In the wake of the COVID-19 restrictions making standardized exams such as the SAT and ACT difficult to administer, many colleges and universities in the United States have made standardized exams optional for applications for admissions. There are even schools which have gone test-blind (meaning they will not consider the ACT or SAT exams in admissions decisions), such as the University of California.
There are still Colleges and Universities still requiring the SAT/ACT for 1st year students, such as the military service academies (exception: the US Coast Guard Academy is test optional but strongly recommends them), the State University System of Florida and the University System of Georgia (from Spring 2022)
In any case – CHECK for updates from the colleges and universities you are considering applying for.
If you are an international student whose language of instruction is not English, you may be required to show proof of English proficiency through exams such as the TOEFL, IELTS, or Duolingo. Check the colleges and universities for their exact requirements and qualifying scores.
If you are a homeschooled student, test-optional may or may not apply. Again, check with the individual colleges and universities you’re interested in, for confirmation.
So, when should you prepare for tests, and submit test scores?
As much as we may dislike standardized tests from an equity, cost, and fairness standpoint, they are still around as evaluation points for college admissions, and it can be to your advantage to take them and submit scores.
More importantly,“test optional” doesn’t mean that the admissions have become easier or not so in the last year. Far from it. Many of the most selective colleges and universities have seen the numbers of applications soar in a test-optional regime – and the absence of test scores in an applicant persona will generally mean that other criteria, such as grades and extracurriculars may receive more weighing in applicant evaluations.
So in general, if you’ve scored around or above the test score’s 50th percentile for admitted freshmen, it’s probably advantageous for you to submit your ACT or SAT score with your application. It gives them one more data point for evaluation against other candidates.
In addition, if you’re looking for merit aid, many colleges and universities may use test scores to help evaluate candidates for merit aid.
On the other hand, if you’re scoring below the 50th percentile for admitted students of particular institutions you’re targeting, (and feel that you can’t really significantly improve your score), it may be better for you to go test optional such that the school will more heavily weigh your academic record, extracurriculars, essays and recommendations. Just be sure to indicate on the application that you will not submit scores.
In any case, your particular situation may vary with each college application, and I will be happy to discuss your options with any particular school or schools, as it can be a very fluid situation this application season.
