Complete List of Colleges in the U.S. that STILL require SAT and ACT Scores
This is a guest blog post from our academic program Tigerway. You can read the original post here.
In this informative blog post, we’re going to go over the list of the most applied-to colleges and universities in the U.S. that still require SAT and ACT scores for admission.
SAT Scores can be one of the most powerful leveling field factors to help students from under-represented high schools get noticed by admission officers at top U.S. Universities.
We’re going to separate the lists out of selectiveness and non-selectiveness.
Here are the top selective U.S. universities that now require or have officially stated that they are reinstating SAT/ACT testing requirements:
Harvard University
MIT
Georgetown University
Purdue University
Stanford
California Institute of Technology
Brown University
Dartmouth University
Cornell University
Brown University
Vanderbilt University
University of Wisconsin
University of Texas Austin
It is important to note that there are certain states in the U.S. where public Universities require SAT/ACT Scores: Georgia and Florida both have public colleges that all require SAT/ACT scores. There are strong incentives for students to do well on these exams because of scholarship considerations.
Here is a list of good schools with higher acceptance rates but now have SAT/ACT exams being required.
Alcorn State University
Auburn University
Augusta University
Delta State University
Fairmont State University
Florida Atlantic University
Florida Gulf Coast University
Florida International University
Florida Polytechnic University
Florida State UniversityTallahassee
Georgia Institute of Technology
Georgia State University
Georgia Southern University
Kennesaw State University
Louisiana Tech University
New College of Florida
Tennessee State UniversityNashville, TN
United States Air Force Academy
United States Merchant Marine Academy
United States Military Academy
United States Naval Academy
University of Arkansas
University of Central Florida
University of Florida
University of Georgia
University of Memphis
University of North Florida
University of South Florida
University of West Florida
University of Tennessee
Why Are SAT Testing Requirements Returning at Some Colleges
Level Playing Field: The SAT and ACT exams are the only standardized metric across the college application process.
Diversity and Equity Inclusion (DEI) Considerations: SAT Scores routinely help admission officers find talented high schools from under-represented high schools
Academic Rigor: Along with a strong GPA, a high SAT score completes the description of “strong academic rigor” at the top colleges.
Understanding Your Scores relative to your academic environment: If your SAT scores are strong relative to your high school class, you will have an advantage in the admissions process.
Other Things to Consider about the SAT
Many universities have program specific requires like BS/MD programs or STEM major requirements:
Program-Specific Requirements: STEM majors and departments often require a higher SAT Math score to be considered competitive in the process.
Scholarship Potential: Universities often have scholarship requirements tied to SAT and ACT scores. Higher scores can be bigger merit packages.
University admission policies surrounding SAT/ACT requirements are constantly changing. While we do have the view that more and more schools will go back to test-required, we ultimately do not know if your specific targets school will make it a requirement. That being said, the benefits of having a strong test score far outweigh the costs of having to prepare for the exam. For students aiming to get into schools with admission rates under 20% (only 1 in 5), we would strongly recommend putting in the effort required to score high on the SAT because it opens up more opportunities in the college admissions process.
More information about Tigerway can be found on www.tigerwayprep.com. This is a guest post from our program’s website.
