Why Selective Colleges Are Requiring the SAT and ACT Again

Six years after the pandemic pushed standardized testing out of college admissions, the SAT and ACT are emerging once again.

Nationally, testing remains optional at the overwhelming majority of colleges, with a new FairTest analysis reporting that 90% of U.S. four-year colleges will not require SAT or ACT scores from students applying for fall 2027. According to an Inside Higher Ed analysis of 2,247 policies, 86% of colleges are test-optional, 4% are test-free, and only 7% require scores.

Yet the story looks different among the elite universities. Several Ivies and other highly selective institutions require testing for the 2026–27 application cycle.

So that begs the question: If most colleges have kept test-optional admission, why are elite universities restoring the SAT or ACT?

What Do the Different Testing Policies Mean?

A key piece of understanding is that the term “test-optional” is often used too broadly. Before students build a testing strategy, they should understand four distinct policies:

Test Required: Applicants must provide an SAT or ACT score unless the college grants a specific exception.

Test Optional: Applicants decide whether the college will consider their SAT or ACT scores.

Test Flexible: Testing is required, but the college may accept alternatives such as AP, IB, or national examination results.

Test-free or Test Blind: The college does not consider SAT or ACT scores, even when an applicant submits them.

Why Are Some Selective Colleges Requiring Scores Again?

1. They want another measure of academic readiness

Highly selective universities routinely evaluate tens of thousands of students with excellent grades and demanding coursework. In that environment, colleges may see standardized scores as further evidence that an applicant is prepared for advanced college work.

When Harvard explained its return to required testing, it cited research supporting the ability of test scores to help predict college and post-college performance when considered alongside other academic credentials.

Princeton reached a similar conclusion after reviewing five years of test-optional data. The university reported that students who submitted scores subsequently performed better academically than those who did not.

These universities are not presenting a test score as a complete measure of ability. But they argue that it contributes useful information. Essentially, they need it to help make informed decisions with applicants.

2. Scores can provide a common

High schools vary significantly in grading scales, course offerings, academic resources, and when classes are taken. A 4.0 GPA can represent different levels of preparation at different schools.

Admissions officers already interpret transcripts within school context. A standardized score adds a common data point across applicants whose academic environments may look very different.

That does not make the SAT or ACT perfectly objective. Access to preparation, testing opportunities, time, and financial resources remains unequal. However, colleges restoring testing argue that contextual evaluation can account for those differences rather than eliminating the score.

3. The applicant pool at an ultra-selective university is unusual

The most selective universities operate in a different admissions environment from most American colleges. They receive enormous pools filled with students who have high grades, advanced courses, significant extracurricular involvement, and polished applications.

That makes their experience difficult to generalize. A policy that Harvard or Yale believes improves selection within an exceptionally compressed academic pool may offer less value to a college focused primarily on expanding access, filling available seats, or serving a regional population.

This is why the return of testing at a handful of famous universities should not be interpreted as proof that the entire country is following them. Unfortunately, there is no single national testing policy because colleges have different research and goals behind each college's claims. No one is on the same page for testing.

Test-Optional Does Not Mean Test-Irrelevant

The most consequential mistake students can make is treating “optional” as synonymous with “unimportant.”

With test-optional, you have 2 major strategic points:

1. Should I take the SAT or ACT?
2. Should I submit my score?

For most students who may apply to selective colleges, taking at least one exam remains the safest strategy. Testing preserves options if the college list changes or another institution restores its requirement. If, however, you are in California, testing could still be meaningful, but you have excellent choices without the stress of testing.

When Should You Submit an SAT or ACT Score?

There is no universal cutoff, but the college’s recent score distribution provides a useful starting point:

• At or above the college’s median: The score will generally strengthen the academic case and should usually be submitted.
• Between the 25th percentile and the median: Submission often makes sense, particularly when the score supports the intended major or adds evidence not already obvious from the transcript.
• Below the 25th percentile: Withholding may be appropriate at a genuinely test-optional college, although context matters. A score may still be meaningful if it is exceptional relative to the student’s school or available opportunities.

Applicants must also check for exceptions. A university may be test-optional for general admission but require scores for particular majors, scholarships, honors programs, homeschooled applicants, or students below a stated GPA threshold.

Finally, policies can change from one year to the next. Columbia and Princeton are both test-optional for fall 2027 applicants but will require the SAT or ACT from students applying for fall 2028. Advice written for an older admissions cycle may therefore be incorrect, so always be up to date.

The Bottom Line

The return of standardized testing is real, but it is not universal.

Students should not build their strategy around the national 90% statistic. They should build it around the specific colleges on their list.

For many applicants, the most practical approach is to take the SAT or ACT, evaluate the result in context, and decide where to submit it. A strong score can remain a valuable part of a test-optional application; a weaker score does not need to define one.

What matters is understanding how each college uses testing and making a deliberate decision rather than assuming that “optional” means the same thing everywhere.