Should You Submit Your Test Scores to a Test-Optional School?

"Test optional" does not mean "test irrelevant."

It means the school won't penalize you for not submitting. But if your scores are strong, sending them can genuinely help. And if they're weak, sending them can hurt.

Here's how to make the call.

The Numbers Don't Lie

Let's start with the data, because it's eye-opening.

At Boston College, the acceptance rate was 25% for scholars who submitted scores and 10% for those who didn't.

At Notre Dame, it was 22.4% with scores vs. 11.3% without.

At Fordham, 63% with scores vs. 49% without.

Does that mean everyone should submit? No. It means scholars with strong scores submitted and got in at higher rates. That's the key detail.

And here's another trend worth knowing: more schools are dropping test-optional policies altogether. Princeton, Penn, Carnegie Mellon, and others have already returned to requiring scores. Over time, more will follow.

The Simple Rule

Look up the school's middle 50% score range on their Common Data Set

(Google: school name + "Common Data Set").

That range is where the middle half of admitted scholars landed.

Submit if: your score falls at or above the bottom of that range.

Skip it if: your score falls well below it. You're not hiding anything. You're just not putting a weak number in front of an admissions officer.

A Few Things Scholars Get Wrong

"Not submitting looks suspicious." 

It doesn't. Schools that go test-optional expect half their applicants not to send scores. It's normal.

"I'll explain my low score in the additional info section." 

Context can help, but it rarely undoes the impact of a score well below the range.

"I'll figure it out the night before the deadline." 

This is a strategy decision. It deserves more than five minutes.

The Bottom Line

Know your numbers. Know the school's numbers. Be honest about what story your application is already telling.

If your score adds to that story, send it. If it doesn't, you have every right to leave it out.

Every scholar deserves a guide for decisions like this one. If you want help thinking through your list and your scores, reach out at futureboundpr.com.