June News: All Ivies Require SAT/ACT • AI Stumbles • $100K Colleges • Waitlists Surge • Merit Aid Grows

Top 5 Takeaways This Month

• The return of standardized testing continues to accelerate
• Universities are increasingly questioning grade inflation
• Strong test scores remain one of the largest sources of merit aid
• AI continues to create new challenges for admissions and assessment
• Affordability is becoming a major competitive battleground

Columbia Mandates SAT/ACTs, All Ivies To Be Test-Required

On Friday, Columbia University released a statement that Columbia College and Columbia Engineering will again be requiring SAT or ACT test scores for the 2027-28 application cycle. It will not be compulsory for students applying to either of these branches of Columbia for the 2026-2027 cycle to submit test scores. The statement explains that the University conducted a “multi-year faculty review” on the effect of test-optional admissions and concluded that test scores, “among other factors, were a useful indicator of potential student success.”

Takeaways:

This announcement represents an about-face from how Columbia characterized its commitment to test-optional policies three years ago. While the university’s latest communication calls its test-optional policy “provisional” with “no stated end date” in March of 2023, the University announced that it would remove the SAT/ACT requirement “indefinitely,” in a way that suggested that this change would be permanent. 

Columbia is the final among the eight Ivy League institutions to abandon the experiment of test optional admissions. In August 2027, when Princeton’s and Columbia’s new policies go into effect, all Ivy League schools will require standardized test scores from applicants. A timeline of Ivy League institutions’ announcements to return to a test-required admissions policy is included below:

• Dartmouth – 2/5/24
• Yale – test-flexible policy 2/22/24, return to test-required 5/26/26
• Brown – 3/5/24
• Harvard – 4/11/24
• Cornell – 4/22/24
• UPenn – 2/14/25
• Princeton – 10/9/25 (for 2027-28 cycle)
• Columbia – 6/11/25  (for 2027-28 cycle)

Update on Columbia College and Columbia Engineering Testing Policy (Columbia University Website) – 6/12/26

Significantly Increased Rate of Waitlisted Students Since 2021

A new survey from college search database Niche found that students are being put on college waitlists at a significantly higher rate than they did five years ago. Among the 3,000 high school seniors polled, 32 percent were waitlisted at at least one institution. This represents a 20 percent increase from 2021. The study found that students who would pay full tuition were waitlisted at a higher rate – 45 percent – than any other financial group; students on need-based aid were waitlisted at a rate of 28 percent. Students from private schools were also more likely to be put on waitlists, at a rate of 50 percent. Among students who were put on a waitlist, 19.6 percent received an acceptance.

Takeaways:

Application volume very much correlated with waitlist percentages across respondents: students who applied to fewer than four schools saw a 7.7 percent chance of being waitlisted, while those who applied to 16 or more schools had a whopping 70 percent chance of being waitlisted. This discrepancy is owed not only to the increased likelihood stemming from more acceptances but also from colleges and universities, who are concerned about yield – not to mention the fact that the students who applied to 16+ schools were more likely to be from private schools and to pay full tuition. Growing waitlist rates created particular problems for those waiting to hear back from multiple schools (43 percent of those waitlisted). As nearly half of these students do not hear back until decision day, they are sometimes left with the choice of losing deposits while holding out hope for a better offer. Lisa Carlton, president of the Independent Educational Consultants Association, lamented the increases in a statement to Inside Higher Ed: “The amount of waitlist activity has …sadly, pushed (decisions) past May 1 for a lot of kids.”

The Waitlist Surge: What Happens When Everyone Applies Everywhere (Niche) – 6/10/26

Johns Hopkins Creates Private Research Fund to Help Balance Federal Cuts

Johns Hopkins University unveiled its new “Life Sciences Research Initiative,” which will funnel $160 million over the next two years into basic and applied research in Life Sciences fields “from immunology to neuroscience, oncology to epidemiology, bioengineering to population health.” This funding comes from over 120 alumni and other donors to the Research Saves Lives initiative, which helps the university “conduct the groundbreaking research that has kept the United States at the forefront of global scientific, medical, and technological leadership” in the wake of the dissolution of some federal funding.

Takeaways:

Life Sciences research accounts for roughly 80 percent of the federally-funded research at the university. The Trump administration’s $800 million in cuts to US AID has greatly impeded Johns Hopkins’ efforts. This new research initiative will help keep this important work afloat as support from federal money remains in jeopardy. “We know well that there is no replacement for the partnership between the federal government and American research universities,” JHU President Ron Daniels wrote to the university community today. “But we can and will marshal all the tools at our disposal to sustain our research enterprise and the faculty, students, and staff who do this impactful work.”

Johns Hopkins announces major new investment in cutting-edge life sciences research (JHU Hub) – 6/10/26

Annual Cost Reaches Six Figures at Some U.S. Higher Ed Institutions

For families looking at top U.S. colleges and universities, approximate annual cost, accounting for tuition, housing, food, institution fees, and personal expenses, can approach – and now even exceed – six figures. According to new data, sixteen institutions, including Duke, UChicago, and Georgetown, will boast a sticker price of over $100,000 per year starting this fall. Other colleges and universities are close behind and are expected to cross the 100K threshold in the coming years. Jeffery J. Selingo, author and former editor of The Chronicle of Higher Education considers this milestone “significant,” but does not believe there is a clear end in sight to increasing costs. “We just keep going up and it just never stops.”

Takeaways:

Rising costs have clear ramifications on enrollment, as more Americans begin to question their return on investment. This growing doubt has outsized influence on smaller colleges that don’t have the cachet of big-name institutions. That said, sticker price does not always translate to family responsibility. In fact, merit aid was as high as 57 percent at some private colleges, and of the sixteen colleges and universities, the average scholarship grant awarded to first-year students was between $42,000 to $79,000. Even with these significant discounts, some families will struggle to make up the difference, turning to student loans, which can result in protracted and costly repayment. Furthermore, international students are often not eligible for the same aid as U.S. enrollees. These exorbitant costs, therefore, have led some non-U.S. families to remove American institutions from their university lists.

College sticker prices top $100,000 at 16 schools — but many students pay significantly less (CNBC) – 6/10/26

Quick Look: Princeton Review Launches ChatGPT App

The Princeton Review has just announced a partnership with ChatGPT, the second such collaboration in recent months. We checked out the app, interested to see how this service could potentially add value for students. Unfortunately, we were stymied almost immediately, with the service crashing after our second interaction (screenshot included below). Although this service proved itself not ready for primetime, it will be interesting to see how it develops in the months ahead.

