<p>A college’s announcement that SAT scores are “optional” tells the national pool of applicants that that college is beaten on the basis of average SAT score range in comparison with other colleges competing for similar students. It may still be a good college, but there is surely some college </p>
<p>1) in the same region, </p>
<p>2) offering the same programs, </p>
<p>3) at the same price, </p>
<p>at which matriculating students have higher SAT scores than the students that college has been able to attract recently.</p>