Updated March 11, 2023
As of March 1, 2023, Columbia University admissions officers declared a permanent test-optional admissions policy for all first year applicants, starting with the Fall 2024 cycle.
We have designed our application to afford the greatest possible opportunity and flexibility for students to represent themselves fully and showcase their academic talents, interests and goals. Standardized testing is not a required component of our application.
Bold added by Columbia Admissions officers
Thus, as students are coming to expect, under test optional admissions policies, they are empowered to choose how to represent their aptitudes and qualifications in their application.
Furthermore, Columbia admissions officers offer the following guidance:
Students who choose not to submit test scores will not be at a disadvantage in our process.
We will continue to evaluate all submitted information within an individualized application review process that considers the unique combination of circumstances shaping each applicant’s journey. The rigor of a student’s curriculum, their academic achievement, and their demonstrated intellectual curiosity will remain central to our review.
Amongst other Ivy League colleges, Cornell University already announced test-optional admissions through the Fall 2024 cycle (affecting the current high school juniors in the Class of 2024), while Harvard University officials will remain test optional for Fall 2024, 2025, and 2026 admissions (affecting the current high school Class of 2024 juniors, high school Class of 2025 sophomores, and high school Class of 2026 freshman.)
As of March 11, 2023, Ivy League admissions officers at Brown University, Dartmouth College, , University of Pennsylvania, and Yale University have all announced the extension of test optional standardized testing policies for Fall 2024, while Princeton University has extended for two more years through Fall 2025.
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