Takeaways:

The Princeton Review Brings Expert SAT Guidance to ChatGPT (TPR Website) – 6/10/26

UC Professor Elaborates on Demands to Reinstate Standardized Testing

An open letter signed by (as of this writing) over 1,400 University of California faculty members was issued last week demanding the immediate reinstatement of SAT/ACT scores as part of an admissions requirement for STEM students. In the wake of this letter, UC Berkeley professor Zvezdelina Stankova sat down with NPR to explain why requiring standardized test scores from applicants is crucial to the work she does. In a nutshell, Professor Stankova argues that due to high GPAs and AI-assisted essays, “everyone looks almost perfect on their applications.” This lack of a standard baseline stymies efforts to identify students who will be prepared enough to be successful in a rigorous STEM program.

Takeaways:

Professor Stankova calls the situation in her classrooms “dire” as a third of the students in any given class have “severe math deficiencies.” In fact, the risk of failing out of a UC STEM program is as much as 46 percent. Not only does this figure represent an “immense type of failure” on the part of UC and put an “immense weight” on students, the fail risk perpetuated by a test-free admissions policy, Stankova argues, also puts a burden on the budget system of California, as the university system exists on public funds. Looking through Professor Stankova’s profile on ratemyprofessors.com, in which she is described as “organized,” “helpful,” and “genuinely kind,” it becomes apparent how a disconnect over the expected baseline of math knowledge can have a tangible negative effect on both students and faculty alike. A common theme among negative reviewers is that “she assumes you know more than you do.” 

UC Berkeley professor Zvezdelina Stankova explains push to reinstate standardized exams (npr) – 6/6/26

Despite Growing Interest, Trade Schools are Not Necessarily an Easy Answer

Enrollment in U.S. trade schools has seen a boom in recent years, growing 17.6 percent in 2024 alone and far outstripping enrollment in traditional U.S. universities, which has seen only modest gains and is still a few percentage points below 2020 levels. While trade jobs, such as welding, carpentry, and plumbing, can both provide relatively high salaries without burdensome student loans and promise future stability, there are pitfalls with these career paths as well. Although skilled tradespeople with years of experience have high earning potential, many entry-level trade jobs are rated as being among the worst across numerous categories. Lack of immediate opportunity, unpredictable schedule, and potential on-the-job hazards can result in a far less desirable experience for graduates than expected.

Takeaways:

Fueled by the rising costs of universities, dismissive rhetoric from some industry leaders, and AI fears, Americans’ trust in higher education is at a crisis point. Yet, entering into a trade is not going to be the right path for many students. A university degree will often provide more flexibility and pathways for advancement than a trade certification, the vast majority of top companies still overwhelmingly hire college graduates, and vocational careers are far from AI proof. “Trade jobs are closely tied to industries…(that) are sensitive to changes in the economy,” according to Wallethub analyst Chip Lupo. “When these industries slow down, projects often get delayed or canceled, which can lead to job losses.”

Gen Z is ditching college for ‘more secure’ trade jobs—but boilermakers and welders actually rank among the worst entry-level jobs (Fortune) – 6/6/26

Some Chinese Students Opt Out of National Entrance Exam

Roughly 12.9 million Chinese students are poised to sit for the Gaokao, the national university entrance exam, which started this past weekend. 12.9 million students, however, represents a significant decline from 2025, with approximately 450,000 fewer testers this year. While some of the decrease is owed to a shrinking youth population, some Chinese teenagers are choosing to not pursue academic degrees. These decisions are being made in light of an unemployment rate that is reported to be greater than 16 percent for those aged 16 to 24 – and is expected to be exacerbated this summer as 12.7 million more students graduate university. 

Takeaways:

This is the second consecutive year of declining Gaokao numbers, with 70,000 fewer students sitting the exam in 2025 vs 2024. Some Chinese students who move away from traditional university education turn to vocational programs, which are generally seen as a more surefire pathway to full-time work. In fact, in Shanghai, enrollment in vocational courses increased by 15 percent over the last three years. Nevertheless, as more students opt to shift to trade work, those opportunities can become more competitive: a striking example is from in May of this year when over 700 people applied to a shepherding job in a remote part of Northern China that had only two open positions. 

Fewer Chinese teenagers register for tough university entry exam (Reuters) – 6/5/26

The Financial Upside of SAT and ACT Scores

“Families should stop asking whether the SAT or ACT matters,” writes Susan Henschel, senior consultant at test-prep company The College Review. “The better question is: how much money is a strong score worth?” Ms. Henschel argues that beyond providing “critical, additive information” in an admissions process complicated by widespread grade inflation, SAT and ACT scores can open financial doors for students. For a student with a GPA of 3.8, increasing their ACT score from a 24 to a 32 could translate to merit scholarships worth between $15,000 and $30,000 per year. The financial gap between an ACT score of 26 and one of 32 can, according to Ms. Heschel, exceeded $80,000.

Takeaways:

It is important to highlight the financial benefits of a competitive SAT or ACT score. Even at schools where test scores are optional – or not considered – for admissions, competitive scores can translate to financial benefit through merit scholarships. As higher education institutions’ best interest to improve their rankings and academic profiles, these “schools award the largest merit packages to students whose academic profile places them above the school’s average admitted applicant” Therefore, “strong test scores often receive aggressive financial offers from universities trying to improve rankings and academic profiles.”

The SAT/ACT comeback: Why a few points can be worth tens of thousands of dollars (Cleveland Jewish News) – 6/2/26

Demands from UC Stakeholders for a Return to Test Requirements

In an open letter to the University of California system and the people of California, over 1,000 professors (as of May 30, 2026), including the seven of the nine math department chairs and an additional 43 STEM department chairs, have called for the reinstatement of the SAT/ACT mathematics requirement for applicants to STEM majors at all University of California schools. The letter requests an immediate change to admissions policy starting in the 2027 application cycle as well as STEM faculty oversight of readiness standards and admissions practices for these majors. The letter points to a “widening divergence in mathematical preparation levels within the same classroom” and concludes that “current admissions practices do not provide a sufficiently reliable check on mathematical readiness for STEM majors.”

