Millikan students (as of the 2026 admission season) who are eligible will now be automatically admitted to the California State University system.
Senate Bill 640, a recently signed California legislation, will, “…establish the CSU Direct Admission Program under which a pupil graduating from a high school of a participating local educational agency is deemed eligible for enrollment into a designated California State University campus.”
Piloted in Riverside County high schools, this law aims to boost the enrollment of college students into the state’s public universities following the recent decline in enrollment at several CSU’s.
A student’s eligibility will be based on their academic records and be processed through the californiacolleges.edu system. All students residing in California have an established account on the website with all their transcripts. Students who meet the eligibility requirements will be notified of their acceptance to the designated colleges.
“I think it’s a pro for those students who do academically well and have that high GPA getting that direct admission,” says Ms. Martinez, one of Millikan’s college success coaches and student at Cal State Long Beach. However she also warns,“ For impacted campuses, my only issue would be how they would then decide to admit students, what is going to make students stick out to these colleges.”
Unlike the Common App, which allows students to showcase their extracurricular involvement, the Cal State application considers only academic performance—an approach reflected in the new California bill.
Oliver Sammelius • Nov 18, 2025 at 6:14 pm
This article does a great job of informing the reader of what Senate Bill 640 is and how it will affect students. As many students at Millikan are concerned with their college applications, understanding the implications of this legislation may provide relief for many. Additionally, understanding what is occurring with direct admission into Cal State schools may help students with making decisions regarding college applications. As somebody who was confused about this bill myself, having a new understanding of what it means is very helpful. I also appreciate the way the author describes the admissions system, and how not all students will be accepted. However, after reading this article I find myself wondering if this direct application process will apply to all CSU schools, or just a select few. I believe that including this information in the article will greatly help students with the context of the situation and how it will affect them. All in all, I believe that this is a fantastic article that informs students of an important recent development and how it will affect them.
Caitlin Ujiie • Nov 18, 2025 at 1:38 pm
I was browsing through Corydon’s latest articles, and this one specifically caught my attention. I am an eleventh junior, and I know a handful of seniors who are currently going through the college application process. I’ve always thought that applying to colleges would be challenging, given the numerous important steps involved in creating a strong application. However, reading this article made me realize that with the new Senate Bill being passed, this process for applicants in the fall of 2026 will be significantly less challenging for eligible students.
With that being said, it’s interesting to note that this bill also prioritizes academic performance for CSU applicants, potentially overlooking the showcasing of extracurricular involvement, which is also important. Overall, this article was very informative and insightful regarding the new Cal State Application Process for the upcoming 2026 application season.
Sophia Romero • Nov 18, 2025 at 1:30 pm
As a student who is getting ready for the application process next year this article immediately caught my attention. This article was informative and helped me become aware of the new policies that may change how I get ready for my upcoming application season. The information was well presented and provided an important issue of what can make your application stand out more due to the generalization of the bill. This was an extremely helpful read for me because I have not heard of or been told of this new bill which, now after reading it, is going to help me reconsider what I can do to help my application stand out. I also enjoyed that a staff member of our College and Career Center was interviewed for this story because it gives important insight on what this new bill could potentially mean for new applicants. Overall, the article gave me a good understanding of what the bill includes and what could result from this becoming a factor in the application process.
Tyler Cover • Nov 18, 2025 at 11:41 am
As a current QUEST Junior, I understand that the time is rapidly approaching to where college research and college applications will become the most important facet of my life, and I’d wager that it will come with a great deal of stress as well. With California SB 640, it seems that admission into the Cal State system is going to be supremely easier, as to my understanding it extends a blanket acceptance into CSU’s, and I am grateful that the Corydon has written about this topic. This is the very first that I have read about the new bill, which is surprising due to how revolutionary this is to high school students like myself. However, I still have a few questions about the bill, mainly on how such a broad admission would work in regards to choosing which CSU to attend. What happens if the vast majority of seniors who get direct admission pick Cal Poly SLO, for example? Does SB 640 operate like Long Beach Unified’s School of Choice, where you make a list of schools you want to attend, and then they work down the list of GPA’s from high to low, essentially guaranteeing that you get into a CSU, but not that you’ll get into the one you want? This issue is would compound with the one Ms. Martinez brings up, that although you may be a part of a host of extracurriculars, you may get snuffed out of the school you want due to having a GPA that is slightly below someone that does nothing outside of school. In all I believe that the new bill carries a lot of promise, but there are still questions that must me answered.
Jocelyn Jimenez • Nov 17, 2025 at 1:36 pm
This article briefly explains what Senate Bill 640 is and what it means for future students starting 2026. I like how the article explains the way this system will work. It is clearly explained and easy to understand. I wonder though, if there are other people such as students or teachers that strongly agree or disagree with this bill. It would be interesting to see more perspectives on this topic and why students or staff agree or disagree with this bill. I also wonder about other possible impacts of this bill such as overcrowding in these CSU colleges or a shift in people focusing on academics and not being involved in extracurricular activities. I would possibly include these concerns to allow for multiple viewpoints to be considered about Senate Bill 640. Overall, this article does an amazing job at explaining how the Senate Bill 640 will work and what it will mean for future college students. I enjoyed reading this article because it was interesting and allowed me to understand a new bill added to the California legislation.
Juliana Reichardt • Nov 17, 2025 at 11:19 am
As a member of the class of 2027, the college application process is fast approaching. This bill is positive in a lot of ways. It rewards those who focus more on academics rather than extracurriculars. It is very hard to stand out in a college essay as most of us don’t have time to be in clubs, sports, volunteer programs, jobs, etc.. This bill is also helpful because in-state tuition is typically cheaper and with easier acceptance, families will hopefully be able to send their children to good institutions.
However, major flaws will appear as technological growth continues to increase at an alarming rate. With the implementation of AI in almost every facet of the internet, it has become easier to cheat or have the work done for you. Many colleges will disregard GPA, as there is an automatic assumption that students have used AI. This becomes problematic when students have a good work ethic and are just ignored by colleges. This new bill can undo some of those knots. However, as this becomes the norm, more knots will be introduced.
Overall, this article is very informative for students. It is easy to become overwhelmed by the prospect of college acceptance. College has become so expensive and hard to get into, and so having safe schools has never been more important. Having just two or three safe and nearby schools can also alleviate the financial burden of forcing students to move for in-state tuition.