Hampshire College in Massachusetts has stopped accepting standardized test scores such as the SAT and the ACT. It’s perhaps the first school in the country to have done so, though several, including New York University, Wake Forest University and Connecticut College have made such scores optional.

These schools are gravitating away from standardized test scores for one major reason: They’re terrible at predicting whether a student will do well in college. “Some good students are bad test takers, particularly under stress, such as when a test may grant or deny college entry,” says Hampshire College President Jonathan Lash. “Multiple-choice tests don’t reveal much about a student.”

Some students—those already in college and soon-to-be there—actually like standardized tests. A good SAT score can counterbalance so-so grades; or, if the student went to a poor high school, prove the good grades weren’t a fluke. Lash admits Hampshire saw fewer applications when it stopped accepting SAT scores, but that’s not altogether bad.

“The quantity of applications went down, but the quality went up, likely because we made it harder to apply, asking for more essays,” he says. “Our applicants collectively were more motivated, mature, disciplined and consistent in their high school years than past applicants.” (MTV)