SAT ACT Scores Required Again: A Parent's Guide
SAT and ACT scores are required again at 50+ colleges, with submissions up 11%. See which schools require tests and a prep timeline for parents.
Why the Test-Optional Era Is Ending and How to Prepare Your Student
February 15, 2026 | By the Solyo Team
Remember when everyone said standardized testing was dead? That the pandemic had permanently reshaped college admissions? Here we are in 2026, and the SAT and ACT requirements are back at the nation's most selective universities. From Harvard to Stanford to Princeton, admissions offices are sending a clear message: send us your scores.
If you're a parent watching this unfold, wondering what it means for your child's college strategy, you're in the right place. The testing landscape has shifted faster in the past 18 months than in the prior decade --- and the implications for sophomores, juniors, and even freshmen are significant. Here's what you need to know, why it's happening, and exactly what your family should do about it.
Which Colleges Require SAT or ACT Scores in 2026?
The list of schools reinstating standardized testing requirements reads like a directory of America's most selective institutions. During the 2024--2025 cycle, Harvard, Dartmouth, Yale, Brown, MIT, and Caltech all brought testing back. For 2025--2026, Stanford, Cornell, the University of Pennsylvania, Georgetown, Johns Hopkins, Carnegie Mellon's School of Computer Science, and the University of Miami followed.
In October 2025, Princeton announced it would require scores starting with the 2027--2028 cycle --- making Columbia the only Ivy League school still test-optional. Every other Ivy now requires or will soon require the SAT or ACT.
It's not only elite private institutions. Entire public university systems in Georgia and Florida have reinstated testing mandates. The University of Texas at Austin brought back requirements starting with fall 2025 enrollment. The University of Alabama has announced plans to reinstate by 2028.
The trend is unmistakable. While the majority of colleges still technically offer some form of test-optional admissions, the schools driving the national conversation --- and the schools many families are targeting --- increasingly expect scores. You can check any school's current testing policy on Solyo's College Search, which shows whether each institution is test-required, test-optional, or test-blind.
KEY STAT
Only 5% of colleges using the nation's largest application platform require test scores --- yet 56.5% of applicants voluntarily submitted scores this cycle, up from 53.6% last year and 51.2% two years ago.
--- The EDU Ledger, December 2025
Test Score Submissions Are Surging --- Even at Test-Optional Schools
The data confirms what admissions counselors have been saying privately: students are submitting scores again, even when they don't have to.
According to national application data from the 2025--2026 cycle, the number of applicants reporting test scores rose 11%, while the number declining to submit scores dropped. This is the second consecutive year that score-reporting growth has outpaced non-reporting --- a meaningful reversal of the pandemic-era trend.
Here's what makes that statistic striking: the vast majority of these score submissions are voluntary. Students and families are choosing to send scores because they recognize that a strong result --- even at a test-optional school --- can meaningfully strengthen an application.
At test-optional schools with highly competitive pools, the rising tide of submissions creates pressure of its own. Applicant pools at top schools that remain test-optional are seeing larger shares of high-scoring students, making it harder for applicants without scores to stand out.
Grade Inflation: Why Colleges Need an Objective Benchmark
Why are colleges bringing testing back? The answer comes down to one word: grades.
A comprehensive ACT study analyzing more than 4.3 million students from nearly 5,000 schools found that the average high school GPA rose from 3.17 in 2010 to 3.36 in 2021 --- a jump that accelerated dramatically after 2016 and intensified during the pandemic. Meanwhile, average ACT scores declined to their lowest levels in over a decade. Students were earning higher grades while demonstrating less mastery of the material.
The numbers are sobering. A student scoring in the top 25% on the ACT had an average GPA of 3.5 in 2010 but 3.7 by 2021. A student with a solid 3.0 average likely scored a 19 on the ACT in 2010 --- but only a 15 in 2021. Grade inflation was happening everywhere: across income levels, across racial groups, across regions, and most pronounced in STEM subjects.
According to a 2025 ACT research report, grade inflation has made it significantly harder to use GPA alone to predict college readiness. The data show that combining high school GPA with standardized test scores provides a far more reliable picture than either metric in isolation.
This disconnect between grades and actual preparedness is exactly what's pushing universities to reinstate testing. Brown's president stated that standardized test scores are a much better predictor of academic success than high school grades alone. MIT's dean of admissions has echoed a similar point: straight A's don't provide enough information to assess whether a student will succeed in rigorous coursework.
If you want to understand where your child's GPA truly stands, Solyo's Dashboard calculates both weighted and unweighted GPA in real time --- so you're never guessing.
What the Research Says: Why Universities Changed Course
Universities aren't making this shift on a whim. Multiple institutions conducted internal reviews during the test-optional era and arrived at the same conclusion.
Princeton, after five years of test-optional admissions, found that students who submitted test scores generally performed better academically once enrolled. Harvard, Stanford, Dartmouth, and Caltech have all cited research showing that SAT and ACT scores are among the strongest predictors of college performance in highly selective environments.
Perhaps most important for the equity conversation: research involving over 3.5 million undergraduate students found that standardized test scores are a valuable tool for identifying promising students from lower-income families. Dartmouth's president wrote that these tests can be especially helpful in identifying students from less-resourced backgrounds who would succeed but might otherwise be overlooked in a test-optional environment.
A 2024 analysis found that test scores are now better predictors of academic success than grades at elite colleges --- a finding directly attributable to the narrowing range of GPAs caused by inflation.
