Thought Leadership
April 10, 2026
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The days of a simple “take the test, submit the scores” process of college applications are long gone. College admissions is now a complex, constantly shifting mix of policies, testing strategies, and holistic evaluations. Your students today are navigating a real patchwork of test-optional, test-required, and test-flexible policies. On top of that, we’re seeing a big move toward superscoring and, following the 2023 Supreme Court anti-discrimination ruling, colleges have begun to really lean into holistic review. It’s no longer about one score; it's about the full picture of a student's journey, resilience, and impact.
As a principal, you know these aren’t abstract policy debates. These changes directly reshape how your school prepares students, communicates with families, and structures academic opportunities. This first installment of a three-part series, Future-Ready Schools: Trends Every Principal Should Know, explores the college admission landscape. I’ll break down what’s changing, its impact, and the action steps you can take today to lead your school community forward.
In the post–affirmative action era, holistic review is becoming a cornerstone of admissions. Colleges now consistently look beyond test scores to evaluate students across multiple dimensions: Academic rigor, recommendations, essays, leadership, and community impact. Within legal limits, we’re also seeing many institutions emphasizing core traits like character, resilience, and initiative.
I see this collegiate approach as a reflection of the growing adoption of the Portrait of a Graduate framework in K–12 education. A Portrait of a Graduate is a community-built definition of what student success looks like and how to achieve it.
When what your school values intentionally align with what colleges or universities value, your students’ profiles naturally become more powerful. I’ve seen firsthand how this alignment makes academic and skill transcripts, essays, and recommendations work together to show a student’s full potential. Research supports this alignment. The College Board has noted that the new digital SAT’s focus on data reasoning and evidence-based writing reflects the competencies strong classrooms build. And Harvard researchers have found that the combination of course rigor and standardized testing is still the best predictor of college success.
Audit access to advanced coursework. Review enrollment in AP, IB, and dual-enrollment programs to ensure equitable participation and targeted support.
Integrate college-readiness skills into daily instruction. Embed analytical reading, evidence-based writing, and data literacy across content areas.
Strengthen your school profile. Highlight how your curriculum develops the qualities colleges now prize: critical thinking, collaboration, and resilience.
Invite outside partners to run workshops. Show educators and counselors how to align curriculum, assessments, test prep, and advisory tools so they can lean into holistic admission expectations.
Principal’s Insight: A strong “success framework” bridges school and college readiness. When your district defines success intentionally, colleges see that vision reflected in everyone of your students’ applications.
The test-optional era, which ballooned during the pandemic, is starting to fade. In fact, I’m seeing a significant boomerang effect. Select schools like Harvard, Brown, and Dartmouth have reinstated SAT and ACT requirements. And they make a compelling case for doing so: when read in context, scores help them identify strong students from under-resourced high schools. But not all select schools chose a single path. Yale, for example, has taken a middle ground with its test-flexible policy. Students can share SAT/ACT scores or AP/IB results.
I often hear principals ask how they should advise students in this environment. The truth is, it depends. These multi-directional shifts are affecting everything from students’ stress levels, to family-decision making, and even your counseling calendar. Critically, we all know from experience that too many students still assume “optional” means “unnecessary.” But that’s rarely true. For applicants, good test scores can still strengthen their applications.
That’s where informed advising and the right test prep can make a difference. A properly structured prep plan helps students test early, evaluate results, and decide strategically whether to submit them. When your counselors can lean on experts for up-to-date testing insights and resources, you, your students and their families get the clarity needed for confident decision making.
Keep an updated “College Testing Policy Matrix.” Refresh it every semester. Include key destination schools, their test status, and score submission deadlines.
Host a yearly “Testing in 2025–26” information night. Use the event to clarify myths, share updates, and guide students and families through current trends.
Encourage every junior to take a baseline SAT or ACT. One practice test gives data for smarter decisions about retesting.
Partner with Kaplan or another trusted advisor. Outside expertise keeps your guidance aligned with current admission data.
Consider agentic tools. Implement AI-powered workflows for counselors that help them expand their reach and impact with students.
Principal Insight: “Optional” doesn’t mean “irrelevant.” Future-ready leaders help students replace emotion with strategic thinking in their testing approach.
More colleges are adopting policies that allow students to take the best section scores from multiple sittings to create a composition. This is a significant shift. Students now need to apply a strategic approach to test preparation and testing itself.
More than 60% of selective colleges now superscore the SAT, and an increasing number do the same for the ACT. Both the College Board and ACT support the practice, noting that it gives a fuller picture of student ability. From my perspective, this policy is a huge win for students. It essentially de-risks the retake process by allowing them to focus on improving specific sections without fear of a lower score. Of course, not every college has followed suit. Some still require all scores, while others, like Harvard, only considers scores from a single test sitting.
These differences shape student strategy. Knowing which schools superscore helps students plan retakes efficiently and avoid unnecessary stress.
Create a “Score Strategy Map.” Focus on your most common destination schools. Note who superscores, who doesn’t, and who requires all scores.
Hold post-test reflection sessions. After results come in, meet with students to analyze section strengths and plan targeted retakes.
Distribute a “Superscoring Explained” handout. Define terms, list schools that superscore, and include examples.
Work with a test-prep partner. Give students the tools to target weaker sections with intentionality and maximize the benefits of superscoring.
Principal’s Insight: Superscoring rewards planning. When students understand how colleges read scores, they learn to test smarter, not harder.
A future-ready school doesn’t just prepare students to get into college; it prepares them to thrive once they’re there. The current trends—testing policy shifts, superscoring, and holistic review—are redefining what it means to be “college ready.” For principals these are not just trends to watch. They’re opportunities to stay nimble, informed, and united in helping every student navigate this new evolving landscape.
From my work with schools across the country, I know the vital role you play in that work. You are the connection point for instructors, counseling, students, families, and the community. By harnessing the power of all of these constituencies, your school becomes more than a pipeline to college. It becomes a launchpad for lifelong success.
And we’re here to help make that vision a reality. If you’re interested in learning how Kaplan can partner with you and your school, or you want to further explore the ideas in this blog, reach out to me at jason.bedford@kaplan.edu.
Jason Bedford leads cross-functional teams at Kaplan that support students, families, and educators with the right resources, tools, and knowledge to be college- and career-ready. He aims to bring about positive individual and organizational transformation.
