There are both strengths and weaknesses of using standardized test scores as a criterion for admission to institutions of higher education. The relative importance of scores is dependent on the institution's degree of selectivity. In general, decision processes and admissions criteria are not well defined. Advantages of test scores include: use of common measure for all applicants; elimination of personal biases; and availability of a common element for comparisons. Disadvantages include: measurement of only one aspect of candidates' abilities; inability to distinguish between comparable candidates; inherent errors in scores; cultural and/or racial test bias; and possible lack of comparability between test content and students' curriculum content. Grade point averages (GPA) are also used as an admission criterion and reflect individual performance over a period of time. Raw scores are usually converted to scale scores, and individual scores are compared to those of a norm group. Factors which must be considered are test reliability, standard error of measurement, predictive validity, and content validity. In conclusion, test scores should be used with other available information about the candidates. (MH)