Should Your Child Submit Scores? A Decision Framework
For families navigating test-optional schools, the submit-or-not question is one of the most consequential decisions in the application process. Here's a practical framework.
When to Submit Scores
Your child's scores fall at or above the school's published "middle 50%" range for admitted students. This range --- also reported as the 25th to 75th percentile --- represents the score band where half of accepted students land. If your child's score is in the upper half of that range, submitting is almost always advantageous.
When to Consider Withholding
Your child's scores fall significantly below the 25th percentile at a target school. In this case, the score may raise more questions than it answers, and your child's GPA, course rigor, essays, and extracurriculars may tell a stronger story on their own.
How to Read the Middle 50% Range
When a school reports a middle 50% SAT range of 1500--1570, it means 25% of admitted students scored below 1500, 50% scored between 1500 and 1570, and 25% scored above 1570. Your strategic target should be at or above the 75th percentile mark. Keep in mind that during the test-optional era, these ranges may be somewhat inflated because lower-scoring students often chose not to submit.
You can compare middle 50% score ranges across all your target schools on Solyo's College Search --- including whether each school is test-required, test-optional, or test-blind for the current cycle.
A Practical SAT and ACT Testing Timeline for Your Family
One of the biggest mistakes families make is treating test prep as a last-minute sprint. The shift back to required testing makes a thoughtful, paced timeline more important than ever.
Sophomore Year: Build the Foundation
Take the PSAT in October --- it's a low-stakes diagnostic and qualifies juniors for National Merit consideration. Use the results to identify strengths and weaknesses in reading, writing, and math. If your child is ahead in math (Algebra II or higher), consider a full-length practice SAT or ACT to establish a baseline. No formal prep course is needed yet, but awareness of the test format is valuable.
Check out Solyo's Sophomore Admission Tasks for a complete checklist of what to tackle this year.
Summer Before Junior Year: The Strategic Window
This is one of the most underutilized windows for test preparation. Without the academic load of the school year, summer offers concentrated time to learn test strategies, practice pacing, and build confidence. Students who prep over the summer often enter junior year ready to test in the fall or early spring.
Junior Year: Testing Season
Most students take the SAT or ACT for the first time in the spring of junior year, with March, May, and June as popular dates. Plan on taking the test at least twice --- nearly all competitive colleges superscore (taking your highest section scores across multiple sittings). Ideally, finish all testing by the end of junior year to keep senior fall free for applications and essays.
See Solyo's Junior Admission Tasks for a month-by-month guide, including when to take the SAT.
Senior Year Fall: If Needed
If your child isn't satisfied with spring scores, August, September, and October test dates offer a final window before early application deadlines. SAT scores are typically available within two weeks; ACT scores can take up to two months --- plan accordingly.
A note on SAT vs. ACT: Both are accepted equally at virtually every college. The SAT leans more heavily on reading analysis and mathematical reasoning with more time per question. The ACT moves faster, is more straightforward, and includes a science section (now optional on the redesigned format). Have your child take a practice test of each to determine which plays to their strengths.
What Parents Should Do Now
The return of standardized testing isn't a reason for alarm --- it's a reason to plan. Here are the steps that matter most.
Check every school's testing policy before you finalize your college list. Policies are changing rapidly and can vary by major, honors college, or scholarship within the same university. Solyo's College Search shows each school's current test-required or test-optional status.
Stop treating test-optional as "tests don't matter." Even at schools that don't require scores, a strong result remains one of the most powerful differentiators in your child's application --- especially as grade inflation compresses GPAs into an increasingly narrow range.
Start earlier than you think you need to. If your child is a sophomore, take the PSAT this fall, prep over the summer, and plan for spring junior-year testing. If your child is a junior, register for the next available SAT or ACT date now.
Use the middle 50% range as your benchmark. Look up each target school's 25th--75th percentile scores. If your child is at or above the 75th percentile, submit confidently. If below the 25th, consider withholding and letting other strengths carry the application.
Plan for two attempts minimum. Superscoring means there's a strategic advantage to taking the test more than once. Budget time for at least two sittings before applications open in August of senior year.
The Bigger Picture
The test-optional era was a necessary response to pandemic-era disruptions. But the data from five years of test-optional admissions has given universities a clear answer: standardized tests, used alongside GPA and holistic review, help them build stronger, more diverse classes. For families, this means testing is once again a key part of the college strategy --- not the only part, but an important one.
The good news? With a clear plan, the right timeline, and accurate information about each school's requirements, standardized testing doesn't have to be a source of stress. It can be a genuine opportunity for your child to stand out.
How Solyo Can Help
Keeping track of shifting admissions requirements, testing policies, and score ranges shouldn't require a spreadsheet. Solyo's College Search lets you browse 6,000+ institutions and see at a glance whether each school requires, recommends, or doesn't consider test scores --- so you always know what your child needs.
Get started with Solyo to build a smarter, more informed college strategy for your family.
Sources
The Daily Princetonian, "Princeton to Require SAT or ACT Scores Starting Fall 2027," October 2025
ACT, "Research Report 2025-11: The Implications of Grade Inflation," 2025
Thomas B. Fordham Institute, "Grade Inflation: Why It Matters and How to Stop It," 2024
The EDU Ledger, "College Application Volume Rises 9% Through December," 2025
EdSource, "Grade Inflation in U.S. Schools Linked to Lower Earnings, Study Finds," February 2025