Ivy College Essay

AUGUST 22, 2023

In recent times, standardized testing policies for Ivy League universities have undergone significant changes, especially in response to the COVID-19 pandemic and growing concerns about equity in college admissions. What Does This Mean for Applicants?

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Top Tier Admissions

APRIL 23, 2024

Cornell will reintroduce standardized testing requirements for undergraduate admissions starting in fall 2026, based on findings from a university Task Force on Standardized Testing in Admissions and pressure from peer institutions. Brooks School of Public Policy, and the School of Industrial and Labor Relations).

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Top Tier Admissions

FEBRUARY 22, 2024

As of this morning, Yale is the second Ivy League school to require standardized test scores, following Dartmouth’s lead and citing research that test-optional policies adversely affect high-scoring low-income students. This new policy will begin with students applying to enter in the fall of 2025.

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Top Tier Admissions

MARCH 5, 2024

As of this morning, Brown is the third Ivy League school to reinstate standardized test scores, following Yale and Dartmouth’s lead and citing academic performance as the leading factor that influenced the decision. This new policy will begin with the class of 2029.

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BestColleges

NOVEMBER 2, 2023

Data Summary Check Less than half of students (47%) say that the use of standardized test scores to assess applicants in college admissions is fair. Check Among students who submitted standardized test scores to a college, 56% say their score may have helped their chances of getting accepted to the school of their choice.

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BestColleges

MARCH 1, 2024

Yale University announced it is reinstating standardized test requirements. The university believes mandatory test requirements can help level the playing field for disadvantaged students. Yale has officially become "test-flexible." Applicants will thus have four options for submitting standardized test results.

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BestColleges

MARCH 12, 2024

The University of Pennsylvania will extend its test-optional policy for another year. Penn's announcement follows news that Dartmouth, Yale, and Brown will reinstate standardized test requirements beginning next fall. Test-optional colleges could realize a competitive admissions advantage over rivals that require scores.

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Berkeley² Academy

MARCH 15, 2024

Some ,, big changes are coming to UT Austin admissions in 2024—today we’ll go over important details regarding their standardized testing policy, essay prompts, application deadlines, and more. Under the former test-optional policy, over 40% of UT applicants elected to have the university consider their SAT or ACT test scores.

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PrepScholar

MAY 15, 2023

Many colleges have adopted test optional admissions policies over the past several years…but what about top schools? Is Harvard test optional? Are Ivy League schools test optional? In this article, we’ll walk you through Harvard’s current testing policies and the testing policies at top 25 universities.

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Peterson's Blog

OCTOBER 23, 2024

Standardized tests, like the SAT and ACT, are used to determine academic readiness and skills for entering university. In this blog, we will cover the current data on scores year after year, factors associated with the changes, and how to best approach these standardized tests in light of recent data.

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AdmissionSight

NOVEMBER 16, 2024

won’t require standardized test scores. The rise of the best test optional colleges is changing the game, giving students new ways to stand out in the admissions process. If you have test anxiety, decided to skip the SAT or ACT, or didn’t quite hit the scores you hoped for, you’re not out of luck.

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Spark Admissions

APRIL 11, 2023

According to Columbia, this move was prompted by a growing recognition of the flaws in standardized testing and the school’s desire to make the admissions process more equitable and accessible to a broader range of students. For decades, standardized tests have been central to the college admissions process.

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Spark Admissions

APRIL 11, 2023

According to Columbia, this move was prompted by a growing recognition of the flaws in standardized testing and the school’s desire to make the admissions process more equitable and accessible to a broader range of students. For decades, standardized tests have been central to the college admissions process.

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BestColleges

FEBRUARY 7, 2024

The lack of standardized testing places more weight on nonacademic factors like guidance counselor recommendations and nonacademic ratings by admissions officers, which are biased toward higher-income students, according to the study. Students from a U.S.

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Top Tier Admissions

JULY 22, 2024

As the school year approaches, it’s time to finalize your standardized test prep plan and mark your calendar with upcoming SAT and ACT test dates. Not sure which test is your forte? In an ideal world, we recommend beginning one-on-one test prep a few months ahead of your scheduled test date.

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BestColleges

JULY 18, 2024

Many colleges and universities went test-optional during the COVID-19 pandemic, and some have recently reinstated standardized testing requirements. The science section requirement is being removed from the ACT, and the test will be shorter to be more flexible and manageable for students. The ACT Education Corp.,

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BestColleges

MARCH 8, 2024

Brown becomes the third Ivy League school, following Yale and Dartmouth, to reinstate standardized testing requirements. Brown University has become the latest highly selective institution — and third Ivy, following Dartmouth College and Yale University — to reinstate standardized testing requirements, beginning next fall.

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BestColleges

MARCH 20, 2024

It's also important to remember that your standardized test score is just one factor that schools will consider in your overall application. However, a recent study conducted by Harvard University-based research group Opportunity Insights has administrators rethinking their test-optional policies.

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Simply Admissions

AUGUST 13, 2020

This month, we’ll go over post-COVID standardized testing changes and FAQs. The majority of colleges have changed their testing requirements recently, which seems like it’s only caused more confusion! Below is a handy cheat sheet I’ve created that summarizes the different testing policies.

