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The University of California is reconsidering its test-blind admissions policy after about 3,000 current and former professors urged the system to restore standardized tests. A faculty committee is due to report by Feb. 12, with Academic Senate recommendations expected by June; the Board of Regents has final authority, and no decision to reinstate testing has been made.
The University of California is reviewing whether to bring back the SAT or ACT in freshman admissions after about 3,000 current and former professors called for standardized tests to return. A faculty committee is due to submit a report by Feb. 12, followed by Academic Senate recommendations by June; the UC Board of Regents would have final authority, and no change has been approved.
The professors, who signed two open letters launched early this summer, argue that students are arriving with weak math and writing skills and that the test ban limits the system’s ability to identify applicants who may struggle with UC coursework. They represent a small portion of the university system’s roughly 26,000 faculty. Their concerns are claims about student preparation, not a finding that the admissions policy caused academic decline.
Systemwide indicators cited in the report do not show the declines predicted by opponents of ending test use. Graduation rates have inched up, more students have returned for their second year, and average freshman GPAs have increased since 2021, the first year students entered under the test-free policy. The report does not establish that the policy caused those changes, nor does it show that every student is academically prepared.
The review will examine what role, if any, standardized tests should play. The Academic Senate is expected to make recommendations by June and send them to the Regents, who decide whether the system should require an admissions test. It remains unclear whether the board will hold a vote after receiving the recommendations.
A Test Policy With Systemwide Stakes
The debate affects how applicants are evaluated across one of the country’s largest public university systems. Requiring test scores could give admissions officers another measure of academic readiness, as supporters argue, but it could also change who is competitive for admission and how applicants from different backgrounds are assessed.
The disagreement is also about what counts as evidence of preparation. Supporters point to research they say shows tests can predict college performance better than high school grades. Critics cite research that reaches different conclusions and argue that scores can reflect family income and access to test preparation as well as academic ability. A decision could affect prospective students, current undergraduates and UC campuses, but the review has not yet resolved those competing claims.
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How UC Became Test-Blind
In 2020, the Regents voted unanimously to stop using SAT and ACT scores in admissions. The change came during the COVID-19 pandemic and amid concerns that the tests favored wealthier applicants and carried racial bias. UC became test-blind, meaning admissions officers do not consider scores even if applicants submit them. That differs from test-optional policies, under which applicants may submit scores but are not required to.
A UC task force had recommended keeping the SAT in 2020 and warned that dropping it could reduce student retention and first-year GPAs. According to the current report, those predicted systemwide declines have not appeared in the cited measures. The debate has returned as professors raise concerns about student skills and UC leaders commission a new review. Nationally, many highly selective colleges that paused testing requirements during the pandemic have since resumed using scores, though policies differ by institution.
The UC Student Association, which represents 237,000 undergraduates, opposed reinstatement in a July letter to the Regents. It argued that SAT and ACT scores would not produce better-prepared students and pointed to increased racial and ethnic diversity at UC since 2020. That position is part of the policy debate, not a conclusion of the faculty review.
“does not believe SAT/ACT will result in better prepared students.”
— UC Student Association
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What the Review Has Yet to Settle
No decision to restore testing has been made, and it is not clear whether the Regents will schedule a vote after receiving the Academic Senate’s recommendations. The review’s findings and any proposed policy changes are still pending.
The evidence cited in the debate points in different directions. The report describes rising GPAs, graduation rates and second-year return rates, but those figures do not by themselves determine whether students are adequately prepared or explain why the measures changed. The professors’ concerns about math and writing skills are attributed claims; the supplied material does not give a systemwide assessment quantifying the extent of those gaps.
It is also unresolved how UC would weigh test scores against grades and other application information if it changed policy. The source reports that UCLA admitted students with a broad range of scores before the ban: in 2019, half of admitted students had SAT scores from 1280 to 1530 out of 1600. That example does not establish what a new UC-wide policy would look like.
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Faculty Report and Regents Review
The academic committee is scheduled to deliver its detailed report on UC’s use of standardized tests by Feb. 12. The Academic Senate is then expected to make recommendations to the Regents by June. Those steps will clarify the case made by faculty and the options under consideration, but they do not guarantee that the SAT or ACT will return.
The Regents retain final authority over whether to require testing. Until they act, UC’s test-blind admissions policy remains in place. Applicants should look to official UC admissions guidance for any policy change; the review itself is not an announcement that scores will again be used.
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Key Questions
Has the University of California reinstated the SAT?
No. UC remains test-blind; leaders have commissioned a review, and the Regents have not approved a change.
When will UC decide whether to bring back standardized tests?
A faculty committee is due to report by Feb. 12, and the Academic Senate is expected to recommend a course of action by June. The Regents have final authority, but a vote date has not been announced.
Why are some UC professors calling for the SAT’s return?
About 3,000 current and former professors say they are seeing weak math and writing skills among students and argue that standardized tests could help assess readiness. Those are their stated concerns; the review has not established that the test ban caused the difficulties.
What does test-blind mean?
Under UC’s current policy, admissions officers do not consider SAT or ACT scores, even if an applicant submits them. That is different from test-optional admissions, where applicants can choose whether to send scores.
What evidence is being cited against a return to testing?
Critics point to research that questions whether tests measure ability independently of family wealth, along with UC data showing increases in average freshman GPAs since 2021 and improvements in graduation and second-year return rates. Those trends do not, by themselves, establish what caused the changes or settle the policy debate.
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