Submitted by Sahar Nangoli
Confused and Looking for Some Quick Tips Regarding “Test Optional” Schooling?
Okay, so I have spoken to quite a few college counselors/admissions officers about this topic, and here is the 411: Many schools are test-optional next year for college admission. What does that mean? Well, basically instead of it being a requirement to submit your SAT/ACT score on your application…. it is now YOUR CHOICE.
The reason why this happening is due to COVID-19’s effect on scheduled test dates. Most testing sites closed down due to the virus. Not only did this decrease the number of testing dates available, but also many students don’t have access to study materials during this time period. Colleges acknowledged these factors when choosing to go test-optional. If you are curious about which schools are test-optional so far, here’s a helpful link: www.fairtest.org
Alrighty…now….
What if I have already taken the exam? But I did really well and now my school is optional? Or I did horribly?
Not submitting your scores does NOT put you at a disadvantage!!!
Let’s break it down.
To submit or not to submit?
The best advice is to be aware of the average scores for the schools that interest you. You can find the scores on the school site on the admissions tab.
If your score is in the top 25% of scores posted for admitted students, then you should submit your score.
Once you submit your score, you’re ONLY compared against those people who have submitted their scores. People who choose to submit their scores and people who choose to not submit their scores are viewed differently; they are not directly compared.
The people who submit their scores are put up against each other and the people who do not submit their scores are put up against each other, and colleges accept a certain percentage from both categories.
If you submit your standardized test score and it is below the top 25% of test scores for that college and then it is possible you are at a disadvantage. If you choose not to submit your tests, you are not at a disadvantage because you are only compared to the people who did not submit their scores.
The college is more likely to look at your application a lot more holistically, and compare different things like extrac’s, grades, teacher recommendations, etc.
I hope this helped! Shoot us any questions via the question box below!
