Beginning with the freshman class entering UCLA this fall, undergraduates will have to enroll in at least 13 units per quarter, instead of 12, and maintain a pace that will allow them to complete 180 units in 12 quarters. The new regulation will not apply to continuing students, but will hold for transfer students, beginning in the fall of 2003.

The new rule was one of three overwhelmingly approved June 5 by the Academic Senate's Legislative Assembly that amend the academic requirements of the College of Letters & Science. The changes are designed to increase student workload and decrease the amount of time many undergraduates are taking to graduate. The proposals were also approved and strongly endorsed by the College of Letters & Science faculty, its Faculty Executive Committee and the Senate's Undergraduate Council.

Faced with the prospect of rising enrollment over the next decade, faculty leaders are hoping the changes will make more students eligible for graduation in 12 quarters and increase access to UCLA for new students.

"All students, not just those on financial aid, would be reviewed every two quarters for minimum and cumulative progress," explained Elizabeth Bjork, Undergraduate Council chair and a psychology professor.

While Mark Kleiman, professor of policy studies, questioned whether the new minimum would be a problem for some students, College Vice Provost Judith Smith explained that two-thirds of the freshman class took 14 units during the last quarter.

Exempted from the 13-unit minimum are students on academic probation, roughly 8% of College undergraduates, and students who, for personal or family reasons, must work more than 30 hours and are in UCLA's reduced-fee program. The minimum also would not apply to seniors who need to take only a few units to graduate.

The faculty also voted to revise the rule on maximum allowable units an undergraduate can accumulate and to allow students to present a study list that includes a maximum of 19 rather than 18 units per quarter without seeking special permission.