Some College say scores are not required. Does this mean you have carte blanche to get out of the SAT or ACT?
Scores Not Required?
When you hear that a school is "test flexible" or "doesn't require scores," it's important to do some research before you assume you're off the testing hook. Although there are technically hundreds of schools that don't require standardized testing, many of them require some other information instead, or only exempt applicants from test scores if they meet other criteria. For example, at University of Texas at Austin, only students who are in the top 8% of their graduating class may opt not to submit scores.
"Test flexible" sounds good, but all it means is that you can submit AP or IB scores instead of those from the SAT or ACT. These schools also accept SAT Subject Tests, which many consider to be more difficult than the general test. So this isn't a huge benefit to most students--they'll have to take a standardized test one way or another.
You should also consider that most schools that don't require scores do allow them, and that other applicants will probably be submitting them. For example, at Hampshire College in Amherst, MA, test scores aren't required but 87% of applicants submit them anyway. Do you want to be in the other 13% if you don't have to? No, you do not. More information is better, and mastering these tests shows admissions officers your strengths. Without scores, they have to assume you're hiding a weakness.
If You Did Poorly on the SAT or ACT
Don't give up! Easily the biggest mistake teenagers make in academics (and a lot of other things) is giving up.
Most students who tank standardized tests are, more than anything else, confused by the format of the exam--and rightly so. Because the SAT and ACT have to be 100% fair and consistent, they've ended up with a lot of weird quirks. But for those same reasons, it can be really easy to understand these quirks (that's what we're here for!) and use the test to your advantage.
Even beyond that, though, the SAT--even though it's trying to test reasoning--actually requires a very limited skillset that can be applied in a variety of ways. SAT and ACT prep (such as PrepScholar!) can define those skills for you--skills which, by the way, aren't completely disconnected from real life. Improve your SAT score by preparing, and it's likely you'll improve in other academic areas as well.
If You've Never Taken the SAT or ACT
Maybe you hate tests, or you hate getting up early (every regular administration of the SAT & ACT starts at 8am), or you don't think you have the time to study. The bottom line is that, compared to your academic (and occupational) future, none of those things matter.
Let's say you apply to 3 schools, and the most prestigious one, Bowdoin College in Maine, doesn't require the SAT or ACT. Only 15% of applicants in 2012 chose not to submit scores, and you are one of those. Although your application will still be considered, it is inherently less broad than those of the other 85% of applicants. Let's say you don't get in, and you end up at your second choice school instead. After 4 years of coursework there, no matter how well you do, you still won't have a diploma from Bowdoin. The prestige associated with a more selective school, not to mention the potentially higher quality education, will serve you for the rest of your life. What's 40 hours of studying compared to that?
The Bottom Line
No matter how you feel about the SAT or ACT, or even whether you'll use them in your applications, you should take them and see how you do. If you don't kill it, do some prep and try again--it's worth the effort, no matter where you apply.
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