Takeaways: 

The University of California system moved to a test-optional admissions policy for those applying in the Fall of 2021 and shifted to a test-free, or “test-blind,” policy in 2023, which removed SAT and ACT scores completely from consideration for both admissions and scholarship opportunities. Since these changes have been made, the open letter highlights, “the number of students whose mathematics skills fall below high school level increased nearly thirtyfold; moreover, 70% of those students fall below middle school levels.” The writers of the open letter contend that these trends put UC’s mission “at risk.” SAT and ACT scores, they write, not only “provide a critical baseline” of math fluency but also “can also identify high-potential students in under-resourced schools whose talent might otherwise go unrecognized because of limited access to advanced coursework.”

Hundreds of Math Professors Ask UC to Bring Back SAT/ACT Requirements (Inside Higher Ed) – 5/28/26

Syracuse Recommits to Test-Optional Admissions for Another Year

Syracuse University announced this week that it will extend its test-optional admissions policy for another year for all students applying in the Fall 2027 and Spring 2028 admissions cycles. Syracuse has been test-optional for applicants since 2021. Hopeful students who decide to include test scores as part of their applications can choose to self-report scores; they will only need to submit score reports if they are admitted to the university and choose to enroll.

Takeaways:

Syracuse was  in the news lately after it drastically reduced academic options for students, eliminating 93 of its programs, representing 20 percent of its total academic offerings. The university characterized these changes as streamlining its students’ options rather than as “a cost-cutting exercise…aimed at eliminating departments or people.” On the admissions front, the continuation of a test-optional policy allows the school to stay consistent in looking “well beyond standardized test scores.” According to Maurice A. Harris, dean of Admissions, “Our test optional approach enables us to focus more heavily on factors such as academic success, challenging coursework and involvement outside the classroom.”

Syracuse University Extends Test Optional Policy for Fall 2027 Admission (Syracuse University Today) – 5/29/26

Yale Will Return to Test-Mandatory Admissions

Yale University has decided to once again require standardized test scores for undergraduate applicants. Yale had previously switched to a test-optional admissions policy during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic and then pivoted in 2024 to a test-flexible policy, in which applicants could submit AP or IB scores in lieu of SAT or ACT scores. The university’s shift back to mandated SAT or ACT scores will affect students applying this fall for the class of 2031.

Takeaways:

The return to test-mandatory admissions at Yale follows an April report by an internal university council that chastised higher education in general and Yale specifically for a lack of transparency in admission. In a university press release announcing the policy change, Yale College Dean Pericles Lewis characterized SAT and ACT scores as “strong predictors of a student’s future Yale academic performance, and, when considered thoughtfully as part of a whole person review, they can help identify well-prepared candidates, especially those from socio-economically disadvantaged backgrounds.”  It is worth noting that 90 percent of the students who enrolled at Yale during this latest admissions cycle had submitted SAT or ACT scores. Yale’s policy shift leaves Columbia as the only Ivy League institution where undergraduate applicants will not be required to submit SAT or ACT scores (Princeton will switch to test-required in 2028).

Yale reinstates SAT, ACT requirement after six years of flexible policy (Yale Daily News) – 5/26/26

Tulane Makes Key Changes to Admissions Policy

This past week, Tulane University made a unique adjustment to its standardized testing policy. While submitting SAT and ACT scores will remain optional for the majority of applicants, students who have achieved a score of 1300 or higher on the SAT or 28 or higher on the ACT are specifically encouraged to submit their scores. According to new guidelines, “such scores may strengthen your application for admission, assuming your academic record is strong.” Tulane will calculate superscores for students who submit multiple test scores.

Takeaways:

While some other institutions may “recommend” that students submit standardized test scores, Tulane’s test-recommended policy is the most specific to date. Interestingly, Tulane’s average SAT/ACT scores for the class of 2029 were 1460/33, respectively, so by spelling out these new guidelines, Tulane will likely see a drop in average test scores in exchange for more reliable data on its applicants. In addition to a recommendation to submit based on test score, Tulane made some additional key updates to its admissions policy:

• Applicants to the invitation-only dual degree Pathways to Medicine program will be required to submit SAT or ACT scores
• Standardized exams (SAT, ACT, AP, IB, A-Levels) will now be the “preferred credentials” for academic merit scholarships; on the other hand, these exams will not be a factor in the awarding of need-based or non-academic merit scholarships
• The school will discontinue its supplemental essay due to AI concerns

Standardized Testing Update for Fall 2027 (Tulane University Official Website) May 2026 

Major Discrepancy Between Parent Perception & Reality of U.S. Student Success

Nearly 90 percent of U.S. parents surveyed in a recent Gallup poll responded that their child is performing above grade level, but these beliefs do not align with the data: among U.S. eighth graders, proficiency rates are at a mere 30 percent in reading and 28 percent in math. As standardized tests continue to be deemphasized (with some states lowering the benchmarks for what is considered “proficient”) and grade inflation continues to balloon (the average adjusted math GPA increased from 3.02 to 3.32 between 2010 and 2022), the chasm between belief and reality promises to widen.

Takeaways:

The authors of this opinion piece argue that, while reversing grad inflation will have the greatest impact on providing a newly reliable standard for student performance, it is ultimately the parents’ responsibility to make sure they truly understand how their students are performing. To take control in educating themselves about school standards and processes, parents are advised to be direct in asking teachers if their children are performing at grade level, to request MAP results if they are available, be wary of schools that overly give out As, and take test scores as – if not more – seriously than grades. “When grades and test scores diverge, that gap is information: perhaps the most important information you will receive about your children’s education that year.”

It’s Becoming Impossible to Know How Your Kid Is Doing in School (NY Times) – 5/25/26

Cambridge AI Grading Study Uncovers Major Issues

The University of Cambridge recently conducted a robust study on the efficacy of AI grading in application essays. Researchers sourced 761 undergraduate psychology papers that had been submitted to three U.K. Universities (Cambridge, Manchester Metropolitan, and Nottingham) between 2022 and 2025. These essays were fed into three “frontier” Generative AI models (Gemini 3 Flash, Chat GPT-5.4, and Claude Opus 4.6) for grading, and compared to previous marks by human graders. The study found that the AI models regularly failed to assess the best and worst submissions accurately, matching the correct classification at best 63 percent of the time (Cambridge essays) and at worst 35 percent of the time (Manchester Metropolitan essays). Researchers concluded that the AI systems showed a “central tendency bias,” struggling to adequately judge work that is close to grading boundaries or shows diversity in the type of prompting. AI-driven grading was thus found to be “least accurate precisely where assessment decisions matter most.”

