Rona Aydin is the founder of Oriel Admissions, a Princeton-based college admissions consulting firm advising families nationwide on elite university admissions strategy. An Oxford University graduate, Rona leads a deeply experienced team whose distinctive 360 approach treats every part of the application - academics, testing, activities, essays, and interviews - as one connected strategy.
Swarthmore extended its test-optional policy for up to five more years, with a twist: the consider-or-suppress election cannot be changed after submitting. Learn the suppression rules, the IB Diploma exception, why the SAT is superscored but the ACT is not, and when submitting is the right call.
Emory is test optional through the 2026-27 cycle across Emory College and Oxford College, every decision plan, transfers, and all Scholar Program merit awards. Learn how Emory's score suppression works, its distinctive superscore rules, the AP reporting nudge, and when submitting is the right call.
UCLA does not consider SAT or ACT scores in admissions or scholarship decisions at all, under the UC system's test-free policy. Scores serve only eligibility and course placement. Learn what carries a UCLA application instead, and why faculty pressure is putting the policy under real review.
UChicago has been test optional since 2018, longer than any elite peer, and runs a unique No Harm policy: submitted SAT or ACT scores are considered only if they positively affect the decision. Learn how the one-way rule works, the four application rounds, and when submitting makes sense.
Pomona is permanently test optional for first-year and transfer applicants, with no admissions advantage to submitting. Learn the one contrarian rule, ACT submitters must include the Science section, the yes-answer completeness trap, and how Pomona superscores across exam versions.
Wellesley remains test optional for fall 2027 entry, with about 45 percent of enrolling students applying score-free. Learn the asymmetric preference-change rule, what the committee reads for writing and quantitative skill instead, and when submitting scores strengthens the file.
NYU remains test optional through the 2026-27 cycle, and students who submit choose exactly one testing type from the most flexible menu in elite admissions: SAT, ACT, three AP exams, IB results, or approved international qualifications. Learn how the select-one rule works and when to submit.
The University of Michigan is test optional: applicants choose whether SAT or ACT scores are considered, with AP and IB results read in context either way. Learn Michigan's firm November 1 and February 1 score deadlines, the new binding Early Decision round, and when submitting is the right call.
Amherst is test optional for all first-year and transfer applicants, domestic and international, and evaluates submitters on the most advantageous combination of scores across every test date. Learn Amherst's reporting channels, verification rules, and when submitting strengthens the file.
Georgetown requires official SAT or ACT scores from all applicants and restored its requirement earlier than any elite peer. Learn Georgetown's distinctive rules: official reports only, all ACT sittings required, internal superscoring of the SAT, and what is changing in the 2026-27 cycle.
Williams describes itself as truly test optional: applicants choose whether scores are considered and may change that choice until their decision program's deadline. Learn the full-set-of-scores rule, superscoring across legacy and enhanced ACT formats, and when submitting strengthens the file.
WashU remains test optional for fall 2027 entry, with the requirement automatically waived for non-submitters and no penalty. Learn WashU's generous superscore rules, its most-advantageous-test policy, the new Early Action round, and when submitting scores is the right call.
Harvard requires the SAT or ACT for all first-year applicants, a policy reinstated in April 2024 starting with the Class of 2029. Learn what the requirement covers, the narrow exceptions for students without test access, score timing for early and regular decision, and how to plan testing for Harvard.
The University of Virginia is one of the nation's top public universities, known for its founding by Thomas Jefferson, strong programs in business, law, and the liberal arts, a distinctive honor system and tradition of student self-governance, and exceptional value.
Pomona College is one of the nation's premier liberal arts colleges, known for its top-ranked undergraduate education, membership in the Claremont Colleges consortium, strengths across the sciences, economics, and arts, and a close-knit community in sunny Claremont, California.
UC Berkeley is the flagship of the University of California and one of the top public research universities in the world, known for its engineering and computer science, the Haas School of Business, world-leading sciences and Nobel-laureate faculty, and a legacy of research and activism.