Test Prep Schedule in the World of COVID-19

While the pandemic has caused some big changes in the test prep and admissions landscape this past year, one thing has been made clear by colleges going into this next admissions cycle: the standardized tests are not disappearing. Many colleges went test-optional for the class of 2021 in an effort to accommodate for the test cancellations due to the pandemic throughout the spring and fall of 2020. However, with many schools across the country now able to host the exams due to reopening this spring, test-optional colleges are continuing to encourage students to submit test scores.

Finals, AP exams, and application deadlines will all affect how and when you will plan to prepare for an official exam. While this can be a daunting task with so many potential official test dates, we aim to walk you through how to decrease the stress surrounding prep and registering for test dates that will work best for your schedule.

Start with a list of all possible test dates. We’ve provided the calendar of available test dates below, using the Class of 2022 as an example timeline. Once you have a master list of all possibilities, you can start whittling down your list to what dates work for you.

If you do not yet know which test (SAT vs. ACT) you plan to take, consider the reliability of official tests occurring in your area. The pandemic is still affecting the ability of some schools to host official tests, causing last-minute cancellations in areas where schools are still remote due to COVID regulations. If one test has had considerably less reliability than the other, you may want to consider moving forward with preparing to take the more reliable test. For example, San Diego County has had many successful administrations of the ACT, while there have not yet been any successful administrations of the SAT on national test dates since the start of the pandemic.

Pull up your school’s calendar and your personal calendar. Cross out any dates that coincide with school finals, trips, religious observances, sports or social-related activities, or any other prior commitments. Some schools have started to offer their-school-only administrations of the ACT or SAT on non-national test dates. If your school is offering one of these exams, you may want to consider taking the exam on your school’s test date.

Determine the score submission deadlines for your applications. Keep in mind that this may be different from each college’s general application deadline. Some schools, such as the University of California system, accept scores submitted after their application deadline. Cross out any official test dates occurring after your earliest college deadline.

Once you’ve crossed out all prior commitments, create a plan for when and how you will start preparing for the test. If you plan to take a test in early fall, starting to prep over the summer to avoid scheduling conflicts with school may be a good choice. If you plan to take a test in the spring, you may consider your winter course load when determining when to start prep. Whether you decide to prepare with online or in-person instruction may be affected by your test date during COVID (e.g. if your school is still meeting remotely, you may want in-person instruction for ACT/SAT prep).

Have a backup official test date. If there are multiple test dates that may work for you, sign up for at least two and plan to prep for the first date. This way, you are already registered for another test date if your test does get canceled due to COVID, and the second test date is still within your deadline. Having a backup plan will remove stress from the process if things do not go as expected.

While there are numerous factors to consider when preparing for a standardized test during a regular year, interruptions due to COVID-19 require you to have an increased level of planning to ensure that you will be able to sit for a test.