The University of California’s Decision to Drop SAT and ACT Scores
The University of California System (“UC”) announced that they reached a settlement with applicants and enrolled students to drop the SAT or ACT from the application review process for Fall 2021 and beyond. Prior to this announcement, we discussed in student sessions and our newsletter UC policy to accept SAT and ACT test scores, even though we were unsure of the role they would play in their application review. We now know with certainty that SAT/ACT scores will not be considered as part of the process.
This decision to continue dropping the ACT and SAT from future application cycles is predicated on the argument that these tests are not a fair assessment of students’ performance because disadvantaged applicants are less likely to receive the same level of test preparation resources as more affluent students. The UC Board of Regents is considering creating their own standardized tests in the future, but they have not yet confirmed that they will move forward with this new testing measure in the coming years.
If you are applying to private or out-of-state public universities, we believe that strong test scores help with earning admission and merit scholarships, particularly to highly selective colleges. Testing plans and target scores are unique to each applicant and we are happy to discuss in further detail in an upcoming meeting.
You can read more about this permanent change in the UC college admissions process here: