It’s true. Test optional is now prevalent, a trend accelerated by the COVID-19 epidemic. According to Common App, the US undergraduate application website with over 9000 higher education institution members, only 12% of returning members always required a test score for applicants for the 2020-21 season. In the first two months of 2021, 46% of overall applications were submitted by applicants who self-reported a test score, versus 77% in 2020.

However, it also should be noted that this trend toward test optional resulted in a massive surge in applications at some selective colleges. "You might find more students applying to an Ivy League or a school like NYU because they feel like they have a chance (now that test scores are optional)," says MJ Knoll-Finn, senior vice president for Enrollment Management at New York University. NYU saw a 20% spike in applications this year, Harvard 42% and Colgate University more than double (102%).

On top of this surge in applications, Comm App also commented that more selective institutions were also far more likely to receive applications from applicants who had self-reported test scores than their less selective peers.

It is only natural that in absence of a standardized test score, more consideration will be given to other factors in an application, such as GPAs and soft factors. So before saluting to the idea of skipping SAT or ACT, some of the questions to ask yourself are: What school am I aiming for? How strong are my GPAs and other measures of academic strengths? How rigorous is my high school curriculum? Do my extracurricular activities stand out?