Cal State Drops The SAT/ACT Forever & More College Admissions News You Might Have Missed

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I read every admissions update so you don’t have to. In this edition:

  • Following the trend of almost every college including the UCs, California State University (CSU) — the largest four-year university system in the nation — drops the SAT/ACT requirement for admission. According to the LA Times: “More than 1,800 colleges and universities — nearly 80% of all four-year U.S. campuses that award bachelor’s degrees — have already dropped standardized testing requirements for admissions.” You know what that means: the admissions essay is more important than ever…*breathes into brown paper bag* [LA Times]

  • For those overachievers that insist on torturing themselves with standardized testing anyway, the SAT is going digital in 2024. The test will be shortened to two hours instead of three and scores will be available in days instead of weeks. [ABC News]

  • Thanks to Covid and a super strong job market, college student headcount has shrunk more than 5 percent since 2019, according to a national estimate. Regional public universities face the strongest decline and are offering steep in-state tuition discounts as a result. [WashPo]

  • California Gov. Gavin Newsom has signed a new law to prevent UC Berkeley from turning away 2600 students from its incoming freshman class. Good news for everyone who applied this year! [AP News]

  • According to the Common App, application volume through the middle of February increased nearly 10% percent from the previous year—which itself was up 10% from the year before that. I see you with your 30 tabs open. [Atlantic]

  • Early decision is the new regular decision. According to the Atlantic, Barnard finalized 62 percent of the seats in this fall’s freshman class before it even considered regular-decision applications. Boston University filled about 50 percent of its class early; a decade ago, it enrolled just 13 percent of the class early. The University of Pennsylvania filled 51 percent of its class early this year. Be careful, though, since those decisions are financially binding. [Atlantic]