In 2020, with the onset of the pandemic and the many challenges that came with it, the majority of colleges instituted Test Optional and Test Blind admissions policies. These policies significantly reduced the role of standardized testing in the admissions process.
However, colleges quickly realized that with only grades and essays to look at, differentiating between tens of thousands of students was much more difficult. After 5 years of these policies, and many attempts to find alternative evaluation methods, many colleges have concluded that they need standardized tests to evaluate large applicant pools consistently.
The following colleges have reinstituted testing requirements:
Harvard, Yale, Brown, Dartmouth, Cornell, MIT, Caltech, Georgetown, University of Texas, all Florida public colleges, Georgia Tech, and Purdue.
This list is expected to grow, so it’s important to plan early. We recommend using the SAT prep program offered by Khan Academy. It was created in collaboration with College Board (owners of the SAT), is completely FREE, and the program’s algorithm tailors practice tests to your needs as you go.