Should I take the SAT or ACT? Part 2

Many high school juniors who will be applying to college for Fall 2022 admissions are desperate to understand whether major universities will require SAT or ACT scores as part of their applications.  I would first caution parents and students to be patient and flexible when defining an SAT or ACT test-taking strategy given admissions policies regarding requiring test scores, in…

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Is Fall 2021 University of California Applicant Increase Year Over Year Due to Change in SAT/ACT Policy?

According to a recent Los Angeles Times article, preliminary application counts for Fall 2021 released by the University of California show a 15% increase from last year’s Fall 2020 applications, netting nearly 250,000 single applications. Yet, will increases in applications render to more acceptances and more enrollment? Some speculate that the increase in applications is a consequence of newly implemented…

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Cal State Universities Test Optional for Fall 2022 Admissions

The 23 campus California State Universities (CSU) system is extending the test-optional admissions policy for another year, through Fall 2022 admissions. In other words, current high school juniors in the Class of 2022 will NOT be required to submit SAT or ACT scores as part of their applications to any CSU campus for Fall 2022 admissions. As the University of…

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What Could Be Repercussions of Temporary Test-optional Policies?

For Fall 2021, 1575 colleges, nearly two-thirds of all U.S. universities are test optional (no SAT or ACT scores are required for admissions, but students can choose to submit scores) or test blind (no SAT or ACT scores will be considered, nor requested as part of the admissions evaluation), according to FairTest.  Since nearly two-thirds of all US universities will…

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Put Down Your #2 Pencils: The University of California Will Eliminate SAT/ACT Scores by 2025, Part 15

Fall 2021 admissions evaluations may likely be more subjective since by court order, University of California (UC) admissions officers cannot consider more objective SAT or ACT scores. Thus, applicants would be prudent to understand the UC’s holistic admissions evaluation, guided by the 14 Comprehensive Review points.  UC admissions officers consider academic factors, such as GPA and any improvements in grades…

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Put Down Your #2 Pencils: The University of California Will Eliminate SAT/ACT Scores by 2025, Part 13

The University of California (UC) will not require applicants to submit SAT or ACT scores for first year admissions through the Fall of 2025, affecting students currently in grades 8-12 for the 2020-21 school year. Subjectivity in the admissions evaluations will likely increase, without the backstop of standardized test scores to compare other, less objective information, like extracurricular activity descriptions. …

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Have SAT or ACT test scores become blind?

On September 1, 2020, a California Superior Court judge issued a preliminary injunction, to be finalized on September 29, 2020, barring the use of SAT and ACT scores in Fall 2021 University of California (UC) admissions evaluations. Essentially, the judge implemented a “test-blind” admissions policy, meaning SAT or ACT scores cannot be considered, even if submitted, in UC admissions for…

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