New Admissions Rules:
ED, EA, SAT, and Essays

June 22, 2026 

Colleges keep changing their admissions rules, and the changes are not random.

For the 2026–2027 application cycles, several well-known colleges are adjusting their application policies. Some added Early Decision or Early Action programs, while others some require SAT or ACT scores again. Others re supplemental essays.

These changes may look like separate updates, but they point to the same larger trend. Colleges are changing policies in ways that help them manage their own admissions goals: Colleges want more applications, a higher yield rate (more admitted students who actually enroll), better information about whether students can handle the academics, and a fast and efficient application process.

For students, the message is clear: the rules are changing, and the strategy behind the rules matters.

The University of Southern California (USC) and the University of Michigan are adding binding Early Decision (ED) in addition to their existing early application options. The University of Florida and Florida State University also now offer Early Decision.

ED is binding. If a student is admitted, the student is expected to enroll. That is valuable for colleges because it improves their yield rate. In Regular Decision or Early Action, a college may need to admit several students to enroll one. Some admitted students will choose another college, compare financial aid offers, stay closer to home, or choose a less expensive option.

Washington University in St. Louis, Syracuse University, and Connecticut College just added Early Action in addition to their existing ED options. That raises an obvious question: why would a college that already has ED add another early application program? Because Early Action solves a different problem. ED helps colleges secure students while EA helps colleges increase application numbers.

EA is non-binding, so students can apply early, receive a decision earlier, and still compare offers until May 1. That makes EA easier for students to apply. They can add the college to their list without giving up other options.

Testing is also coming back at a growing number of colleges. Recently, the University of Miami has reinstated required testing. The University of Florida, Florida State University, and the University of Georgia require SAT or ACT scores. Other well-known colleges, including Harvard, Yale, Brown, Dartmouth, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), the California Institute of Technology (CalTech), and Georgetown University, have also moved back toward required testing.

Even the University of California, which remains test-free for now, is formally reviewing whether standardized testing should return in some form. As I explained in my article, Is the UC Bringing Back the SAT?, more than 1,400 UC faculty members have signed a letter asking the UC to reinstate SAT or ACT math scores for STEM applicants. 

Testing fits the same larger pattern: colleges want more useful information. Grades are harder to compare across high schools. Grade inflation is real, and course titles can sound similar while representing very different levels of preparation. Standardized testing gives colleges another academic signal. It can help admissions offices judge whether students are really prepared for the level of work they will face, especially in demanding majors.

Another major change is the reduction or removal of supplemental essays. The University of Miami, the University of Georgia, and Tulane University are examples of colleges moving away from some school-specific essays. The University of Georgia, for example, will require the Common Application personal essay for Fall 2027 applicants but will no longer require a second Georgia-specific essay. The University of Virginia, University of Washington, Texas Christian University, and Washington University in St. Louis have also been reported as dropping, scaling back, or deprioritizing their supplemental essays.

This helps colleges in several ways. First, fewer essays make the application easier for students to complete. When a college removes an extra writing requirement, more students apply. Second, fewer essays make applications faster to read. A 250-word supplement may seem short, but across tens of thousands of applications, every extra essay adds to the workload. Third, AI has made short supplemental essays less useful as a differentiator.