SAT skill guides

Which colleges require the SAT or ACT for fall 2027?

For students applying in 2026-27 to start college in fall 2027, MIT, Stanford, Caltech, Johns Hopkins, Georgetown, and six of the eight Ivy League schools require the SAT or ACT, and so do large public universities including UT Austin, Ohio State, Georgia Tech, UGA, Auburn, and all 12 Florida public universities. Princeton, Columbia, Notre Dame, and Vanderbilt are still test-optional this year but have announced they will require scores later, and the University of California and Cal State don't use SAT or ACT scores in admission at all.

We checked every policy below on the college's own admissions site or official announcement on October 27, 2026. Each row links to the page we used.

Colleges that require SAT or ACT scores for fall 2027

College Policy Applies to Source
MIT Required. SAT or ACT First-year and transfer applicants mitadmissions.org
Harvard Required. AP, IB, A-level, or national exam results count only in exceptional cases when the SAT or ACT isn't accessible All applicants college.harvard.edu
Yale Required. AP and IB scores are welcome but don't replace the SAT or ACT First-year and transfer applicants admissions.yale.edu
Dartmouth Required. Students at U.S. high schools must send the SAT or ACT. Students at high schools outside the U.S. can use AP, IB, A-level, or national exam results instead First-year applicants admissions.dartmouth.edu
Brown Required First-year applicants admission.brown.edu
Penn Required. Students facing hardship can submit a testing waiver First-year and transfer applicants admissions.upenn.edu
Cornell Required First-year applicants. Transfers don't need scores admissions.cornell.edu
Stanford Required First-year applicants admission.stanford.edu
Caltech Required. New this year, readers see SAT section scores of 750 and up (ACT 33 and up) only as a score band, not the exact number Fall 2027 first-year applicants admissions.caltech.edu
Johns Hopkins Required First-year applicants. Transfers don't need scores apply.jhu.edu
Georgetown Required First-year applicants uadmissions.georgetown.edu
Carnegie Mellon Required for the School of Computer Science. Most other colleges are test-flexible, meaning you must send scores but AP, IB, A-level, or French Baccalaureate results count too. Fine Arts is test-optional First-year applicants cmu.edu
University of Texas at Austin Required. Send at least one official SAT or ACT score from the testing agency. The CLT also counts Summer and fall 2027 freshmen admissions.utexas.edu
Purdue Expected. Purdue "expects applicants to have SAT, ACT or CLT scores" and accepts applications without one only in exceptional cases First-year applicants admissions.purdue.edu
Ohio State (Columbus campus) Required. Regional campuses don't use scores First-year applicants, except those out of high school two or more years undergrad.osu.edu
Georgia Tech Required. The CLT doesn't replace the SAT or ACT First-year applicants admission.gatech.edu
University of Georgia Required. "There is no test optional pathway to UGA" First-year and dual enrollment applicants admissions.uga.edu
Georgia State, Augusta, Kennesaw State, Georgia Southern, Georgia College & State Required under University System of Georgia policy Admission for fall 2026 and later usg.edu
University of Florida Required. SAT, ACT, or CLT All first-year applicants admissions.ufl.edu
Florida's other 11 public universities, including FSU, USF, UCF, FIU, and FAU Required under Florida Board of Governors regulation. SAT, ACT, or CLT First-time-in-college applicants flbog.edu
University of Tennessee, Knoxville Required. Only tests taken through December 2026 count All first-year applicants admissions.utk.edu
Auburn Required. Official scores are needed for a complete application Fall 2027 first-year applicants auburn.edu
University of Miami Required for most applicants. Optional for some music performance, BFA, and architecture applicants and for students at high schools outside the U.S. First-year applicants admissions.miami.edu
U.S. Military Academy (West Point) Required. SAT, ACT, or CLT, with official scores by January 31 Class of 2031, entering summer 2027 westpoint.edu
U.S. Naval Academy Required. SAT, ACT, or CLT, taken before February 1, 2027. Scores from tests taken with accommodations aren't accepted All candidates usna.edu
U.S. Air Force Academy Required. ACT, CLT, or SAT, with official scores by January 31 All candidates usafa.edu
U.S. Coast Guard Academy Required All applicants uscga.edu

Required only below a GPA cutoff

A few big public universities require scores only from applicants under a set GPA. If you're above the line, sending scores is your choice.

College Policy Applies to Source
University of Alabama Required if your cumulative high school GPA is below 3.0. Required from every applicant starting with 2028 entry 2027 entry admissions.ua.edu
LSU Required if your weighted high school GPA is below 3.5 Any 2027 entry term lsu.edu
UNC-Chapel Hill Required only if your weighted GPA is below 2.8, in which case you need an ACT of 17 or higher or an SAT of 930 or higher. This is UNC System policy 2026-27 and later admissions.unc.edu

Test-optional this year, required starting fall 2028 or 2029

These schools have already announced the switch. If you're a senior, you can apply without scores. If you're a junior, plan to test.

