More than 1,000 University of California professors are urging the system to reinstate SAT and ACT scores for admissions [2].
The push represents a significant internal challenge to the university's current admissions philosophy. Faculty said that the absence of standardized benchmarks has led to a decline in the academic readiness of incoming students, particularly those entering rigorous STEM programs [1], [3].
Thousands of faculty members across the UC system have joined the call to reconsider the test-free policy [1]. The current movement gained momentum during May and June of this year as professors said that many students lack the foundational knowledge required for college-level work [2], [3].
The UC system stopped considering SAT and ACT scores in 2020 [1]. This shift was part of a broader effort to remove barriers to entry and increase diversity within the student body. However, a growing number of educators now say that the policy has created a gap in academic preparation that hinders student success in the classroom [1], [2].
Faculty members specifically highlighted the impact on science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) admissions [3]. They said that standardized tests provide a necessary objective measure of a student's ability to handle advanced quantitative coursework, a metric that high school grade point averages may not always accurately reflect [1], [2].
While the university administration has not yet reversed the policy, the scale of the faculty opposition suggests a deepening schism within the institution. The debate centers on whether the goal of expanding access to higher education is compromised when students are admitted without the skills necessary to thrive in their chosen majors [1], [3].
“More than 1,000 University of California professors are urging the system to reinstate SAT and ACT scores.”
This conflict highlights a growing tension in U.S. higher education between equity-driven admissions policies and academic rigor. By challenging the 2020 test-free mandate, UC faculty are suggesting that the removal of standardized tests may have inadvertently harmed the very students the policy intended to help by placing them in courses for which they are underprepared.
