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The college admissions season is flying by, and before you know it early admission decisions will be released. Here’s our annual list of early admission decision notification dates!

Beginning last year, the college admissions cycle feels like more of a return to “normal.” After two years of primarily virtual college tours, many schools reopened their campuses for visitors. While remote during the COVID-19 pandemic, students applying during the 2023-24 admissions cycle have spent most of their time in high school attending in-person classes.

However, some of the college admissions changes brought about by the pandemic remain. Most notably, many schools are maintaining test-optional admissions policies. Students also still have the option to discuss how the pandemic impacted their admissions process in the Common App’s optional section.

The COVID-19 pandemic brought on numerous changes within the standardized testing industry, including the introduction of a new, entirely digital testing format and many colleges shifting to a test-optional admissions process for the 2020-21 admissions cycle.

Fast forward a few years. More than 1,900 colleges and universities in the U.S. extended their test-optional policies through the 2023-24 application cycle, with some making the move to test-optional even longer or permanent. Other schools have since reinstated their standardized testing requirements.

Curious about the testing policies of the schools on your best-fit list? Check out our recently updated list below.

Students navigating the college admissions process continue to experience unique challenges and changes, including the announcement of an entirely digital SAT, continued test-optional policies, increasing application numbers, and each student applying to more colleges on average. All of this has led to an even more competitive year at the most selective colleges in the U.S., while other schools plan to admit more students than ever before in order to manage enrollment numbers.

Whether it’s an MOOC, an online SAT course, or another virtual learning experience, there are a variety of reasons why students may turn to digital courses. Now, amidst growing concerns over the recent novel coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak, many schools across the globe are opting for virtual learning so students can continue their coursework during school closures.

Are you ready for Regular Decision notification dates? Admissions offices across the U.S. are working hard to get through hundreds of thousands of Regular Decision college applications for the class of 2028 in order to notify students of their decisions this spring.