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Top Tier Admissions

FEBRUARY 5, 2024

This morning, Dartmouth College announced that they are reactivating the standardized testing requirement for undergraduate admission, effective with the Class of 2029. Test scores are more reliable than high school grades, partly because of grade inflation in recent years.”

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Shemmassian Academic Consulting

JULY 9, 2023

This became especially true in 2020, given changes in test administration and colleges’ testing policies due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Two years later, colleges continue to update their testing requirements, with some extending their test-optional periods and others opting for permanent changes.

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BestColleges

AUGUST 26, 2024

Race-neutral admissions policies have historically failed to boost racial diversity among college students. Schmill also dismissed any notion that the decline in underrepresented minorities results from MIT's reinstatement of standardized testing in 2022.

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Top Tier Admissions

MAY 17, 2024

Yale’s Class of 2028 early acceptance rate was the lowest since Yale adopted its current single-choice non-binding early action policy — 9.02%. Brown University , Harvard University and Cornell University have also shifted their policies to require SAT or ACT scores, as have many other highly selective schools.

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Solomon Admissions

DECEMBER 8, 2023

According to Forbes , many of these schools did so to help combat the effects of COVID, but as COVID cases have been on a drastic decline schools are standing by this policy for a multitude of reasons. These universities recognize that standardized tests alone do not fully represent a student’s abilities, talents, and/or potential.

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BestColleges

JUNE 11, 2024

Several universities — including Harvard, Dartmouth, Yale, and Brown — have recently reinstituted standardized test requirements. The university paused its standardized testing requirements in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, offering undergraduate applicants the choice to submit their scores.

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ACM College Consulting

MAY 3, 2024

In 2024, we have already seen several selective universities, including MIT, Cornell, Yale and Brown announce that they will once again require test scores of some sort (each policy is frustratingly different or vague) for the next application year. Students should research the admissions policies and data of the schools on their list.

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BestColleges

MAY 17, 2024

The University System of Georgia Board of Regents voted May 14 to reinstate standardized testing at the four schools, according to The Associated Press. removed these test requirements for admission during the COVID-19 pandemic. Four Georgia universities are the latest to reverse their test-optional admissions policies.

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Top Tier Admissions

JUNE 14, 2024

None of the UCs offer early admission or consider standardized test scores. UT Austin announced in March that after four years of test-optional admissions for undergraduate admissions it will once again require standardized test scores , beginning with applications for the Fall 2025 semester.

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Spark Admissions

JUNE 9, 2023

In addition to being administered completely digitally, the test will have some new features that could make it a better or worse option for you, particularly in the context of extended test-optional admissions policies. The older paper test took 3 hours to complete, while the new SAT exam takes 2 hours and 14 minutes.

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Top Tier Admissions

APRIL 19, 2024

BROWN’S CHANGING ADMISSIONS POLICIES Brown University announced in early March that it would once again require students applying for fall 2025 admission to submit either a SAT or ACT score. Brown followed the lead of Dartmouth College and Yale University who will also require standardized test scores , effective for the Class of 2029.

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Top Tier Admissions

JUNE 12, 2024

Christiansen said around half of the applicant pool submitted standardized test scores , similar to previous years. The university’s test-optional policy will continue through Fall 2027. Standardized Testing Policies: A Shifting Landscape What Are the Little Ivies?

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Koodoos Learning

OCTOBER 9, 2022

that are now test-optional, according to the National Center for Fair and Open Testing.” Now more than ever, public and private institutions alike are opting for test-optional or test-flexible. Meanwhile, Test-Flexible means that you get to choose which specific scores colleges consider.

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Inside Emory Admission

MARCH 29, 2023

>> Updated March, 2023 Emory University has extended its test optional policy for applicants who plan to enroll as first-year students in Fall 2024. In addition, transfer applicants for Fall 2024 can also take advantage of this test optional policy. WHO DOES THE POLICY APPLY TO?

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Top Tier Admissions

APRIL 12, 2024

Other Ivy League institutions, including Dartmouth College , Yale University , and Brown University , announced recently they would require standardized test scores again, effective for the Class of 2029. START NOW Harvard will accept alternative forms of testing, such as AP exam results , only in exceptional circumstances.

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Berkeley² Academy

APRIL 18, 2024

institutions have adopted a test-optional policy in acknowledgement of the limited access to testing during this time. However, several colleges are beginning to reinstate required testing for the 2025-26 admissions season, and others have begun to take a more flexible approach to their standardized testing policies.

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Top Tier Admissions

OCTOBER 9, 2024

COLLEGE ADMISSIONS TRENDS Testing Requirements — The Ever-Shifting Landscape In the last several months, Brown University , Dartmouth College , Harvard University , and Yale University have all returned to requiring standardized testing as part of the admissions process, beginning with applicants to the Class of 2029.

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Admitted

JUNE 28, 2023

iStock One of the most significant effects of the COVID-19 pandemic in the college admission ecosystem was the relatively rapid and nearly wholesale adoption of test-optional (or test-free, in some cases) admission policies by colleges and universities.

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