Letters to the Editor: It’s not the UC system’s role to accept everyone who applies

To the editor: Columnist Anita Chabria denounces UC faculty’s recent exhortations to reinstate standardized tests as out of touch with “reality” and “common sense” because they are insensitive to the diverse backgrounds and aspirations of California’s students (“UC could go back to using the SAT and ACT for admissions. Here’s why that doesn’t add up,” July 8). The reality is that California’s public higher education system already accommodates that diversity through CSUs and community colleges.

UCs are supposed to be public equivalents to elite private research institutions with selective admissions. A fixation on UCs embodies the elitism Chabria allegedly deplores: She wants academic prestige without the requisite academic excellence.

She rightly demands that high schools give students an equal opportunity to achieve that excellence. And, yes, the SATs and ACTs are flawed. Chabria is, however, wrong to assume taxpayers’ partial funding of UCs entitles taxpayers’ children to all but guaranteed admission. These are public universities; they serve the interests not of private families, but of the public as a whole..

We pay taxes so that the UCs exist to offer an outstanding education to anyone, which they cannot do if they must accept everyone.

Peter Thomas, Los Angeles

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To the editor: As a reasonable middle ground in the debate about whether to use SAT or ACT testing in admissions processes, I recommend the UC admissions board consider the following compromise (“UC abruptly suspends plan to reconsider SAT in admissions,” July 13).

The board should determine the minimum test score that would provide reasonable assurance that the applicant would be able to graduate within a five-year period. Once that minimum score is determined, and the applicant attains at least that minimum score, he or she would get over the first admissions hurdle and could then be evaluated using the traditional additional criteria such as grades and personal accomplishments.

As an example, suppose a minimum combined SAT score (reading and writing and math) of 1250 would assure that at least 70% of those students attaining that score would likely graduate within five years. If the applicant attains a combined SAT score of at least 1250, he or she would pass the first hurdle and the actual SAT score would not be considered in the admissions process.

Fred Gober, Playa Vista

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To the editor: Amid all the handwringing at the University of California over what to do about the lack of skills of prospective students, I recall as a former high school math teacher the placement exams that used to be given after admission.

CSU had a placement test called the entry-level mathematics exam, or the ELM. At least some UC schools had a similar exam. Although I never found the ELM to be fair since it was given cold to students who had been off for the summer, it at least provided a window into the math skills of students.

It seems that a test like this could be given to prospective students in the spring of their senior year. If students don’t meet the required competency, they could be given an opportunity to take remedial classes at a community college, then retake the exam — no admission until competency is reached. There must be some of these exams gathering dust in a closet somewhere.

Dan Cartmell, San Pedro