SACRAMENTO, Calif., July 19 (Our California Times) — The University of California is again debating whether SAT and ACT scores should be part of undergraduate admissions.
For California students, parents and schools, the question is more than symbolic. If UC restores a testing requirement, it could change what students prepare for in high school, what counselors recommend, and how the state’s flagship public university system measures readiness for college.
No policy has changed yet. UC’s Academic Senate is reviewing the issue first, and the UC Board of Regents would have to approve any change before it could take effect.
What is UC deciding?
UC is reconsidering whether applicants should have to submit a standardized test score again. The system is also looking at whether the SAT, the ACT or California’s Smarter Balanced exam should be used.
This is part of UC’s shared-governance process. In practice, that means faculty review the issue first and the regents make the final call.
Two faculty-led work groups are now involved: one is focused on testing, and the other is looking at high school course requirements for UC admission.
Maria Anguiano, chair of the appointed UC Board of Regents, said at the July regents meeting that the Academic Senate should deliver a recommendation by the end of the current academic year, around June 2027. UC has said that if testing is restored, the earliest it could apply would be the fall 2028 application cycle.
That means today’s high school students would not see an immediate change, even if UC eventually approves one.
Why did UC drop SAT and ACT requirements in the first place?
The regents voted unanimously in 2020 to remove SAT and ACT requirements from undergraduate admissions.
Later, after litigation over UC’s test policy, the university agreed not to consider SAT or ACT scores in admissions through spring 2025.
At the time UC moved away from testing, former UC President Janet Napolitano said a standardized test score “shouldn’t be a sole factor” in deciding access to the university.
That argument still shapes the current debate. Supporters of bringing tests back say scores may help show whether students are prepared for college-level math and writing. Opponents say test scores can reflect access to tutoring and preparation, not just academic ability.
Why is the debate back now?
Faculty pressure pushed the issue back onto UC’s agenda.
Open letters signed by more than 1,400 STEM faculty, along with other faculty letters that drew more than 3,000 signatures, urged UC to reconsider standardized testing.
In a UC Office of the President statement, Ahmet Palazoglu, chair of the UC Academic Senate, said, “The Academic Senate is not rescinding its commitment to a comprehensive review of standardized testing in admissions.”
UC student leaders have pushed the other way. The UC Student Association has said it opposes restoring standardized testing and that doing so would not improve student preparedness.
What would a return to testing mean for students and schools?
If UC brings back a test requirement, the biggest effect would be on high school planning.
Students who hope to apply to UC campuses could once again feel pressure to take a test, prepare for it, and possibly retake it. Counselors and teachers could also see more demand for test prep advice, review classes and practice materials.
That would matter across California, especially in public high schools that already balance UC course requirements, graduation requirements and college planning.
It would also raise an old question in admissions: how much weight should one exam carry?
UC’s current review suggests the system is trying to answer that question before making any decision. For now, the university has only reopened the debate. The final result is still months away, and any change would still need approval from the regents.
