Staff Reports
The University of California is in the middle of a fight it can no longer dodge. More than 600 UC STEM faculty have publicly urged system leaders to restore SAT/ACT testing for STEM applicants and give professors real say over readiness standards. Their demand follows an internal UC San Diego report that found a dramatic rise in incoming students who cannot handle basic math — and it should make every parent and policymaker sit up straight.
What the UC STEM faculty demanded
The faculty letter is plain and pointed: require standardized tests for science, technology, engineering and math applicants and let faculty help set the bar. The signers warned that instructors are now “reteaching middle‑school mathematics” while also trying to teach college material. They asked the UC to require tests beginning in fall 2027 and to give STEM departments a formal role in judging readiness. This isn’t a petty gripe; it’s a red flag from the people who actually teach the classes that matter for careers and the economy.
The UCSD report and the data behind the alarm
UC San Diego’s admissions work‑group documented the shock. Between 2020 and 2025 the number of entering freshmen whose math placement showed skills below high‑school level rose nearly thirtyfold, the report says, and roughly 70% of those students fell below middle‑school standards. At the same time, UC system data show a steady rise in applicants reporting HSGPAs above 4.00 and a record number of admits. Put bluntly: more A’s on paper, less math in the head. Yes, statewide K–12 tests paint a mixed picture, but campus placement exams and remediation enrollments are the clearest proof of what’s happening in UC classrooms.
Why grade inflation and test‑free admissions are not victimsless
Let’s call this what it is: a system that rewarded optics over outcomes. Dropping standardized tests and then applauding record admits while ignoring classroom failure is a recipe for broken promises. UC leaders have talked about expanding opportunity — noble words — but opportunity that leaves students unprepared is no kindness. Parents don’t want diplomas that paper over weak skills. Employers don’t want graduates who can’t do basic quantitative work. And taxpayers shouldn’t subsidize remedial courses that could have been avoided with sensible standards.
Fixes that would actually help students and standards
The answer isn’t a purity test. There are sensible, targeted steps: reinstate SAT/ACT for STEM applicants only (as faculty ask), adopt a “Math Index” or other transcript‑based predictors, expand early placement testing and summer remediation, and hold certain feeder high schools accountable for outcomes. These are practical tools, not ideological cudgels. If the University of California wants both access and excellence, it must pick policies that produce graduates who can think and solve problems — not just collect 4.0s on grade‑inflated transcripts. The choice is simple: competence or comfort. UC should choose competence.
