rowan University acknowledges it excluded disadvantaged students from a fact sheet on its SAT scores that it put out to bolster support for a proposed takeover of Rutgers-Camden.
The Record newspaper reports the exclusion gave Rowan a 92-point boost in its comparison with Rutgers-Camden, whose numbers did include the SAT results of disadvantaged students.
Rowan reports the test results of all students to U.S. News & World Report, which compiles a widely cited college quality report. But it stands by its decision to exclude disadvantaged students from the local comparison sheet.
Still, The Record -- which discovered the discrepancy -- reports the university has pulled the data.
Rowan says it also mistakenly shaved 26 points off Rutgers average. In an apples-and-apples comparison, Rutgers' average SAT score stands at 1096 - 18 points higher than Rowan's 1078.
(Copyright 2012 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)