To Test or Not to Test: 

A guide to test-optional college admissions

By Lisa Hood

Edited by K McDonagh

The Covid-19 pandemic brought unprecedented changes in every aspect of life, college admissions included. In the fall of 2020, over 1700 colleges accepted test-optional or test-blind applications for the class of 2025. In Massachusetts, the number of students taking the SAT dropped 26.97% from 2019 to 2022. 

 Will colleges stay test-optional, or were these measures just temporary allowances inspired by the pandemic? Is it harmful to students’ chances to not submit their scores? Is there even a point in taking the SAT or ACT at all? 

The answers to these questions are generally uncertain. As for colleges remaining test-optional post-pandemic, it’s important to consider that Covid-19 was not the sole inspiration for the test-optional trend. Colleges have been making the switch to test-optional since 1969, when Bowdoin College became the first American college to go test-optional. Before the pandemic hit in 2019, 1050 colleges were test-optional, including some state schools in which the state governments had declared all of the public schools test-optional, like in Oregon. Going test-optional has allowed colleges to accept a more diverse array of students with talents other than standardized testing. Studies have shown that the ability of SAT and ACT scores to predict a student’s performance in their freshman year of college is not all-encompassing, and that they were rarely effective in predicting the likelihood of graduation. Further, the high numbers of test-optional schools brought on by the Covid-19 pandemic have not dropped since 2020—instead, there’s been a steady increase, with the number of test-optional schools totaling over 1800 in 2022. All things considered, it’s likely that college applicants will continue to see numerous options of test-optional schools, though likely not quite as many as during the Covid-era.

So then, you might ask, if colleges are going to continue as test-optional for the foreseeable future, is there a benefit to even taking the SAT or ACT? Yes! If you have the means you should absolutely still take the SAT and/or ACT. While colleges claim that not submitting scores won’t disadvantage applicants (which isn’t quite true, but more on that later), submitting decent test scores can give applicants a considerable advantage. Plus, even if a school is test-optional, test scores may be considered for scholarships, admittance into specific academic programs, or honor programs.

But before we can get into whether or not to submit your scores, there are a couple of important differences between policies at different schools. “Test-optional” itself is pretty self-explanatory; students have the option to submit their test scores, and the scores will be considered if students do submit them, but other aspects of the application will be considered more heavily if not. “Test-blind” means that scores are not considered in the application process at all, regardless of whether or not you want to submit them. While less common than test-optional, there are quite a few schools that have gone test-blind, most notably, all of the University of California schools. “Test-flexible” schools allow students to submit SAT/ACT scores if they want to, but also allow the option of submitting alternative test scores, such as International Baccalaureate scores, Advanced Placement scores, and, if you took them before they were discontinued in 2021, SAT subject tests. These different policies each come with their own set of pros and cons- while test-optional and test-flexible schools may appeal to students with strong test scores or a strong application otherwise, test-blind schools eliminate the worry that not submitting test scores might detract from one’s application. The most important thing to take away is that these policies are not always the same, and you should research the policies at the schools you’re applying to before submitting the application. I’ve included the policies of some of LHS’s most applied-to schools at the bottom of this article.


Now for the answer to the big question: to submit or not submit? Whether or not to submit your scores is a personal decision, and really depends on your own academic habits and aspirations. Still, there are a couple of basic standards that can help guide your decision. Test scores act, in a way, as a tie-breaker in the admissions of test-optional schools. If two people with identical qualifications apply to the same school, one submitting a test score in the 25th percentile for that school, and the other submitting no scores, the student who submitted their scores is twice as likely to get accepted than the student who did not submit their scores. For schools with tens of thousands of applicants, good test scores can really set a student apart from others. If your score falls within roughly 60 points (SAT) or 3 points (ACT) of the 25th percentile at the school you’re applying to, it’s probably a good idea to submit those scores. You can usually find the 25th percentile of scores on a school’s website, in the form of a range of the middle 50% of students - the higher number will be the 75th percentile, and the lower number, the 25th. For UMass Amherst, for example, the 25th percentile SAT score is 1270. This means with a score of 1210 or higher, submitting your scores will likely be beneficial to your application.