College Fall 2027 When scores become required Source
Princeton Test-optional Fall 2028 entry (2027-28 cycle) admission.princeton.edu
Columbia Test-optional August 2027, for the 2027-28 cycle (fall 2028 entry). Students facing hardship can request a waiver undergrad.admissions.columbia.edu
Notre Dame Test-optional Fall 2028 entry (2027-28 cycle) admissions.nd.edu
Claremont McKenna Test-optional Fall 2028 cycle cmc.edu
Vanderbilt Test-optional for fall 2027 and fall 2028 Fall 2029 entry admissions.vanderbilt.edu

What changed for this application year

Test-optional and test-free schools

Test-optional means you decide whether to send scores. These schools say they are test-optional for fall 2027 applicants:

Test-free means the school won't look at SAT or ACT scores for admission even if you send them. The University of California doesn't consider SAT or ACT scores for admission or scholarships. Scores can still be used to meet minimum eligibility requirements or for course placement after you enroll. UC said on July 22, 2026 that no one applying for fall 2027 needs scores and that it hasn't decided anything for fall 2028. A UC faculty committee is due to report on testing by February 12, 2027, and the Regents have asked for a policy recommendation by June 2027.

Cal State no longer uses the SAT or ACT to decide admission at any CSU campus. If you're admitted, scores can help place you in math and English courses.

What this means for you

If even one college on your list requires scores, you need a test date. For seniors, the December 5, 2026 SAT is the last fall date, and regular registration closes November 20. Check that December works for each school. Penn accepts the December 5 SAT for regular decision, Stanford and MIT accept tests taken by the end of December, and UT Knoxville counts only tests taken through December 2026. The December SAT guide has a study plan for the weeks you have left.

If you're a junior, the 2027 SAT dates are March 6, May 1, and June 5. Your list of test-required schools will be longer than this year's, because Princeton, Columbia, Notre Dame, Claremont McKenna, and Alabama all require scores for fall 2028 entry. Testing in the spring leaves room for a retake in the fall. Most colleges on this page superscore, so at those schools a retake can only raise your best section scores. UT Austin is one exception and uses your highest score from a single test date. The superscore guide explains how that works.

Start with a full-length practice test so you know where you stand. SAT Owl has a free full-length adaptive practice test in the Bluebook format, free printable practice tests, a short diagnostic, and 640 practice questions organized by skill. Our free SAT practice tests guide also lists the official College Board tests in Bluebook, which you should take too.

If every school on your list is test-optional, you can skip the test. Many students still take it once, because a score at or above a school's middle 50% range can help, and some schools use scores for merit aid. Alabama, for example, lets applicants keep their scores out of the admission review and still use them for automatic merit scholarship consideration.

FAQ

Are any Ivy League schools test-optional for fall 2027? Yes, two. Princeton and Columbia are test-optional for students applying in 2026-27, and both will require the SAT or ACT for fall 2028 entry. Brown, Cornell, Dartmouth, Harvard, Penn, and Yale require scores now.

Do UC schools look at the SAT? Not for admission. UC doesn't consider SAT or ACT scores for fall 2027 admission or scholarships. UC is reviewing the policy, and as of its July 22, 2026 statement, no decision had been made for fall 2028.

Is the December SAT too late for fall 2027? For regular decision at most schools on this list, December 5 is the last SAT you can use. Penn, Stanford, MIT, Caltech, and UT Knoxville all name December as their cutoff. Harvard says regular decision applicants can send scores from tests as late as February, and Yale says January and February scores generally arrive in time for regular decision, but don't count on that at other schools.

Can I send the CLT instead of the SAT? At some schools. The University of Florida and Florida's other public universities, UT Austin, Purdue, West Point, the Naval Academy, and the Air Force Academy accept the CLT. Georgia Tech says the CLT doesn't replace the SAT or ACT. Starting in fall 2027, the University System of Georgia lets CLT scores substitute for the SAT at its campuses except Georgia Tech and UGA. Most private colleges on the list name only the SAT and ACT.

Do I need to send official scores when I apply? It depends on the school. MIT, Stanford, Yale, Penn, Cornell, Johns Hopkins, and Georgia Tech accept self-reported scores and ask for official reports only if you enroll. UT Austin, UGA, Auburn, and Ohio State want official scores sent by the testing agency as part of the application, and so does USC if you choose to send scores.

Should I send scores to a test-optional school? Look at the school's own guidance first. Tufts encourages applicants with an SAT of 1300 or higher, or an ACT of 28 or higher, to send them. Rice recommends sending scores if you have them. The University of Chicago says it uses a score only if it helps you. If your score is below a school's middle 50% range and the school doesn't require it, you can usually leave it off.

Does it matter whether I take the SAT or the ACT? No. Every college on this page that requires scores accepts either test. The SAT vs ACT guide can help you pick the one that fits you better.

Policies checked on October 27, 2026. Always confirm on the college's admissions site before you apply.

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