concern over fewer underrepresented students
Frosh admits' scores, GPA rise
BY CYNTHIA LEE AND LAUREN BARTLETT
UCLA Today
The academic quality of freshmen admitted to UCLA for fall, compared
to last year’s admitted class, has risen substantially, with
test scores up in almost every category, according to data released
April 18 by UCLA’s admissions office.
Admitted students showed substantial gains in their SAT I and
SAT II scores. As a class, they posted an overall grade point average
(including honors and advanced placement courses) of 4.25, slightly
higher than last fall’s 4.24. The average UC-wide GPA for
admitted students this year is 3.8.
“We are delighted to have admitted this extraordinary group
of students with academic credentials that are among the best in
the country,” Chancellor Albert Carnesale said. “We
will now work very hard to encourage these young scholars to enroll
at UCLA.”
The data on freshman admissions, however, also brought some bad
news. In terms of ethnicity, UCLA — and UC Berkeley as UC’s
most competitive campuses — admitted a smaller percentage
of underrepresented students this year compared to last year. And
that has greatly troubled campus administrators.
“I am disappointed and frustrated by the drop in the number
of underrepresented students,” Chancellor Carnesale said.
“We at UCLA will continue to make every effort consistent
with the law and resource limitations to improve the diversity of
our students, faculty and staff.”
This year, as a consequence of Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger’s
budget plan, UCLA has admitted 9,896 students — 685 fewer
than last year — from among 43,179 applicants, the largest
number of applicants in the nation. Campus officials estimate that
3,915 students will enroll for the fall, down from 4,275 last year.
Because of the state budget deficit, the University of California
is unable for the first time in more than four decades to accommodate
all eligible students as freshmen. UC admitted 3,368 fewer prospective
freshmen for the upcoming fall quarter compared to last year, a
decrease of 6.7%. A total of 46,923 students were admitted.
At UCLA, said Thomas E. Lifka, assistant vice chancellor for student
academic services, “we are admitting fewer students, but we
also received fewer applications this year.” While applications
to the campus dropped 3.2%, overall, applications to all UC campuses
were down 4.1%. “It’s very difficult to say why this
is happening,” Lifka noted. Some speculate that uncertainty
about fees, which have been rising each year, was a factor.
The fact that UCLA has admitted fewer freshmen is one possible
explanation for the rise in scores, causing a shift toward those
who were better prepared academically, Lifka said. Another possibility
is self-selection by students who decided not to apply because of
the rigorous competition.
Admitted students’ average SAT I score jumped more than
20 points to 1,353. The average score for the three SAT II tests
also increased, with writing scores jumping 15 points to 682 and
math scores rising nine points to 694. There was an eight-point
gain, to 698, for the third SAT II test — in a subject chosen
by students from a prescribed list.
On the down side, preliminary admissions data showed that underrepresented
students — Native Americans, African Americans and Chicanos/Latinos
— constitute 15% (1,439) of the admitted freshman class, down
from 16.1% (1,665) last year. The most significant drop, a trend
that is being seen nationwide, was for African-American students;
this year, 2.3% (225) of UCLA’s admitted freshman class is
African-American, compared to 2.8% (292) last year.
To soften the impact of the enrollment reduction, UCLA will soon
notify about 1,750 applicants that they qualify for the Guaranteed
Transfer Option (GTO). The program assures transfer admissions to
a limited number of high school senior applicants who must complete
lower-division courses at community colleges and meet all the requirements
listed on their transfer contract with UCLA. The governor has proposed
that GTO students receive fee waivers at community colleges. Under
the Dual Admissions Program, which ends after this year, UCLA has
offered admission to 79 students.
Admitted freshman students have until May 3 to notify the campus
of their intent to register here. Transfer students will be notified
in May of their admission status.
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