To accompany changes in the educational system, the Oregon University System has decided to adopt new standards for college admission.

PASS is necessary to ensure that OUS institutions are responsive to changes in the Oregon educational system developed under the Oregon Educational Act for the 21st Century. David Conley, director of the PASS project at the University of Oregon, says, "OUS doesn't intend to require the CIM and/or CAM but to align our content standards with theirs. Some students may have the ability to do college work but may choose for whatever reason not to complete the CIM and/or CAM. However, the vast majority will simply complete the CIM and CAM requirements on the way to demonstrating PASS proficiency requirements."

The goals of this new system are to ensure that more students are prepared to do college-level work successfully and make better choices concerning their academic program and career. In addition, it will decrease the time it takes students to graduate. "I think it is a potentially powerful tool for educational improvement," says Conley.

Oregon is at the forefront of educational reform, joined only by Wisconsin in adopting proficiency-based college admission systems. As a result, the two university systems are working together to produce a smoother transition to the new system. "I am in close contact with the Wisconsin system, and we are always learning from one another. They have a very different policy context. Here in Oregon we have school reform legislation that is mandating changes in all the state's high schools. Wisconsin does not yet have such legislation, although they are moving more in the direction of statewide content standards," says Conley. In addition, both schools will be participating in a conference put on by the American Educational Research Association (AERA) in San Diego this spring.

• Proficiency Requirement
  
• Admission policy