The SAT and ACT standardized examinations are no longer required for undergraduate admissions at California State University.

The University’s Board of Trustees overwhelmingly passed a resolution to eliminate the two exams from undergraduate applications, which significantly altered the university’s admissions procedures. This means that SAT and ACT results will not be utilized to determine admission to the university.

The institution has said it would not accept ACT or SAT scores students have previously taken and submitted as part of the admissions process. However, following acceptance, they will be utilized to determine a student’s placement.

“If you are accepted to a CSU campus, the scores will be used as one of the measures to place you in the proper mathematics and English courses,”

~ California State University

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About the Latest Change 

California State University is the nation’s biggest four-year public university, with 23 campuses and over 485,000 students.

“In essence, we are eliminating our reliance on a high-stress, high-stakes test that has shown negligible benefit and providing our applicants with greater opportunities to demonstrate their drive, talents, and potential for college success,” 

~ Relyea

For 2021-22 and 2022-23, the institution has decided to stop using standardized exam scores. The decision was made in response to the COVID-19 pandemic’s challenges and to mitigate what it described as “harmful repercussions” on potential candidates.

In January, the university’s admission advisory board, which comprises students, staff, and administrators, proposed that standardized test results no longer be used in undergraduate applications.

In the spring of last year, the council assessed standardized exams, concluding that both examinations provide little value to the university’s admissions process.

“I am a product of the CSU — a proud product of the CSU — and I would have been a product even sooner if I could have gotten in as a freshman. Because of the enrollment barriers that I faced and the lack of tools offered to me as a student, I wasn’t equipped to enter the CSU, but I know that my story is the same for many all across California.”

~ Yammilette Rodriguez, California State University trustee 

Bakersfield, Camarillo, Chico, Carson, Hayward, Fresno, Fullerton, Arcata, Long Beach, Los Angeles, Vallejo, Seaside, Northridge, Pomona, Sacramento, San Bernardino, San Diego, San Francisco, San José, San Luis Obispo, San Marcos, Rohnert Park, and Turlock are all home to California State University campuses.

According to the institution, campuses consider a student’s “a-g” GPA and extra considerations to determine admission choices. This covers the number of courses taken more than the minimal “a-g” standards, household income, extracurricular engagement, and other available information.

According to the National Center for Fair & Open Testing, more than 1,800 schools and institutions currently use test-optional or test-blind admissions. This contains virtually all of the country’s most prestigious schools and universities, accounting for about 80% of bachelor’s degree-granting colleges and universities.