Takeaways:

The Cambridge Study concluded that even “best current AI models would see student grading that is homogenised, underestimates brilliance, and favours linguistic style over the substance of sound academic judgement.” These findings are concerning, especially as more than a handful of U.S. higher education institutions have adopted AI-driven assessment of student essays. Where AI showed signs of being valuable is in error detection and consistency checks – potentially replacing a second human assessor in many (but not all) cases. While, AI-generated student feedback, when paired with prompts that limited word count, was generally indistinguishable from human-generated student feedback, feedback from focus groups led researchers to conclude that AI-driven feedback “risks weakening trust, motivation, professional judgement, and the human engagement at the heart of higher education.”

AI not yet good enough to mark university essays, rewarding ‘style over substance’ (University of Cambridge) – 5/22/26

Harvard Limits A Grades in Effort to Curb Grade Inflation

On Wednesday, Harvard released a statement declaring that it would limit the number of A grades awarded to its undergraduates. Starting in the fall of 2027, professors in letter-graded courses will be allowed to award A grades to no more than 20 percent of students in that course – with the caveat that they will be able to also award As to up to four additional students. This new policy will be reviewed in three years once its implementation yields adequate data. 

Takeaways:

Grade inflation has become a focal criticism of higher education over the past several decades. According to data from the U.S. Department of Education, GPAs at four-year public and nonprofit colleges increased by more than 16 percent between 1990 and 2020. At Harvard specifically, over 60 percent of the grades the university awarded to undergraduate students in recent years fell within the A range. Harvard is not the first university to attempt to combat grade inflation – Princeton limited A-range grades from 2004-2014 but later abandoned this practice over criticism that it disadvantaged graduates – but its methods are among the most ambitious to date. Alisha Holland, government professor at Harvard and co-chair of the faculty subcommittee that developed the proposal, said that the policy change “sends a powerful signal that, when people are questioning what universities do, universities are capable of governing and reforming themselves and evolving to match the challenges of our times.”

Harvard faculty votes to make it more difficult for undergrads to earn A’s (Associated Press) – 5/20/26

College Board Partners With College Price Transparency Tool

The College Board announced its partnership with college cost estimation tool MyinTuition. MyinTuition aims to “ensure that far more students can access clear, early information about college costs and make decisions with confidence.” The MyinTuition app includes an “Instant Net Price Estimator,” which provides families a broad range of potential college costs with minimal input on their part, and a “Quick Cost Estimator,” which creates a more granular estimate based on a set of six questions. In its press release, the College Board praised MyinTution’s “reliable, easy-to-use tools that support smarter planning and open doors to opportunity.”

Takeaways:

The MyinTution app is currently used by 69 higher education institutions and creates and delivers roughly 800,000 financial aid estimates each year. Phillip Levine, MyinTuition’s founder and an economics professor at Wellesley College, touted the partnership as an important step in expanding financial transparency in higher education. “By joining College Board, we have an incredible opportunity to scale this work and ensure that far more students can access clear, early information about college costs and make decisions with confidence.” 

College Board Acquires MyinTuition to Help Students and Families Better Understand the True Cost of College (College Board Newsroom) – 5/19/26

2026 Boasts the Best Ever FAFSA Completion Percentages

According to data compiled by the National College Attainment Network (NCAN), the class of 2026 has set an all-time record for completion rate of the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). As of May 1st, 54.7 percent of high school seniors had completed the form, far outpacing previous years. 2026’s totals are 12 percentage points higher than at the same time in 2025. In 2024, the year the process was marred by the disastrous rollout of the “Better FAFSA”: only 47.3 percent of high school seniors ended up completing the form as of June 28th of that year.

Takeaways:

All 50 U.S. states have recorded more FAFSA completions in 2026 than in 2025. By May 1st of this year, six states – California, Illinois, New Jersey, New York, Tennessee and Texas – surpassed a 60 percent completion rate. Additionally, Alaska, Arizona, Florida and New Mexico achieved a year-over-year increase of at least 20 percent. Bill DeBaun, NACN’s senior director of data and strategic initiatives, credits the jump in completions to a simplified FAFSA process (after two years of growing pains), a September launch (one month earlier than the Federal mandate and three months earlier than last year), universal FAFSA completion policies in nine states, and the work of NCAN members. “This moment is a poignant and powerful one for NCAN and our members and partners across the country…NCAN members have been key drivers of FAFSA completion across the country for years, but that was especially true during the tumultuous 2024–25 cycle. In light of that difficult period, witnessing this turnaround is especially sweet.”

2026 FAFSA Completion Rate Hits Record High (Inside Higher Ed) – 5/15/26

UChicago Doubles Its Threshold for Free Tuition

Starting in the Fall of 2027, the University of Chicago will offer free tuition for families making under $250,000 annually, doubling the previous threshold for full tuition reimbursement. Additionally, for students whose families earn less than $125,000, the university has pledged to also cover housing costs, meals, and other university fees. According to the Wednesday UChicago press release, “The announcement is an affirmation of the University’s core belief that costs should not prevent a student from joining UChicago’s community of extraordinary scholars.”

Takeaways:

The University of Chicago’s new financial aid scheme is among the most generous, joining Princeton University as the only two institutions that have raised their tuition-free threshold to $250,000. Other selective schools, such as Harvard, MIT, and UPenn, have raised their income limits to $200,000 in recent years. Between the $71,000 tuition cost and additional expenses, a student paying full tuition at the University of Chicago would expect to spend upwards of $98,000 per year; however, as of this year, the average financial aid package is more than $75,000.

University of Chicago Waives Tuition for Families Making Under $250,000 (NY Times) – 5/14/26

Continued Issues for the Enhanced ACT With District Testing Scoring Mistakes

ACT Inc. will be removing and reissuing certain students’ scores from the latest ACT District/School Day testing administration. ACT Inc. reached out via email to select school district coordinators this week to inform them of the necessary recalibration due to an internal issue in the scoring process. According to ACT’s director of strategic communications Juan Elizondo, “Scores will not be going down. Many scores will stay the same. Some will go up slightly.” It is unclear exactly how many students were affected – and where, in addition to the Columbus, OH area, these scoring discrepancies were found. The ACT claims that the majority of those who were affected were juniors or younger, and that less than 5 percent of high school seniors were affected. Impacted students should see updated scores in their MyACT online portal by June 2nd.

