SAT & ACT in 2026: What Top Universities Really Expect from Applicants

The honest answer is no—at least, not in the way many families now believe. While test-optional policies are still very much part of the admissions landscape, the assumption that standardized tests no longer matter at top universities is becoming outdated. As we approach the 2026 admissions cycle, a growing number of highly selective institutions, including several Ivy League schools, are reinstating SAT and ACT requirements. This shift is quiet, measured, and intentional—but it is real.

What we are seeing is not the end of test-optional admissions, but its evolution. During the pandemic, universities adapted quickly to extraordinary circumstances. Test-optional policies were never meant to erase academic standards; they were meant to preserve access and fairness during disruption. Now, as those disruptions fade, universities are recalibrating. Grade inflation, uneven academic contexts, and the challenge of comparing students from vastly different school systems—especially globally—have made evaluation more complex, not less. In that context, standardized tests, for all their imperfections, still offer a shared academic reference point.

At the same time, there is no single direction the sector is moving in. Some universities remain firmly test-optional. Others have made those policies permanent. Many now sit somewhere in between, offering test-flexible options that allow AP, IB, or A-Level scores in place of SAT or ACT results. In some cases, requirements vary by program, academic profile, or GPA threshold. The result is a fragmented landscape where broad statements and simple lists no longer tell the full story.

This is where assumptions become risky. For applicants in 2026, deciding whether to submit test scores is no longer a default choice—it is a strategic one. Strong scores can meaningfully strengthen an application in the right context. Choosing not to submit them can also be the right decision, but only when the rest of the academic record clearly demonstrates rigor and readiness. What no longer works is treating either path as universally correct.

From years of working closely with students across curricula, countries, and ambition levels, one pattern is clear: the most successful applicants are not those chasing trends, but those making intentional, well-informed decisions. College admissions today is not becoming more lenient; it is becoming more precise. Universities reinstating tests are not abandoning holistic review—they are refining it. And universities remaining test-optional are not lowering expectations—they are broadening how excellence is shown.

At Leap2us, our focus is on replacing guesswork with clarity. We help students and families understand how SAT and ACT requirements for 2026 actually work in practice, institution by institution, context by context. Because in an admissions environment shaped by nuance rather than rules, strategy—not headlines—determines outcomes.