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©2004
The Regents of the University of California
 

bureau briefs

UCLA COLLEGE

Patricia O’Brien, an award-winning historian and accomplished administrator, has been named executive dean of the UCLA College — the largest academic unit in the University of California system. The appointment takes effect July 1, pending approval by the regents. “Pat O’Brien is a respected scholar, dedicated teacher and skilled administrator,” Chancellor Albert Carnesale said. “Her performance in high-level academic and administrative posts in the UC system demonstrates that she is extremely well-qualified to lead the UCLA College into the future.” As dean of the College of Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences at UC Riverside, O’Brien oversees 20 departments and more than a dozen programs. Previously, she directed the UC Humanities Research Institute at UC Irvine. “I am delighted by the opportunity to serve at UCLA, one of the world’s great institutions of public higher education, and by the prospect of helping to determine the future of the UCLA College,” said O’Brien, an expert on modern French history and 19th- and 20th-century social and cultural history.

ADMISSIONS

While a record number of California transfer students have applied to UC for fall 2004, the number of high school students applying for seats in the next freshman class dropped for the first time since fall 1993. Prospective freshmen filed 73,794 applications for the fall class, a 4.1% decline from the previous year. At UCLA, the estimated number of freshman applications for this fall is 43,500, or 3% fewer than in 2003. “We’re seeing the impact of the 30% increase in fees passed last year,” said Vu Tran, UCLA’s admissions director. Also, students may have been discouraged by discussions about a possible reduction in freshman enrollment, he added. On the positive side, the overall academic characteristics of UCLA applicants — GPA, SAT scores, and honors and Advanced Placement classes — have increased compared to last year. In all, 60% of all UC applicants applied to UCLA.

GSE&IS

After a long period of decline, interest in politics is on the rise among the nation’s students entering the ranks of freshmen, according to the results of an annual survey. The fall 2003 survey conducted by the Higher Education Research Institute at UCLA’s Graduate School of Education & Information Studies found that one-third of students felt that “keeping up to date with political affairs” is a very important life goal. To see more details, go to www.gseis.ucla.edu/heri/findings.html.