Takeaways:

Mr. Elizondo shared further (albeit vague) specifics with the Columbus Dispatch on what will change:

• Reading: 95 percent of scores will stay the same or increase by one point; 5 percent will go up by two points
• Science: 99 percent of scores will stay the same or increase by one point; 1 percent will go up by two points
• Math: 97 percent of scores will stay the same or increase by one point; 3 percent will go up by two points
• English: 98 percent of scores will stay the same or increase by one point; 2 percent will go up by two points

Reading between the lines of the somewhat misleading language put forward by the ACT, it becomes clear that this latest mishap affected a significant number of students. That said, as of this writing, there has been no ACT press release addressing the issue, nor an apology or even mention of a scoring problem on the ACT website. This lack of transparency is, sadly, in line with the ACT’s recent pattern of communication throughout the rocky rollout of its Enhanced test. 

ACT ‘scoring issue’ impacts students nationwide. What we know (USA Today) – 5/14/26

FAYE Provides Definitive Cost Estimates for Brandeis Hopefuls

Brandeis University unveiled FAYE, a new AI-powered tool that provides applicants with near-unprecedented pricing transparency. FAYE is designed to walk families through a short conversation that gathers data points necessary to provide a price that the families will pay for education at Brandeis, a level of certainty missing from nearly all other U.S. college and university price estimates. Paired with FAYE is the “Brandeis Commitment,” which launched this fall. This program promises to fully subsidize tuition for families making under $75,000 and half scholarship for those with total annual income below $200,000. In addition, the program guarantees that a student’s scholarship will not change for four years unless there are marked changes to the family’s financial circumstances.

Takeaways:

For a family whose student is thinking of applying to a U.S. college or university, understanding the cost of attending is less straightforward than one might expect. Colleges’ financial aid calculators can be off – in some cases by thousands of dollars – as an administration will often not have a clear picture of the breakdown of its financial aid packages until it has a full picture of the financial situation of its applicant pool. Between FAYE and the Brandeis Commitment, Brandeis University aims to distinguish itself as one of the only universities that gives cost clarity to all of its applying students.

Brandeis’ New AI Tool Upends Admissions With Price Transparency (Forbes) – 5/11/26

Worldwide Data Breach Imperils Students Data, Shuts Down Learning Platforms

A large-scale cyber attack was carried out last month on the Canvas and Instructure learning platforms, resulting in a data breach that affected nearly 9,000 educational institutions and 275 million students. Institutions across Canada and Australia were particularly impacted, but colleges and universities globally are scrambling to protect their students, whose sensitive information could now be at risk. Beyond the fears surrounding the misuse of data, many students are also locked out of learning platforms for an indeterminate amount of time. This means losing access to semester notes as final exams loom.

Takeaways:

In the U.S., “this (breach) is being reported as a national-level cyber-security incident,” according to the University of Iowa’s College of Public Health’s director of information technology. Disruptions are being felt at multiple institutions. The student paper, The Crimson, confirmed that the learning platform was down at Harvard, and students at Johns Hopkins reported receiving error messages when trying to access final grades. Teachers at Virginia Tech, The University of New Mexico, and University of Florida are working with students to find ways to bypass the technological hurdles created by this incident. The University of Texas at San Antonio and others have announced that they will be pushing back finals in response to the outage. Damon Linker, a senior lecturer at the University of Pennsylvania, characterized the outage leaving students and faculty “dead in the water here in academia right now.”

Cyberattack hits Canvas system used by thousands of schools as finals loom (Associated Press) – 5/7/26

More Information Emerges About Florida’s AP U.S. History Rival

Further details were released this week about Florida’s American history course, which will serve as an alternative to the College Board’s Advanced Placement U.S. History program. Some of the more notable features of the course are as follows

• Among the most controversial aspects of the course is its suggestion that students read religious texts to better understand the founding of the United States, which, in its early stages, was “a Protestant nation with many denominations”
• The course also contentiously claims that the nation’s founders were opposed to slavery and that the constitution was an antislavery document; this is a difficult position to reconcile with the fact that many of the architects of America owned slaves and that the constitution protected the institution of slavery for nearly a century after the nation’s founding
• There is a substantial focus on European history and how the Protestant Reformation set the stage for America; some critics feel that this direction pulls focus from the history of American Indigenous peoples
• The course does not omit certain overtly negative periods in American history such as the Trail of Tears and the internment of Japanese Americans
• Like the Advanced Placement course, the Florida program provides a certain level of autonomy for teachers on how to present their material

Takeaways:

For more than three years, Governor Ron DeSantis (R–FL) has been locked in a public assault on the College Board. The Governor’s fundamental complaints against both the AP and the SAT, which first surfaced during the rollout of the AP African American Studies program, is that the College Board “push(es) an agenda on our kids.” He takes as a given that there is an overt political bias in the company’s curriculum and the tests. “We want education,” the Governor has publicly stated, “not indoctrination.” Yet, both the new Florida course and the Classical Learning Test, which has been propped up as a rival to the SAT, fail to remove bias and agenda from education. Instead, in the service of making Florida a place where “woke goes to die,” these alternative options push, sometimes with greater force, their own clear and partial agenda.

Florida Creates a More Conservative U.S. History Course to Rival A.P. (NY Times) – 5/7/26

A Higher Percentage of Students Submitted Test Scores This Year

According to Common App data, 10 percent more students submitted SAT and ACT scores this application cycle compared to last year’s. While some institutions, such as Stanford University, have recently switched back to test-mandatory admissions, the increase is far outpacing the trend of reinstating testing requirements. Currently, only 5 percent of higher education institutions that participate in the Common App require standardized test scores.

Takeaways:

There are varying explanations as to why there is an upward trend in score submissions. Harry Feder, executive of FairTest, which positions itself as an opponent of standardized testing, believes that “outside pressure from parents, counselors and the standardized testing industry of paid college prep” is the main reason for this upward growth. Meanwhile, Bruce Sacerdote, an economics professor at Dartmouth, characterizes standardized tests as very helpful in sifting through candidates with superlative GPAs as “having metrics that aren’t completely top-coded is quite useful.” To U.S High School Senior Gracie Stuart, test scores were another way to help her stand out: “I felt they added another dimension to my application and helped reinforce my academic abilities.”

