Top 10 SAT Accepting Colleges in USA 2025-26

Looking at US admissions in 2025 for the upcoming Spring & Fall intake? Check out the list of SAT accepting colleges in USA and plan your admissions accordingly. Applicants will also get information for test optional and SAT score-free admissions in the US. Read the article for more details. 

Planning to study in USA and want to know about the SAT accepting colleges in USA? We have curated a list of colleges accepting SAT scores along with their ideal cutoff range in this article. Also applicants who are sceptical about submitting SAT scores can look at test-optional US universities. Finally, those who have test anxiety and do not wish to take the SAT can get details about SAT-free universities through this article. So check it out now and plan your US university admissions now!

What is SAT?

SAT is a standardised exam required for undergraduate admissions across various US universities. The SAT exam is conducted seven times a year in - March, May, June, August, October, November and December across 129+ SAT centres in India. The SAT applicants are tested on their verbal and mathematical skills. The SAT exam pattern is simple, there are two sections Reading + Writing (RW) and Mathematics and both have a certain set of questions tested across 2 hours and 14 minutes. There is no predefined SAT eligibility for applicants, but ideally, applicants should take the SAT exam in class XI-XII or after class XII. 

SAT syllabus includes questions about literature, history, and science with tables and bar graphs. There is no negative marking and no penalty for unattempted questions as well. The SAT exam dates are available in these seven months of testing. SAT registrations can happen between three to four weeks before the testing date. SAT exam fees for Indian applicants are USD 130.98 and include sales tax. 

Is SAT Mandatory for UG Admissions in USA?

During the COVID-19 pandemic, the majority of the US universities had either scrapped SAT scores or had become test optional. Since there were no other options for students to go on test centres to appear for the SAT exam. To date, for Fall 2025 admissions, some US universities still choose to be test-optional, while others have slowly started bringing back the SAT scores as a mandatory component of the application process. 

Some of the major Ivy League schools like Harvard, Dartmouth, Yale and Brown universities were test-optional for the past three years, but for Fall 2025, they have announced that SAT scores will be important to get through the admission process. 

List of Top 10 SAT Accepting Colleges in USA 2025-26

International students aiming for admission for Fall 2025 intake in USA should know the SAT accepting colleges in the USA and prepare themselves accordingly for the admission process. Here’s a list of the top 10 SAT-accepting colleges in USA for the 2025-26 admission cycle along with their ideal SAT cutoff:

SAT Accepting US Universities 2025-26	SAT Cutoff (Ideal not Exact)
Yale University	1470-1515
Harvard University	1500-1580
Dartmouth College	1450-1550
Brown University	1520-1570
Cornell University	1480-1550
Massachusetts Institute of Technology	1520-1570
California Institute of Technology (CalTech)	1500-1545
University of Chicago	1220-1600
New York University	1480-1520
University of Pittsburgh	1350-1470

It will be essential for international applicants to note that the following universities have reinstated the SAT score requirements for the Fall 2025 cycle only recently:

• Yale University
• Harvard University
• Brown University
• Dartmouth College
• Cornell University
• CalTech

These US universities have started accepting SAT only recently for Fall 2025 admissions. Previously they were all test-optional and it was up to the students to submit or not submit their SAT scores. Check out What is a Good SAT Score?

Top US Colleges: SAT is Optional for 2025 Applications

Various US  universities have chosen to make standardised tests optional and do not ‘mandatorily’ require SAT scores as part of the admission process. Some of the US colleges where the SAT is optional for submission for the 2025 admission cycle are as follows: 

US Colleges Where the SAT is Optional for 2025 Applicants
Princeton University	University of Delaware	Boston University
Columbia University	Stanford University	Carnegie Mellon University
Duke University	University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign (UIUC)	Texas A&M University
Emory University	University of Wisconsin - Madison	The Ohio State University

Exceptionally, US universities accepting SAT scores optionally are those where applicants have to fulfil eligibility criteria or have lower GPA scores. To quote, UCLA accepts SAT scores if applicants lack eligibility fulfilment criteria anywhere. Also, the University of Carolina, Chapel Hills encourages international students to submit SAT scores if their GPA calculator shows a GPA below 2.8. And for Arizona State University for supplemental information. 

Universities to Accept SAT from 2026

Apart from the US colleges accepting SAT optionally, there are universities which have announced to begin accepting SAT from 2026 admissions, check out below:

• Carnegie Mellon University
• Johns Hopkins University
• Georgia State University
• Kennesaw State University
• Georgia Southern University
• Augusta University

Thus, those applying to these above-mentioned US universities can check admission requirements for 2025 and utilise the advantage of test-optional policies or score-free admission applications, if the rule applies. If applying in 2026 to either Fall or Spring Intake in USA at the above universities, applicants would need to prepare for the SAT and appear for the exam. 

10 Best SAT-Free Colleges in the USA

Now that we have discussed the US colleges accepting SAT scores, test-optional universities in USA for SAT and also those US universities which will reinstate SAT acceptance from the next admission cycle, let us now check SAT score-free universities for admission below:  

1. University of Pennsylvania
2. University of California, Berkeley (UCB)
3. Northwestern University
4. University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA)
5. University of California, San Diego (UCSD)
6. University of Washington
7. University of Southern California (USC)
8. University of California, Davis (UCD)
9. University of California, Santa Barbara (UCSB)
10. Vanderbilt University

As mentioned above, a majority of the University of California system universities are SAT-test-free or test-blind universities. Apart from this, a popular Ivy League school - UPenn is also SAT-free for international admissions. These universities look at selection based on the applicant's overall academic profile. Some of the factors considered beyond SAT scores for admission include assessments of:

• Transcripts or mark sheets
• SOP
• LOR
• GPA scores
• Extracurricular activities
• Admission essays
• Resume

Thus, those looking at US universities not accepting SAT scores can consider applying to the above-mentioned ones for 2025 admissions. But also ensure that their academic profile is impressive enough to get through in one go. 

So this was all about SAT accepting colleges in the USA and how international students can choose SAT accepting colleges for admissions. There is also an option to choose test-optional US universities if applicants have a good academic background. Plus, there are test-blind universities also like the University of California which consider other aspects of an applicant rather than the SAT/ACT scores. 

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