Bringing in the new Bruins

UCLA — which again received more applications than any other institution in the nation — has accepted 11,837 prospective freshmen out of 50,729 applicants for this fall. The next task? Encouraging these high-achieving students to enroll here.

African-American and other minority student admits rise

The campus made news when last year's freshman class of 4,800 students included 100 African Americans, the lowest number since 1973. This fall, there's a potential for growth as African Americans accounted for 3.4% (392) of those admitted, up from 2.1% (249) the year before.

Underrepresented minority students made up 16.6% (1,906) of the admitted freshman class, up from 14.4% (1,703) previously. The fall 2007 freshman class was the first selected by UCLA using the holistic approach for reviewing applications.

"It's a wonderful group of students, extraordinarily accomplished and diverse. We're very pleased with the outcome," said Vice Chancellor of Student Affairs Janina Montero.

Overall, students admitted for fall 2007 had a 4.3 GPA, compared with 4.26 last year. The percentage of Chicanos/Latinos admitted was 12.8% (1,470), an increase from 11.9% (1,403) last year, while the percentage of Native Americans admitted was 0.4% (44), a level unchanged over the past two years. The percentage of Asian-American students admitted (43.1%, or 4,956), dropped slightly from 45.6% (5,390) in 2006, while that of whites/Caucasians increased slightly to 33% (3,791), compared with 32.1% (3,791) last year.

"A very large number of qualified students applied, and we only regret that we could not admit all of them," Chancellor Norman Abrams said. "It's also heartening to see the proportion of African-American students and underrepresented minority students in general go up this year."

Prospective Bruins welcomed to campus

The College of Letters and Science will invite all admitted students to one of three events: College Welcome Days, College Honors Days, for students in the top academic ranks, and Academic Advancement Program (AAP) Scholars Days, for those who've overcome major life challenges and had fewer educational opportunities.

Prospective Bruins will tour the campus and learn about the highlights of undergraduate education, such as the Cluster and Fiat Lux programs. "We celebrate these students' successes and showcase what we think is best about UCLA," said Judith Smith, vice provost for undergraduate education.

Meanwhile, alumni and student groups are doing what they can to increase the yield. For example, the UCLA Black Alumni Association (UBAA), the African Student Union (ASU), AAP and Student Affairs are organizing a three-day admit weekend for African-American students, April 13-15.

In ASU's program, "Black by Popular Demand," students will spend two nights in the residence halls, take tours, visit classrooms and attend informational sessions. AAP Scholars Day will take place on April 14; later that evening, the UBAA will host students and families at a scholarship dinner.

New scholarships total $1.75 million

So far, $1.75 million has been raised for scholarships by the UBAA, led by alumni Peter Taylor and Rickey Ivie. Scholarships will range from one-time $1,000 awards to four-year awards of up to $9,000 per year. "Some of UCLA's most generous and longtime supporters, like Casey Wasserman and Dick Ziman, stepped up to the plate and made this possible," Taylor said. "They deserve all the kudos in the world. And the UBAA was particularly generous. Members had a very successful fund-raising dinner this past February and are contributing a significant amount of money to the pot."

Winston Doby, a former vice chancellor of student affairs who's working to increase black enrollment, added that scholarship donors believe "it is critically important for UCLA to preserve the rich legacy of diversity that it has demonstrated over the years, and the incredible excellence exemplified by African Americans who have attended this university."