Full Breakdown
UC Math Faculty Push to Reinstate Standardized Tests for STEM Admissions
5/28/2026, 10:55:20 PM
Faculty Call for SAT/ACT Requirement in STEM Admissions
Over 600 UC faculty, led by Berkeley mathematicians, signed an open letter urging reinstatement of the SAT or ACT for STEM applicants in fall 2027, saying six years without testing have left “preparation gaps so severe that instructors must reteach middle-school mathematics while delivering college-level material.”
Data on Math Readiness
The UC system dropped standardized testing in 2020 after a regents vote and a state-court injunction; elite schools have reinstated testing. UC-Berkeley diagnostics (2021-2023) found at least 20 % of first-semester calculus students with deficits. A UC-San Diego workgroup reported a thirty-fold rise in students below high-school math level, with 70 % below middle-school standards. Statewide, 30.5 % of 11th-graders meet or exceed math standards and 37.3 % meet standards, leaving students about a quarter-year behind pre-COVID instruction.
Official Responses and Criticism
UC spokesperson Rachel Zaentz said the system will “continue to focus on instruction and support,” and Academic Senate chair Ahmet Palazoglu said he has heard faculty concerns and that the admissions board is drafting a roadmap. Critics argue the SAT is “a poor fit for America’s universities,” noting GPA predicts success better when income and race are controlled and test-based ranking can disadvantage low-income and underrepresented students. A National Education Association report called standardized tests “inaccurate, inequitable, and often ineffective,” a claim the faculty letter rejects.
Conflicting Reports
Signatory counts differ: the Los Angeles Times reported over 600 faculty, College Fix cited over 360, and the Daily Caller listed over 550 STEM professors. UC-Berkeley faculty note 20-30 % calculus deficits versus the UC-San Diego workgroup’s 70 % below middle-school level. The board may require 11th-grade Smarter Balanced scores for California residents and SAT/ACT for non-residents.
Verbatim Quotes
- “We now observe preparation gaps so severe that instructors must reteach middle-school mathematics while simultaneously teaching the material students need for sciences, engineering, economics, and other quantitatively demanding fields,” — UC mathematics faculty (open letter)
- “Basic mathematical fluency is analogous to literacy; without it, success in university-level STEM becomes structurally unattainable for students,” — UC mathematics faculty (open letter)
- “a poor fit for America’s public universities.” — Saul Geiser, UC Berkeley Center for Studies in Higher Education
- “SAT/ACT mathematics requirement is not an obstacle to equity; rather it is a prerequisite for it. Failing to measure preparation gaps does not remove barriers; it moves them into the classroom, where they become harder to overcome.” — UC mathematics faculty (open letter)
What’s Next
The UC admissions board will issue a draft roadmap by early June and a final version by June 30. The plan may require 11th-grade Smarter Balanced scores for California applicants and SAT/ACT for out-of-state candidates, pending Regents approval.
