Updated September 9, 2026
20 Top Colleges that Require SAT/ACT Scores in 2026-27
Bonus Material: PrepMaven’s SAT Score Ranges for 500 Top Schools
Expert guidance provided by Mike Kleynman (10+ years’ experience in test prep, PhD in English) and reviewed by Kevin Wong (co-founder PrepMaven, 20+ years’ experience in test prep).
While many schools went test-optional for several years after the pandemic, we’re now seeing many of those schools reverse their policies and reinstate standardized test requirements.
Almost all colleges now give the SAT and ACT equal weight in admissions, so colleges on this list will typically accept either one.
Below, we’ll provide a list of 20 top colleges requiring submission of SAT/ACT scores for the 2026-27 application year.
We’ll also offer some guidance on how to turn that to your advantage! Required test scores can help you in your admissions journey, especially if you’re one of the students with a top SAT/ACT score.
At PrepMaven, we’ve coached countless students to 1500+ SATs and 34+ ACTs. We’ll use that experience to offer some helpful guidance on how to master these tests!
In the meantime, we’ve also collected the SAT score ranges for 500 top US schools–download those below and see how your score compares against the medians for your dream schools.
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20 Top Colleges that require SAT/ACT scores
Frequently Asked Questions
Next steps
20 Top Colleges that Require SAT/ACT Scores
In the past couple of years, we’ve seen many top schools like Dartmouth, Brown, and University of Texas – Austin reinstate mandatory standardized testing requirements.
Here are the key trends we’re noticing:
- Some selective schools are reinstating testing policies
- Many state schools require mandatory testing
- For some reason, many Florida universities, in particular, require test score submission
Read on below to see the full list!
| College | Tests Accepted to Satisfy Requirement |
|---|---|
| California Institute of Technology | SAT/ACT |
| Harvard University | SAT/ACT |
| Stanford University | SAT/ACT |
| Princeton University | SAT/ACT |
| Yale University* | SAT/ACT |
| Massachusetts Institute of Technology | SAT/ACT |
| Brown University | SAT/ACT |
| University of Pennsylvania | SAT/ACT |
| Dartmouth College | SAT/ACT |
| Johns Hopkins University | SAT/ACT |
| Cornell University | SAT/ACT |
| Carnegie Mellon University | SAT/ACT |
| Georgetown University | SAT/ACT |
| University of Miami | SAT/ACT |
| College of the Ozarks | SAT/ACT |
| Gallaudet University | SAT/ACT |
| Georgia Institute of Technology | SAT/ACT |
| University of Texas at Austin | SAT/ACT |
| Purdue University | SAT/ACT |
| United States Service Academies (all) | SAT/ACT |
* You’ll see that Yale is a bit different: their testing requirements can be fulfilled by sending any standardized tests from their list. That means if you submit AP or International Baccalaureate scores, you’re not technically required to submit SAT/ACT scores.
Wondering just how good an SAT score you need to get into one of those schools? Check out our free spreadsheet below, which contains the SAT score ranges for these schools and many more.
Frequently Asked Questions About Required Testing
- What score do I need to be competitive?
As a rule of thumb, you have a chance of admission if your SAT/ACT score is at or above the 25th percentile score for a particular school.
If your score is below the 25th percentile, it’s unlikely that your application will be seriously considered. Here, we’ve lined up the scores you need to be competitive for each university in the Ivy League, which will keep you an idea of what you’ll need for similar top schools.
If your SAT/ACT score isn’t high enough for your dream school, we recommend finding an SAT/ACT tutor that can help you boost your score.
Our test-prep experts have done research to find the best test-prep tutors out there. Check out our rankings:
- Should I send my test scores to test-optional schools?
The answer here is similar to the one above! If your score is at or above the 25th percentile for a given school, you should send your SAT/ACT scores even if a school is test optional.
The fact is, a strong standardized test score can make a big difference in your chances of admission to a test-optional school!
More and more students work with test prep tutors to improve their chances of admission to top schools: with the hyper-competitive admissions landscape, it’s almost a necessity.
Our test prep tutors come from only the top universities and have 99th percentile scores on the tests they tutor. Contact us to get paired with one of them today!
- How many times should I take the SAT/ACT?
While it’s easy to say “it depends,” we’re also confident in saying that most students should take the test 3 times.
Typically, that’s when students see their highest scores. The first real testing attempt tends to be a bit rocky; the second one a bit better; the third usually reflects a student’s real score potential.
That being said, if you reach your score goal on the first attempt, perhaps you want to stop there.
And, on the other hand, there are students who take the test up to 5 times before getting their goal score.
Whether you’re about to take the test for the first time or the fifth time, there are some free resources that’ll help you:
- Your Guide to the 2 Sections of the Digital SAT
- 12 Best SAT Prep Courses
- Guide to SAT Scoring
- How to Get a Perfect ACT Score
- 11 Best ACT Prep Books
- ACT Score Calculator
Next Steps
Whether you’re applying to one of the colleges that requires sending exam scores or just a selective school that is test optional, a high SAT/ACT score will help your chances of admission.
If you’re serious about getting that acceptance, check out our free resources, guides, and practice questions below.
Then, when you’re ready to kick your test prep into high gear, contact us to get paired with an Ivy League tutor for a fraction of the cost of the big test prep companies!
And, to check to see how competitive your SAT score is by comparing it against the SAT scores at 500 of the top universities in the US, download our free resource below.
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Mike Kleynman is an expert test prep tutor (SAT/ACT/LSAT) and college essay consultant, with over a decade of experience and industry-leading results.
With average final scores of 34+ on the ACT and 1500+ on the SAT, nearly all of Mike’s test prep students score in the top percentiles. They also routinely earn admission to the most selective universities: just last year, Mike had students accepted to Brown, Dartmouth, MIT, UC Berkeley, USC, and Carnegie Mellon. The average final LSAT score of his students is over 172, and his law school application coaching students have been accepted to Harvard, Yale, and Columbia Law.
Mike holds a PhD in English from Duke University.
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