More college applicants are opting to include SAT or ACT scores in their submissions (npr) – 5/4/26

France’s Sciences Po Surge of Applicants, Reduced Interest in U.S. Study Abroad

The election of U.S. President Trump to a second term and the subsequent uncertainty surrounding life in America for international students has led some who once dreamed of studying in the United States to rethink their plans. As students lose further confidence in the feasibility of U.S. higher ed institutions, the popularity of certain European schools is surging. Sciences Po is one such University. An elite institution with campuses in Paris, Dijon, Le Havre and elsewhere across France, Sciences Po has historically been an attractive option for international students, but it has seen an explosion in interest as of late. This past year, applications to the Sciences Po bachelor’s program from students in the United States increased by a whopping 52 percent.

Takeaways:

Simultaneously, for the first time in Sciences Po’s history, the United States is not the first choice for the mandatory study abroad in the third year of the program. In fact, 50 percent fewer students applied to the U.S. study abroad program this year. Uncertainty around visa status is not the only deterrent for these students. High costs of education, the proliferation of gun violence, and fear over the ramifications of expressing certain political opinions. Sciences Po student Tóth-Göde who is originally from Hungary and had once applied to Princeton is planning to eschew the U.S. and instead study abroad in China in his third year, citing that America is too unreliable a place to study.  “I know what the rules are. In the United States, it’s completely ambiguous. I might be taken away for voicing an opinion. In China, at least, I can control that.”

In France, American Universities Lose Their Allure in the Trump Era (NY Times) – 4/29/26

ChatGPT 5.2 Passes Top Japanese Entrance Exams

This Spring, OpenAI’s ChatGPT 5.2 Thinking model sat for the entrance exams for Japan’s two most prestigious universities: The University of Tokyo and Kyoto University. Exam questions were converted into image data and fed into the chatbot, which saw incredible success on many exam sections. This iteration of ChatGPT scored 50 points higher than the top human test-taker in the University of Tokyo’s Natural Sciences III medical track exam (the most competitive), and it achieved a perfect score in mathematics. Additionally it scored 452 out of 550 points on the Humanities and Social Sciences exam, surpassing the top human score by 18 points. On the Kyoto University exam, the AI bot achieved 771 points in the Faculty of Law exam, 37 points higher than the top human scorer; it scored 1,176 points in the Faculty of Medicine exam, 78 points higher than the top human scorer.

Takeaways:

The last time OpenAI’s technology – ChatGPT 4, at that time – attempted the University of Tokyo’s entrance exam was in 2024. On that attempt, the chatbot failed to reach a passing score on the exam. Two years have seen a massive shift. Satoshi Endo, the head of LifePrompt Inc., the AI venture company that conducted the test, believes that ChatGPT 5.2’s strong performance on the entrance exams underscores its growing ubiquity: “Given the rapid pace of AI evolution, companies will need to adopt AI with an eye toward how business operations will look in 10 to 20 years.” It is worth noting however, that the AI model was not successful in all subjects it tested on: while it achieved a 90 percent on the Tokyo University English essay exam, it only scored on average around 25 percent on essay-style questions in subjects like World History.

ChatGPT passes Japan top universities’ entrance exams with highest scores (Japan Today) – 4/28/26

UW to Open New College of Computing and Artificial Intelligence

The University of Wisconsin has received $100 million in private gift commitments earmarked for its new College of Computing and Artificial Intelligence. Donated by a collective of alumni, business leaders and corporate partners, the funds will be used to hire 50 new faculty members over the coming years to create new courses, certificates, majors, and degree programs focused on Artificial Intelligence. The new college is set to open July 1, 2026.

Takeaways:

University officials have named Remzi Arpaci-Dusseau, the Grace Wahba professor of Computer Sciences, as the founding dean of the College of Computing and Artificial Intelligence. Mr. Arpaci-Dusseau has been responsible for influential research on storage systems, operating systems and distributed computing and is the former chair of the Computer Sciences Department at UW. In a news release, UW–Madison Chancellor Jennifer L. Mnookin said that the new college will “be a hub and resource for the rest of campus” and will help “society navigate a changing landscape, including AI’s ethical questions and implications for the workforce, will require collaboration across disciplines.” This is the second time this week that UW has been in the news; the institution also announced that it will be extending its test-optional admissions policy through 2027.

University Of Wisconsin Receives $100 Million For Its New AI College (Forbes) – 4/28/26

Harvard International Enrollment Is Highly Concentrated by Country and School

Over 10,000 international students from approximately 150 countries are currently enrolled at Harvard University. International students account for roughly 15 percent of each matriculating class. Yet, over 30 percent of international students admitted to Harvard hail from one of three countries: Canada, China, or the United Kingdom. Moreover, within those – and other – countries, specific high schools can often boast an outsized share of enrollments. While highly specific concentrations of students can make sense in the context of where English-language programs are available, the findings here are still significant.

Takeaways:

In Canada, the country outside of the U.S. with the highest number of enrollees in Harvard, the top seven high schools account for roughly 20 percent of the country’s Harvard students. Graduates from Eton College, Westminster School, and St. Paul’s School combined represent around 19 percent of the United Kingdom’s student presence at Harvard. In other parts of the world, the concentration of students from specific high schools becomes starker: graduates of the American School in Japan account for 20 percent of Harvard’s Japanese nationals; Robert College and Koc School graduates combine to represent approximately 48 percent of Harvard’s students from Türkiye; International Computer High School of Bucharest and Lahore’s Aitchison College have been responsible for 29 percent of Harvard enrollees from Romania and Pakistan, respectively; Raffles Institution sent 33 of the 99 Singaporean students that enrolled in Harvard over the last 17 years; and the International School Manila has acted as a pipeline for 70 percent of Harvard’s students from the Philippines.

Inside Harvard’s Global Pipeline: How a Handful of Schools Feed the College’s International Ranks (Harvard Crimson) – 4/25/26

Vanderbilt Report: Eliminating Legacy Admissions May Not Increase Diversity

A case study spearheaded by Vanderbilt associate professor of public policy and higher education Brent Evans concluded that “while legacy bans may increase perceptions of equity and fairness, it’s not clear that they consistently lead to increases in student diversity.” Evans and co-author Cody Christensen, a Vanderbilt doctoral student, investigated seven distinct cases at institutions where preference toward relatives of alumni and donors were eliminated: Amherst College, Johns Hopkins University, Texas A&M University, University of Colorado, University of Georgia, University of Pittsburgh, and the University of California system. Results across the seven institutions varied.