Now for the answer to the big question: to submit or not submit? Whether or not to submit your scores is a personal decision, and really depends on your own academic habits and aspirations. Still, there are a couple of basic standards that can help guide your decision. Test scores act, in a way, as a tie-breaker in the admissions of test-optional schools. If two people with identical qualifications apply to the same school, one submitting a test score in the 25th percentile for that school, and the other submitting no scores, the student who submitted their scores is twice as likely to get accepted than the student who did not submit their scores. For schools with tens of thousands of applicants, good test scores can really set a student apart from others. If your score falls within roughly 60 points (SAT) or 3 points (ACT) of the 25th percentile at the school you’re applying to, it’s probably a good idea to submit those scores. You can usually find the 25th percentile of scores on a school’s website, in the form of a range of the middle 50% of students - the higher number will be the 75th percentile, and the lower number, the 25th. For UMass Amherst, for example, the 25th percentile SAT score is 1270. This means with a score of 1210 or higher, submitting your scores will likely be beneficial to your application.

Note: Colleges whose test-optional policies extend until fall 2023 will not be test-optional for those applying in the fall of 2023 (as of now). This means any college labeled as test-optional through fall 2023 are test-optional for current LHS seniors only; through 2024 for juniors and seniors, etc.



UMass Lowell: Permanently test-optional since 2015


UMass Amherst: Test-optional through fall 2023


Northeastern University: Test-optional through fall 2026


University of Vermont: Test-optional through fall 2023


University of New Hampshire: Permanently test-optional


Worcester State University: Permanently test-optional since 2018


Plymouth State University: Test-blind

Sources:

Bello, Akil. “SAT Test-Taking Drops by 21%; ACT Continues Slide – Fairtest.” Fairtest, 1 October 2022, https://fairtest.org/sat-test-taking-drops-by-21/. Accessed 27 October 2022.

Bergman, Dave. “Test optional Colleges 2022-23 - Should I submit my SAT score?” College Transitions, 11 August 2022, https://www.collegetransitions.com/blog/test-optional-admissions/. Accessed 27 October 2022.

Berlinsky-Schine, Laura. “Should You Apply Test-Optional for the 2020-2021 Cycle?” CollegeVine Guidance, 3 September 2020, https://blog.collegevine.com/test-optional-coronavirus-policies/. Accessed 27 October 2022.

Jaschik, Scott. “Will test optional become the new normal in admissions?” Inside Higher Ed, 24 January 2022, https://www.insidehighered.com/admissions/article/2022/01/24/will-test-optional-become-new-normal-admissions. Accessed 27 October 2022.

Musico, Matt. “Test Optional, Test Blind, Test Flexible: What's the Difference?” CollegeData, https://www.collegedata.com/resources/prepare-and-apply/test-optional-test-blind-whats-the-difference. Accessed 27 October 2022.

“Niche.” Niche: Find the School that Fits You Best, https://www.niche.com/. Accessed 27 October 2022.

Northeastern University. “Required Materials | Undergraduate Admissions.” Undergraduate Admissions | Northeastern University, https://admissions.northeastern.edu/application-information/required-materials/. Accessed 27 October 2022.

UMass Lowell. “No Test Option FAQ | Undergraduate Admissions.” UMass Lowell, https://www.uml.edu/admissions/apply/no-test-option-faq.aspx. Accessed 27 October 2022.

University of New Hampshire. “Test-Optional Policy | Undergraduate Admissions.” UNH Admissions, https://admissions.unh.edu/apply/test-optional. Accessed 27 October 2022.

University of Vermont. “First-Year Students: How to Apply | Undergraduate Admissions.” The University of Vermont, https://www.uvm.edu/admissions/undergraduate/first-year-students-how-apply. Accessed 27 October 2022.

“What is Test Optional? – Fairtest.” Fairtest, https://fairtest.org/test-optional/. Accessed 27 October 2022.

Worcester State University. “Test-Optional Admission.” Worcester State University, https://www.worcester.edu/admissions-aid/undergraduate-admissions/first-year-students/test-optional-policy/. Accessed 27 October 2022.