With Schools Closed By Coronavirus Outbreak, UC Temporarily Relaxes Enrollment Requirements
LOS ANGELES (CBSLA) — With schools across the country shut down potentially until the end of the school year, the University of California is temporarily relaxing enrollment requirements.
In their Tuesday night meeting, the UC Board of Regents approved suspending the use of SAT scores and the letter grade requirement for winter/spring/summer 2020 for all students, including UC's most recently admitted freshmen. With SATs canceled this spring, scores will also not be required for students applying for fall 2021.
The board will also suspend the cap on the number of transferable units with "pass/no pass" grading applied toward the required units for junior standing for transfer students.
"The COVID-19 outbreak is a disaster of historic proportions disrupting every aspect of our lives, including education for high school students, among others," Janet Napolitano, president of the University of California system, said in a statement. "The University's flexibility at this crucial time will ensure prospective students aiming for UC get a full and fair shot — no matter their current challenges."
With high schools shut down and instruction moved online, some districts have adopted "pass/fail" or "credit/no credit" grading instead of letter grades for courses needed to qualify for UC admission, officials said. College visits are no longer feasible with campuses shut down, and the status of high school graduation remains unknown for many districts.
UC is still requesting submission of final transcripts by July 1, but if schools are unable or unsure about their ability to issue transcripts by this date, they can contact UC at AskUC@ucop.edu.
