What Does “Test-Optional” Really Mean?

Since the COVID-19 pandemic started last year, I’ve been asked (like, a million times) about what “test-optional” really means. The more important question is this: Should I bother taking an ACT or SAT test when many colleges have (temporarily, in most cases) gone test-optional? Allow me to unpack this.

(Before I begin, let me state the obvious: I run an ACT/SAT tutoring company. You know this (I assume), but I’d like to acknowledge it up front. I’m going to address the topic of test-optional colleges as transparently as I can, with links and quotes to impartial sources where possible.)

I’m focusing here on schools that give you the option to submit ACT or SAT test scores (“test-optional”). There are three possibilities:

1. If all of your target schools are “test-blind,” which means they will not consider ACT/SAT test scores, then do not take one of these tests!

2. On the other hand, if any of your target schools require ACT/SAT scores, then do take one of these tests!

3. The question I’ll be answering in this post is this: What to do when none of your target schools require the tests, and at least some of them are test-optional? Read on...

A little background on test-optional.
Some schools were test-optional before the pandemic, but most schools (close to all) still required an ACT/SAT test score. The canceling of ACT/SAT tests around the country forced most colleges to stop requiring the tests, for the simple and understandable reason that so many students were not able to take them. At least one college counselor has described these schools as “reluctant” test-optional schools. I’ll talk about this more below.

So who should consider skipping the ACT/SAT test?
Before answering this question, let me give you my thoughts on college admissions criteria:

Generally speaking, college admission officers look at three aspects of a student’s college resume: (1) GPA and classes taken (such as APs and honors), (2) college essays and extracurricular activities, and (3) standardized test scores (such as the ACT/SAT, assuming, of course, that the college is not test-blind). Different colleges may choose to weigh these three components in different ways, but it’s safe to assume that most schools weigh each area roughly equally (imagine a pie cut into three equal slices).

So back to my question: If you have an above average presentation in the first two criteria—and I mean really above average—and if you suspect your ACT/SAT scores will be lower than average for most of the colleges on your list, then you should probably consider skipping the test. This seems pretty obvious to me, and reasonable. I might add: If you don’t have time or resources to put into ACT or SAT tutoring, then skipping the test might be a good idea. Talk to your counselor about this—he or she should be able to help you decide whether your resume is strong enough for your target schools without ACT or SAT test scores.

One other thing worth considering: In the unlikely event that most or all of the schools you’re applying to were ones that were test-optional before the pandemic, these are schools that apparently have embraced the idea of test-optional admissions. They’ve already set up their admissions to work well without ACT/SAT test scores. You can probably safely skip the tests with these schools without (potentially) hurting your chances—but again, this really only applies if the other parts of your college resume look great.

So who should consider taking the ACT/SAT test?
For students who don’t fall into any of the categories above, I think taking one of the tests can still make a lot of sense. As I mentioned above, I run a tutoring company, and it’s only natural that I think many students should sign up for an ACT or SAT prep course and eventually take a test. I’ve always believed these tests do a good job of helping colleges compare students from across a broad range of high schools, and I think colleges value the information these tests provide. (This is the point of these tests, although this is sometimes lost in the recent politicization of standardized tests.)

I’ve also spoken to a number of college counselors about this—including Alexandra Dumas Rhodes of Rhodes Educational Consulting, who’s a college counselor superstar—and they have all agreed (with one exception, who said: “You tell me, Erik.”): Taking an ACT or SAT now, while many colleges are still in test-optional mode, can only potentially help you. If you do well, then it will improve your college resume and, importantly, separate you from other students who choose to skip the test. If you don’t do great on the test, then simply don’t submit your scores (here’s an article I wrote about Score Choice). I think this is important to emphasize: When you take an ACT or SAT, you can choose to submit—or not to submit—your scores. I’m not going to say there’s no downside to taking one of these tests (I’m not the one who has to wake up early and sit in a room filling in bubbles for over three hours, not to mention the time and cost of tutoring). But having a score under your belt, even if you only use it for those colleges with average acceptance scores below your score, might be a good idea. If your ACT or SAT test scores are worse than average for a school, simply don’t submit the score.

As I mentioned above, a few counselors brought up the idea of “reluctantly test-optional” schools. If you have a sense that a college went test-optional only because of the pandemic, these schools probably still value ACT/SAT test scores. I strongly recommend submitting scores for these schools (which, by the way, is most of them).

Finally, if you’re lucky enough to have the time and means for ACT or SAT tutoring, this could truly be a rare historical opportunity to separate yourself from the crowd. Once colleges start swinging back to test-required admissions, well, then the opportunity to display (hopefully) high test scores while other students present no scores at all will be lost.

A case study.
I’d like to use Georgetown University as a case study. The school, which like most schools went test-optional last year, had its lowest acceptance rate in school history (11.7%). The reason why is simple: the pool of applicants increased by 30% (mainly, we can assume, because students who otherwise would have stayed away from a solid university like GU because of the students’ (potentially) low test scores decided to give it a try).

But here’s the important numbers: 80% of applicants chose to submit ACT or SAT test scores, and just under 90% of those admitted did submit their applications with ACT or SAT results. Finally, here’s a quote from Dean of Undergraduate Admissions Charles Deacon: “We will continue to allow applicants who are not able to access the SAT or ACT due to Covid to apply without the test but it is our expectation that vaccines will be readily available by this summer [2021] and we expect that most applicants should be able to fulfill the testing requirement by next fall.” (You can read more about this study here.)

Summary.
We know that some schools have decided to go test-optional permanently (here’s a pretty good list). And, here in California, you probably know that the UC’s are planning to permanently remove the ACT/SAT test requirement, although the university may eventually create its own standardized test, which one imagines will be tutorable (and probably similar to the SAT/ACT), which makes you wonder what exactly the UC folks are thinking. But until more schools either join the UCs in going test-blind, or seem to fully embrace the idea of test-optional, I think most students will benefit from taking one of the tests. It’s a bit of a win-win, since you can always choose to not submit your scores. Of course, if you choose to work with KlassTutoring, my hope is that your scores will be so high that you’ll have no choice but to submit them!

I hope the above clarifies “test-optional.” Any questions, please let us know. And stay safe everyone.

-Erik Klass is the author of The Ultimate SAT Tutorial and The Ultimate ACT Tutorial and the owner of KlassTutoring. KlassTutoring offers exceptional private SAT preparation and ACT preparation in Los Angeles, Beverly Hills, Santa Monica, Pacific Palisades, Sherman Oaks, Encino, Pasadena, and more…