Takeaways:

The admissions policy of rewarding preference to children of alumni and donors has become an extremely unpopular one in recent years over fairness concerns; the practice disproportionately favors wealthy students (a large percentage of whom are white) and gives them a three to eight times greater chance of admission versus equally qualified candidates. According to a 2024 Pew Center research study, 75 percent of Americans believe that legacy status should not be a factor in college admissions. It is no surprise then that over the past decade more than half of the higher education institutions that previously gave admissions preference to children of alumni and donors have ceased to do so. Vanderbilt’s new policy brief, however, makes the strong case that eliminating legacy preference alone will not be a panacea for American higher education’s diversity problem. The brief argues that states that choose to ban legacy preferences should do so consistently across both public and private institutions and should enforce sanctions against schools that do not comply; additionally, the researchers conclude that institutions looking to increase on-campus diversity should focus on recruitment in underrepresented communities and expand financial aid, guaranteed tuition programs, and mentorship initiatives.

Legacy preference bans may not increase college diversity, Vanderbilt researchers say (Vanderbilt University Research News) – 4/23/26

Yale Report Rebukes Higher Ed Institutions, Itself

A report released by a Yale University committee last month addressed a deterioration in public trust of U.S. colleges and universities. The report placed the blame squarely on the institutions themselves, particularly over three factors: the astronomical cost of higher education; the opaque nature of college admissions policies; and on-campus issues related to free speech, political bias and self-censorship.  One of the report’s key tenets is that the expectations put on higher education institutions “to be all things to all people” has often left the institutions rudderless: “without a clear mission and purpose, it becomes difficult to judge whether colleges and universities are living up to their fundamental commitments.” Historian Beverly Gage, who co-chairs the Yale committee, said the report’s goals included an “acknowledge(ment) that public skepticism and distrust is something that’s built over time and will take some time to reverse.” “Moving forward,” Ms. Gage contends, “the strategy needs to be not just one of changed communications but one of real, substantive action and self-critique.” 

Takeaways:

Beyond its excoriations, the Yale committee report offered some tangible recommendations (directed mostly inward) on how to begin restoring eroded public faith in higher education: 

• Recenter admissions policy on transparency and academic achievement: “it should only use criteria for admission that it is willing to describe publicly and defend openly”
• Raise the income limit on “no tuition” guarantee for undergraduate students, increase financial support for graduate and professional students “do everything possible to make the financial aid system more comprehensible, predictable, and fair” 
• Institute a device-free classroom policy “to restore respect for the living classroom experience as a place of active interchange and focused learning.”
• Establish a “college-wide standard” grading system to aggressively work to reduce grade inflation
• Work to actively protect free speech and academic freedom, prioritizing open dialogue on campus to actively address the problems of ideological conformity
• Making its teaching research more available to the public

In his comprehensive article on the Yale report and its fallout, “Yale Said the Quiet Part Out Loud,” Jason Robinovitz draws a cautiously optimistic conclusion. “(Yale) has something almost no other institution in America has: the resources, the reputation, and now a playbook to prove that higher education can be reformed from the inside.”

Yale Report Finds Colleges Deserve Blame for Higher Education’s Problems (NY Times) – 4/15/26

Khanmigo as a “Non-Event” Speaks to a Shortfall in AI-Driven Education

Khan Academy founder Sal Khan has announced that the company will be changing strategy on how it leverages its chatbot Khanmigo within its learning platform. Three years ago, Mr. Khan characterized AI as “the biggest positive transformation that education has ever seen;” since then, he admits, “for a lot of students, (Khanmigo) was a non-event.” “So far I am not seeing the revolution in education,” Khan Academy’s Chief Learning Officer Kristen DiCerbo told Chalkbeat earlier this month. According to a Khan Academy spokesman, the company is planning to pair Khanmigo with other of its offerings as “students were not seeking out (its) help as much as we had hoped.”

Takeaways:

According to Dan Meyer, author of Mathworlds, Khanmigo’s lack of success points to a general failure in Sal Khan’s vision of the AI revolution in education. While Mr. Khan places the blame on teachers not engaging students and Ms. DiCerbo points the finger at students not asking the right questions, Mr. Meyer wonders why Khan Academy has been aggressively pushing Khanmigo on students “if its value were so obvious and transformational” in the first place. One of the key shortfalls critics have pointed out about Khanmigo is its inability to initiate or end conversations organically and with sensitivity or to build meaningful relationships with students that it can draw on to spark learning. Mr. Meyer believes the failure here stems from Mr. Khan’s (unsuccessful) attempts to “abstract humans away from human systems.” With this in mind, Mr. Meyer concludes, “it seems unlikely that he is the right person now to pivot edtech towards humanity.”

RIP Khanmigo & Edtech Industry Dreams of AI Tutors (Mathworlds) – 4/15/26

26 Percent of Private Colleges Face Potential Closure

A new forecast by Huron Consulting Group estimates that 442, or 26 percent, of the U.S.’s 1700 private, nonprofit four-year colleges and universities are at risk of closure or forced merger over the next 10 years. These potential shutdowns could affect up to 670,000 students. For those students, school closures could have a direct impact on their future. Fewer than half of students enrolled in a college that shutter end up continuing their education. Among those that do continue, many will lose credits that have already been paid for, and fewer than half of these students will ultimately earn their degree.

Takeaways:

Beyond the direct student impact, college and university closures create ripple effects in the surrounding communities. Not only do institutional closures mean immediate loss of jobs and spending at local businesses but they also destroy the conduit of graduates who would end up settling nearby, starting families and/or building businesses. This can “leave craters in the small rural communities that they have been a part of for, in some instances, decades or a century.” 

More than a quarter of private colleges are at risk of closing, a new projection shows (npr) – 4/13/26

Stanford Ranked #1 B-School by U.S. News

U.S. News and World Report’s latest ranking of full-time MBA programs named Stanford University’s program the best in the country. The other spots in the top five went to The Wharton School of University of Pennsylvania (2), The Booth School of the University of Chicago (3), Harvard University (T-4), and The Kellogg School of Northwestern University (T-4).

