Notre Dame just announced yesterday that it will reinstate the SAT/ACT requirement beginning with the 2027-2028 admissions cycle.
Eliminating test-optional policies, particularly those instituted during the pandemic, is a growing trend, especially among the elite colleges. At this point, all eight Ivy League institutions have eliminated their test-optional policies and reinstated standardized test requirements.
I wasn't surprised by Notre Dame's decision, but I was surprised by the reasoning behind it.
Notre Dame cited a commitment to access and affordability as the reasons for reinstating the SAT/ACT requirement. Anyone in higher education would call that an absurd and false rationale. Standardized tests have long favored students from higher-income families and communities. And, lower test scores typically deny rather than provide access in the college admissions process.
I don't have a problem with colleges reinstating the SAT/ACT requirement. In fact, I respect the policy change. It keeps them honest. For the past six years, elite colleges have claimed to be test-optional. But that was the farthest thing from the truth. These colleges clearly favored students with test scores, especially high ones. Colleges aren't willing to publicly share acceptance rates of those who applied with test scores and those who applied without test scores during this test-optional chapter. That's because it would expose their deceptive practices.
Countless lawsuits from student groups are ripe to be filed against colleges that claimed to be test-optional. Just as colleges have six years of data to provide, so do I. My students who gained admission to elite colleges under test-optional policies over the past six years almost always reported test scores. There were exceptions, but those were rare—not your typical applicant, for sure. It is a reminder that colleges promote a very different process than what actually takes place behind closed doors.
READ MORE: The Secret to an Exceptional College Application
Test scores matter more than colleges admit. Whether it's a test-optional or a test-required college, your chances of admission increase significantly with a high test score. It is a college's choice to value high test scores. However, when a college claims to be test-optional but doesn't follow this in practice, that's misleading and unlawful. And, that's why the public has lost trust in elite colleges.
Bring on the lawsuits. I can see them coming.
