Yale Restores: Yale University has announced its decision to reintroduce standardized test scores for undergraduate admissions starting in fall 2025, becoming the second Ivy League institution, after Dartmouth, to move away from pandemic-era test-optional policies.
Acknowledging the imperfections of standardized tests, Yale stated that application reviews without scores often led admissions officers to place greater emphasis on other application components.
Yale Restores Update
However, this approach frequently disadvantaged applicants from lower socio-economic backgrounds, the university noted.
Despite this shift, Yale highlighted its ability to significantly enhance diversity within its student body before the pandemic, with notable increases in Pell Grant-eligible students, first-generation college attendees, and underrepresented minority students between 2013 and 2019.
Following suit, Dartmouth College recently announced a similar decision informed by new research. Dartmouth will reinstate the standardized testing requirement for undergraduate admissions, starting with the Class of 2029.
The move comes amid a broader trend in US higher education, with over 1,900 schools and universities currently adopting test-optional policies, according to FairTest.
Additionally, in 2022, California State University, one of the nation’s largest public university systems, eliminated standardized testing from its admissions procedures.
Yale’s decision to reintroduce standardized testing reflects ongoing debates within academia regarding the role and impact of standardized tests in the admissions process, highlighting the complex interplay between equity, diversity, and academic merit.