Takeaways:

Among full-time business schools, Stanford boasts one of the most selective admissions processes (acceptance rate below 7 percent) and the highest average starting salary ($206,157) for graduates. The program’s strong relationship with Silicon Valley as well as its high yield (consistently above 80 percent) helped Stanford secure the top spot in this ranking. Interestingly, Stanford has been excluded from the Financial Times’ annual ranking of top-10 business programs for two years straight, directly leading to it being ranked #26 on Poets & Quants aggregate ranking.

Stanford Returns To No. 1 In 2026 U.S. News MBA Ranking As Volatility Ripples Across The List (Poets & Quants) – 4/6/26

Forbes 2026 List of New Ivies

Forbes has released its third annual list of “New Ivies,” schools that produce graduates who rate especially highly with employers, both on academic rigor of their programs and workforce preparedness. The complete list of schools is below:

Private Universities:

• Carnegie Mellon University
• Case Western Reserve University
• Emory University
• Georgetown University
• Northwestern University
• Rice University
• Tufts University
• University of Notre Dame
• Vanderbilt University
• Washington University in St. Louis

Public Universities

• Georgia Institute of Technology
• Purdue University
• United States Air Force Academy
• University of Florida
• University of Michigan – Ann Arbor
• University of North Carolina – Chapel Hill
• University of Texas – Austin
• University of Virginia
• University of Wisconsin – Madison
• William and Mary

Takeaways:

Forbes used a variety of selection metrics to compile this list. Only focusing on schools with high median SAT (1530+ for private, 1460+ for public) and ACT scores (34+ for private, 31+ for public), Forbes surveyed over 100 C-Suite and hiring executives, to determine the top sources of newly-graduated employees. This year, Forbes factored in how effectively these colleges are preparing graduates for a post-AI world. Ivy Plus schools (Ivy League institutions, Stanford, MIT, Chicago, Duke and Johns Hopkins) were omitted from consideration from this list – as were schools from the University of California system due to lack of standardized testing requirements.

The New Ivies (Forbes) – 4/8/26

Takeaways from Three Years of NTPA Op-Eds

David Blobaum, Director of Outreach for the National Test Prep Association (NTPA) put together a helpful collection of key points from recent NTPA Op-Eds, focused on the predictive power of standardized tests, “holistic: college admissions, test-optional policies, and more. Some especially pertinent findings are included below:

• Over the past three years, elite U.S. higher education institutions have publicly lauded the predictive success of SAT and ACT scores: a 2024 Brown/Dartmouth study found that SAT/ACT scores are 3.9 times more predictive than high school GPAs of student success at Ivy-Plus colleges; representatives at Brown, Dartmouth, and Yale all called the SAT/ACT the largest predictor of student success at their universities; University of California – San Diego characterized the SAT and ACT math sections as the best predictors of math placement; University of Virginia’s president noted that, even though UVA is currently test optional, the “independent predictive value with standardized tests (are) above and beyond GPA and other (application) elements.”
• Many schools that have switched to “test-required” admissions had functionally required testing even while they were officially “test-optional.” Yale, for example, only admitted 2 percent of students who submitted without SAT/ACT scores during its test optional era, versus 6 percent of students who applied with scores. Additionally, Cornell internal research concluded that “submitting test scores significantly increases the likelihood of admission.” Test-optional admissions policies, in many cases, remain in place due to competitive advantages in recruitment versus educational benefit.
• Approximately 16 percent of students at Ivy-Plus institutions come from the top 1 percent in terms of household income; students in that income bracket are more than twice as likely to attend Ivy-Plus institutions as middle class students with the same standardized test scores. 
• Students that fall in the wealthiest income bracket are more likely to have access to non-academic application metrics such as high-profile recommendations and niche sports that are factored into holistic admissions; thus, institutions that weigh standardized criteria (like the SAT/ACT) are less likely to give preference to wealthy students.
• Many employers now use their own standardized exams to prescreen job applicants to account for uncertainty around applicant’s basic skills post-college, pointing to the growing importance for students to build standardized test skills. Additionally, some employers now directly ask applicants for SAT/ACT scores.

Takeaways:

The NTPA’s findings on grade inflation are also significant. Among first-year university students starting their studies in 2024, a whopping 84 percent received A averages. The same year, UCLA saw an unweighted GPA of 4.0 across its matriculating students, and 95 percent of UNC-Chapel Hill students received a 4.0 GPA. Not only does this widespread grade-inflation erode confidence in students’ levels of college readiness, it presents a significant problem for college admissions officers: differentiating candidates on grades alone becomes nearly impossible. Beyond admissions, grade inflation can also lead to students needing supplemental academic assistance (in 2020, the share of incoming students placed into remedial math increased from 1 percent to 12 percent) and can delay or even keep students from graduating (in 2024, the percent of students who completed college within six years was merely 61.1 percent). These findings underscore the importance of standardized test scores as unbiased and accurate measures of student preparedness.

Helpful Advocacy Information for NTPA Members – April 2026

Major Reduction in Course Offerings at the University of Indiana and Syracuse

This week, two university systems announced major cutbacks in program offerings. The Indiana Commission for Higher Education concluded a review of degree programs across the state’s public universities, finding that enrollment in over a 1,000 of the system’s 2,300 program offerings were below state-mandated thresholds. 210 of these programs were marked for elimination; however, 50 of those majors had zero enrollments. Syracuse University completed a months-long academic portfolio review this week, which resulted in the institution cutting 93 of its programs, representing 20 percent of its total academic offerings. Whereas the cuts in Indiana ran the gamut in terms of course programming, the closed programs at Syracuse were mainly based in the Humanities and the Fine Arts.

Takeaways:

While cost cutting measures have been a major driver for program downsizing at other institutions, both the Indiana University system and Syracuse University cited other reasons here. Dr. Katie Jenner, the Indiana secretary of education, characterized the cuts as delivering on the “promise” that its “programs are viable, aligned with student interests and workforce needs, and positioned to deliver real outcomes.” In Syracuse’s case, Provost Louis Agnew emphasized that the reduction in offerings was “not a cost-cutting exercise, and it was not aimed at eliminating departments or people.” In these cases, at least, student demand has been the main impetus behind pruning course offerings. An analysis by the public policy group American Enterprise Institute concluded that “today’s college students are choosing majors with a higher return on investment.” While enrollment in fields of study that are thought of as being high-wage, “low-wage majors such as history, English, and sociology have seen student interest wane.”

Academic Purges Continue As More Colleges Close Their Degree Programs (Forbes) – 4/2/26