Admissions policies that give applicants the option of whether to submit their standardized test scores have been growing steadily over the years, sparked by long-running concerns about how the tests can contribute to racial and socioeconomic inequality and more-immediate pandemic-driven logistical challenges.

Now, a sea change appears to be happening in higher education, with more colleges and universities making test-optional admissions permanent.

U.S. Rep. Mark Pocan went to great lengths to finance his college degree. He took out loans, worked part time, and even did magic shows to help pay for college.

But it was another bit of magic that helped the Wisconsin Democrat avoid too much debt when he left University of Wisconsin-Madison with a bachelor’s degree in journalism: the federal Pell Grant program.

Photo: Andrew Reed

Demanding better pay, more benefits, and job security, tens of thousands of University of California graduate assistants, postdoctoral fellows, and academic researchers are continuing to hold a systemwide labor strike at all 10 UC campuses.

Undergraduates appear divided in their reaction. Some are worried about the impact on their grades and studies. Others are skipping class and joining the picket line in solidarity with the strikers.