College Admissions

December 10, 2019

Lawsuits seek to end University of California's SAT or ACT test requirement for freshman admission

Lawsuits challenge freshman admissions process for the University of California which requires students to take the SAT or ACT standardized test

Larry Gordon

October 24, 2019

How to make room for 100,000 more college students in California without major construction

The Central Valley and Inland Empire especially need to accommodate more students, a report finds.

Larry Gordon

September 13, 2019

Push for tougher laws wanes following California admissions scandal

Private colleges successfully pushed for a softer bill while another proposal bolsters admissions oversight at public campuses.

Larry Gordon

August 27, 2019

College Board revises plans for single “adversity score” as tool in admissions

In response to criticism, the College Board is reforming a new admissions tool meant to measure hardships that a freshman applicant faces.

Michael Burke

July 24, 2019

Opponents urge CSU to reject 4th year of high school math or related courses for admission

CSU expected to hear much criticism before trustees vote in November. Critics say the proposal will curtail college access.

Larry Gordon

July 3, 2019

Second chances for applicants shut out of crowded CSU campuses

A new CSU program offers freshmen and transfers a spot at nine campuses with room if they were rejected where they first applied.

Larry Gordon

May 1, 2019

Private California colleges win changes in scandal-related legislation

California private colleges continue to oppose a revised bill that seeks information on legacy admissions. They contend that a threatened Cal Grant loss will hurt low-income students.

Larry Gordon

March 28, 2019

California legislators seek reforms after college admissions scandal

Lawmakers say they want to level the admissions playing field. Sweeping proposals would add oversight to athletics admissions, ban legacy admissions and regulate private counselors.

Larry Gordon

March 28, 2019

College admissions scandal upsetting to California's low-income students

Some students wonder whether their college spots are taken by affluent cheaters. Most still believe hard work in high school will land them at a good college.

Larry Gordon

March 14, 2019

Charities disavow links to mastermind of college bribery scheme despite online claims

Leaders of youth-serving organizations in California and elsewhere said William Singer, who pleaded guilty to orchestrating an elaborate fraud to skirt admission standards at elite universities, falsely claimed to be partnering with them to help low-income children go to college.

David Washburn

March 13, 2019

Wealthy California parents undermine push for 'meritocracy' in college admissions

Most parents charged in the bribery scandal are from California, as are those who carried out the schemes and received the bribes.

Louis Freedberg

October 24, 2018

California's SAT scores rise, beat national averages

While overall scores rose, only 48 percent of California students did well enough on the SAT to be considered fully college ready. Ethnic disparities remain as well.

Larry Gordon

August 8, 2018

Living the college dream: high-performing, low-income students reach for the nation’s top colleges

Students aiming for the Ivy League, Stanford, UC Berkeley or other top private and public universities learn about how to get there.

Mikhail Zinshteyn

March 7, 2018

University of California president wants to offer guaranteed admission to qualified community college students

The program would be similar to one offered by the California State University system.

Mikhail Zinshteyn

November 15, 2017

University of California should be more lenient about late transcripts, stop withdrawing admissions, panel says

The move to more leniency about transcript verification came in response to the controversial withdrawal of admission to nearly 300 incoming students at UC Irvine last spring. They were reinstated and the university apologized.

Larry Gordon