很多的学校在这两年疫情期间宣布SAT/ACT/GRE/GMAT 等标化考试为optional， 有的设置去掉了递交成绩入口，意味着是完全不需要的。学校的解释一般是疫情，考生考试比较不方便。但也有学校是宣布比如SAT/ACT是永久的不要求了，而给出的理由是这些考试反应出来的更多是阶级的差异，比如家境好的，一般考试考的好，因为有足够多的资源去考高分。

以上观点的来源

While the College Board continued to look for ways to make the SAT more equitable. Some colleges came up with a solution of their own, not requiring the SAT in the first place. That's after the break. The idea to make tests like the SAT optional has been quietly gaining momentum for decades.

So there's been a movement that's been going on for 40 years, and that has been schools are moving test optional.

出处 WSJ: Is This the End of the SAT? FEBRUARY 1, 2022

关于第二个理由，确实标化考试背后有比较严重的阶级差异，但是申请里面的其他的类别，特别是课外的活动背后的阶级差异是更为严重的。所以这个理由是不完全成立的，只能说社会的矛头在这个考试上，而对于学校来说去掉考试要求，相比于去掉其他的要求是公关起来更为容易的。

另外让考试为optional 对于学校的ranking 其实影响也不大。下面是US News 的college 排名标准

highlight 部分可以看到成绩的占比是整体的5%，哪怕是和新生有关的全部项目的影响加起来也只是7%，不算是一个很影响排名的因素。当然我们也可以认为对于顶尖学校来说，5%的权重也是要好好把握的。那么我们来看下这个权重分是怎么可以拿到的？对于名校来说，考试optional 对于ta们的排名有没有影响？

Schools were instructed to report scores for all exams they had on record, including in cases when an exam was not used in the admissions decision. Schools that excluded groups of students in their reporting – such as student athletes and international students – had their test scores discounted in the calculations by 15%. Separately, in a change due to the disruption of SAT and ACT test taking and the college admission process caused by the coronavirus, schools reporting a total count of SAT and ACT submissions less than 50% of their fall 2020 entering classes had their test scores discounted by 15% in the rankings calculations. This is a change from previous years, which were based on a 75% submission rate of fall entering students before the ACT and SAT scores were discounted by 15% in the rankings.

出自 US News 官网 A More Detailed Look at the Ranking Factors 

之前是学校递交的数据如果没有达到75%以上的新生有SAT/ACT 成绩，在这个项目上就会惩罚性的discount 15%，因为疫情，目前只要50% 的新生有递交成绩就好。所以对于要拿到这个5%权重分数的名校来说，只要有一半的同学有高分的SAT/ACT 就够了。而对于这些学校来说，录取的学生里有50%的同学还有标化考试成绩是比较容易实现的；

至于那些直接没有给成绩递交入口的学校，你可以理解为，ta们可能不觉得这个5%的权重对于ta们的排名有什么影响。

综上可以看出，考试成绩optional，对于学校来说不存在太明显的牺牲。