Sedona Sweginnis | Sports Editor
May 27, 2025
Many top universities are reverting back to requiring standardized tests on applications for the upcoming freshmen classes. After a surge of test-optional policies in the wake of the 2020 pandemic, many colleges revoked their test-optional policies in favor of requiring either the SAT or ACT to apply to their schools. These tests provide useful additional data about applicants’ skills and knowledge, yet also present challenges and inconsistencies.
A significant number of colleges and universities are reinstating their requirements for standardized testing in order to apply to their institutions. The slow trend towards test-optional policies, which began with Bowdoin College in 1969, accelerated after 2004 when Bates College released a study they conducted regarding test-optional policies. Their data, which spanned over the course of twenty years, observed the ways in which submitting a standardized test score impacted a student’s performance in college, with a particular focus on graduation rate. Their data revealed that high school grades proved better indicators for performance in higher-level education than standardized tests.
Although College Board restructured and lengthened the SAT in response to this, the momentum against requiring test scores following the Bates College study was further amplified by the COVID-19 pandemic, which considerably impacted standardized testing. With decreased testing accessibility, as well as more questionable credibility, even the most prestigious universities moved towards becoming test-optional.
However, as the complications of the pandemic have largely subsided, test requirements are making a resurgence. With university applicants becoming increasingly competitive, universities need as much data and information on each prospective student as they can receive in order to accept the most qualified students who will be successful in the rigorous university environment and beyond.
Numerous top universities are reinstating test requirements for their applications, including Stanford, MIT, and all of the Ivy Leagues except Columbia. The most prestigious universities in the nation reinstating standardized testing requirements demonstrates that educational administration is once again placing a substantial emphasis on test scores when evaluating a student. Standardized test scores can provide helpful insight into a student’s overall knowledge, comprehension, and scholastic ability, helping colleges predict whether or not that particular student can be successful at their institution as well as beyond. These scores also serve as definitive data in contrast to the qualitative aspects of college applications, allowing admissions officers to more easily decide between students of otherwise similar aptitude.
However, standardized tests do not take into account differences in upbringing or culture that set students apart. These differences can lead the tests to cater more to certain groups, putting those of differing customs or upbringing at a disadvantage. SCHS junior Sophia Howard explained that these tests are inconsiderate of the various “socio-economic standards” of all of the students that will be taking the tests, preventing them from being an entirely fair method of evaluation. Furthermore, these tests can be costly for many families, especially with tutors or “boot camps,” which are indispensable for achieving the highest scores, being economically unrealistic for many students.
Additionally, if a student takes a test under unfortunate circumstances or makes a few costly mistakes, their scores can grossly underrepresent their true abilities. Reinforcing this, sophomore Annie Owen expressed that “one test doesn’t define a student,” and the “make or break” nature of these exams places excessive pressure on students to score well. While college applications encompass numerous other pieces of information about applicants, these tests often carry disproportionately significant weight in representing a student’s abilities and knowledge as a whole.
Regardless of whether the positives of submitting test scores on applications outweighs the pitfalls, these scores are additional data that aid college admissions in selecting the most qualified future students. Therefore, despite the drawbacks, current high school students should plan on taking these standardized tests, when possible, in order to apply to many universities and be competitive.
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