What Happened to Test-Optional Movement?

The Test-Optional Movement in college admissions has a history spanning decades, with Bowdoin College being one of the first to adopt such a policy in 1969. FairTest, an advocacy organization, has tracked the growing number of institutions limiting their use of standardized tests since 1985, with over 1,050 colleges becoming test-optional by 2019. Proponents argued that test-optional policies could broaden access for underrepresented students and that high school grades were equally strong predictors of college success.

The movement experienced a dramatic acceleration with the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. Due to widespread test center closures and safety concerns, nearly 2,000 colleges and universities temporarily suspended SAT/ACT requirements, making test-optional admissions a necessity. This period saw a significant shift, with the University of California system notably moving to a test-free policy, meaning scores would not be considered at all for in-state residents. This widespread adoption led many to believe that test-optional policies would become a permanent fixture in higher education.

However, starting in 2022, a counter-trend began to emerge, particularly among highly selective institutions. MIT was an early adopter in reinstating its testing requirement in 2022. This was followed by a wave of Ivy League and other elite universities announcing their return to mandatory standardized testing in 2024 and 2025. Dartmouth College, Brown University, Harvard University, Caltech, Stanford University, and the University of Pennsylvania all reinstated SAT/ACT requirements for applicants entering in Fall 2025 or Fall 2026. These institutions often cited internal research indicating that test scores were valuable predictors of academic success at their universities, sometimes even more so than high school GPAs, and could help identify talented students from less-advantaged backgrounds who might otherwise be overlooked.

By mid-2026, the landscape had solidified into a bifurcated system. For the 2026-2027 application cycle, six of the eight Ivy League schools (Harvard, Yale, Dartmouth, Brown, Cornell, and UPenn) require SAT or ACT scores. Princeton and Columbia, the remaining Ivies, announced in late 2025 and June 2026, respectively, that they would require testing starting with the 2027-2028 cycle, making the 2026-2027 cycle their final test-optional year. Yale, after a brief period of a test-flexible policy, also reverted to requiring SAT or ACT scores in May 2026. Georgetown University, which largely maintained its testing requirements throughout the pandemic, updated its policy in June 2026 to allow superscoring and join the Common Application.

Despite this shift among elite schools, the vast majority of U.S. four-year colleges and universities—over 90%—remain test-optional or test-free for Fall 2026 admissions. However, the University of California system, which went test-blind in 2020, is facing significant pressure. In June 2026, over 3,000 UC faculty members, including many in STEM fields, signed an open letter advocating for the reinstatement of SAT/ACT math score requirements, citing concerns about students' preparedness. While a UC advisory board suspended its review of testing policies in July 2026, the debate continues, signaling a potential future shift for one of the nation's largest public university systems. The current status reflects a nuanced reality where standardized tests are regaining importance at the most competitive institutions, while a broader commitment to flexibility persists elsewhere.