Regents set hard, fast 2027 deadline on whether to bring back SAT admissions requirement

The chairman of the University of California Board of Regents said Tuesday that he expects faculty leaders to issue a recommendation by June 2027 on whether the program should reinstate the SAT or ACT test requirement for admission, a new and accelerated timeline following last week's decision to end the much-criticized long-term study program.

Speaking at the regents' meeting in San Francisco, Chairwoman Maria Anguiano asked the admissions board, the Senate's influential Education committee, to address broader questions of college readiness, which have been at the heart of the SAT debate. First-year students, according to thousands of professors, come in with poor math and poor writing skills. This study will also look at the high school courses required by UC for admission.

The pending work represents a major policy overhaul that could change the way tens of thousands of students are admitted to the nation's leading university system. Management must ultimately approve any changes.

Recent debates, Anguiano said, have focused “too little” on standardized testing, a UC controversy that has been among the most watched issues in American higher education for months. He said he “thanks the Senate for Education for taking a comprehensive approach … the purpose of this review is not to rehash old questions or data, but an opportunity to revisit how we define and assess college readiness.”

The announcement came days after the UC board of regents withdrew its scholarship plan without offering alternatives or providing a public explanation for why it withdrew its vote on the original plan. Anguiano's words set a new deadline for the project.

The morning meeting at UC San Francisco began with an hour of public comment focused on the general assessment. Many of the speakers were science, technology, engineering and math, or STEM, professors who urged the board to bring back the SAT and ACT. They described students who arrive at a higher education institution without the skills to keep up with their peers, and who are too far behind to participate. They said that the decline of UC has led UC to stop examinations six years ago.

“I've seen a huge drop in students' ability to do work in my classes,” said Pradeep Sen, a professor of electrical and computer engineering at UC Santa Barbara. He said he now spends class time teaching students things they should already know. “Since high schools can be so different, we need a standardized baseline to measure students entering the UC program.”

Anguiano said the faculty will lead the work “while the board deepens its understanding of the broader questions at hand.”

In a statement, Senate Education Chairman Ahmet Palazoglu said the senate's assessment review “will be consistent with the Board of Regents' timeline.” He said the separate review of high school course requirements for admission to UC “is not tied to the same timeline” and a new plan will be available after the UC Academic Council meets on July 22.

Leaders are pressing for an immediate review

UC President James B. Milliken pressed the pace. “We must approach our work thoughtfully, but without delay,” he said on Tuesday.

A rush is a sharp change of pace.

Under the plan the admissions board approved in June and then revoked Friday, the task force would not submit written recommendations until May 2027, with further review by senators, Milken and the regents to follow.

That plan says students applying in the fall of 2028 will be the first group to be required to submit test scores. Advocates of the testing industry complained that the timeline, in fact, could leave the UC test until the application cycle in the fall of 2029. Next June's recommendation would allow the university to require scores as soon as fall 2027.

Palazoglu said that the faculty is ready to answer this question. “A comprehensive review of our late admissions policies and standards,” he said.

“Big universities don't stick to old decisions just because they are,” said Palazoglu. He said the senate will not rush. “Our processes may be seen by some as slow, but they will be conversational.”

The debate has drawn national attention because UC now stands almost alone among many elite institutions — particularly, private ones that often set themselves aside for research capabilities and graduate education. A UC faculty panel recommended keeping the SAT in 2020, but the regents overruled it and voted to develop a UC-specific test that the committee later decided would take too long to create. UC has been assessed as optional and then free in 2021.

Poorly prepared students

Faculty pushing to reinstate the test say the class evidence is clear. More than 3,000 professors have signed open letters calling for the return of the SAT or ACT. Speaking during public comment Tuesday, Umesh Vazirani, a UC Berkeley professor of electrical engineering and computer science, said “the academic case for reintroducing the SAT, in my view, is very strong.”

Opponents say the tests measure wealth and race more than college readiness, and point to student outcomes that have been strong without them. Jessie Ryan, president of the Campaign for College Opportunity, spoke Tuesday to urge the board to reject any efforts to bring back the SAT. He said UC's own research has shown that retention rates have remained stable and graduation rates have increased since the program went untested.

“This is the wrong solution to an ill-defined problem,” Ryan said.

Others who spoke said that the university should focus on preparing students early for college rather than testing them.

“Reintroducing standardized tests for admissions is not the answer,” said Pamela Burdman, executive director of Just Equations, a California-based organization focused on math and educational equity. Burdman said better math instruction, not new admissions practices, will close the gaps.

UC has been complaining about student preparation for years, although the current review is taking place under increasing political pressure. The Trump administration has opened multiple investigations into UC's admissions practices, alleging racial discrimination, and demanding UC use and change test scores to prove it accepts the most qualified students. UC officials have denied any wrongdoing.

The regents will discuss — but not vote on — the 15 high school grades required for UC admission, known as AG, at a public meeting Wednesday. Any changes to admissions policies will require board approval.