Colleges Are Bringing Back the SAT and ACT: What Rising Seniors Need to Know
For the past few years, test-optional admissions made it seem like standardized tests were becoming optional—maybe even irrelevant. But that era is shifting. More colleges are returning to test-required or test-encouraged policies, and for rising seniors, this change creates both uncertainty and opportunity.
Here's what's actually happening and why it matters for your applications.
Why Colleges Are Reversing Course on Test-Optional
When colleges went test-optional during the pandemic, they discovered something unexpected: the policy didn't make admissions fairer. Instead, it created more problems.
Without test scores, admissions committees lost one objective data point for comparing students across different high schools, GPA scales, and socioeconomic backgrounds. Students from well-resourced schools could emphasize their GPAs. Students from under-resourced schools had fewer ways to demonstrate their academic potential. Students could use AI to craft more compelling essays.
Additionally, colleges realized that test scores still predicted college success. Studies showed that when standardized tests were part of the picture, admissions became more predictive of who would graduate on time and succeed academically. Removing tests sometimes made it harder for high-achieving students from under-resourced backgrounds to stand out.
This doesn't mean grades or essays matter less. It means colleges want multiple data points. Grades show sustained effort. Tests show how you perform under pressure and how you think across different domains. Essays show who you are. Together, they paint a clearer picture.
What "Test-Encouraged" Actually Means
Here's the important distinction: most colleges aren't saying tests are required. They're saying tests are encouraged—and there's a real difference.
Test-encouraged means: Submitting a score helps your application. Not submitting doesn't disqualify you, but it makes you a harder sell to the admissions committee.
Test-required means: You must submit a score (usually at least one SAT or ACT attempt).
For rising seniors, this matters because it changes the calculation. A year ago, you might have reasoned: "I'll try the test once, and if I don't like it, I just won't submit." Now, especially if your target schools are test-encouraged or test-required, that logic doesn't hold.
The Timeline Advantage (And Pressure) for Rising Seniors
If you're a rising senior, you have something precious: time.
Seniors typically take the SAT or ACT in fall or winter of their senior year. But rising seniors have the luxury of taking tests during summer or early fall—before application deadlines hit in November. This means:
You can take it multiple times if needed. Most students benefit from a second or third attempt (scores typically improve 50-100 points between first and second test).
You can decide to submit or not submit based on your actual score, not panic.
You're not cramming test prep into senior year chaos when you're also writing essays, managing coursework, and doing college visits.
Test prep works better with space between attempts. Your brain needs time to consolidate learning, identify patterns in your errors, and adjust strategies. A summer spent thoughtfully prepping is far more effective than a November scramble.
What Rising Seniors Should Do Right Now
1. Take a practice test on Bluebook—this week. Here's the thing: you don't have to commit to submitting yet. Just take a practice test on Bluebook (the free, official College Board app) to see what you're working with. No pressure. No stakes. This is just data.
Why Bluebook specifically? It's free, it's the actual test interface you'd use on test day, and College Board releases new practice tests regularly. Taking it on Bluebook means you're practicing in the real format—which matters for pacing and stamina.
2. See what you get. Once you have a score, you can actually decide. Maybe you score 1450 and you're like "done, I'm submitting this." Maybe you score 1200 and you think "I could improve that" or "that's enough for my schools." The point is: you get to know before committing.
3. Research your target schools. Not all colleges are moving to test-required at the same pace. Some are test-required. Some are test-encouraged. Some remain test-optional. Check each school's 2025-26 admissions requirements. This determines whether the SAT/ACT is strategic for your applications.
4. If you want to improve, you still have time. It's July. Fall test dates run through September and into October. If you take Bluebook this week and decide you want to prep more, you've got 4-6 weeks before most fall test dates. That's actually reasonable for targeted improvement—especially if you focus on your weak areas instead of starting from scratch.
5. Don't let perfectionism trap you. You don't need a 1500 SAT or 35 ACT to get into a great school. Your GPA, essays, and what you've done outside the classroom matter more than a perfect test score. A solid score (1400+, 33+) paired with a strong application is plenty competitive.
The Real Opportunity
For rising seniors, the return of test-encouraged policies is actually an advantage. You have time, you have clarity on what colleges expect, and you can make a strategic choice instead of a panicked one.
The students who will struggle most are seniors who procrastinate and realize in October that they need a score for early admissions. Rising seniors don't have that problem—if they act now.
The bottom line: Take a practice test, research your schools, and if testing makes sense for your target colleges, start prep this summer. You're not doing this because you have to. You're doing it because you can and because it gives you more options.
