A record 37,000 students who were offered admission to a
University of California campus this fall chose to enroll, and
4,852 of them will be attending UCLA.
Enrollment statistics released Wednesday reported that more than
40 percent of students offered admission at UCLA chose to enroll,
and more than half of students offered admission to the University
of California system signed the statement of intent to
register.
The number of underrepresented minority students increased in
the UC as a whole ““ from 6,220 in fall 2005 to 7,354 in fall
2006.
But at UCLA, it was the reverse: The number of underrepresented
minority students fell from 819 to 772.
Underrepresented minorities are defined as American Indians,
blacks and Latinos.
The incoming class at UCLA will have 96 black students. This
year’s class had 116 black students. But black admits
systemwide increased.
The number of Chicano/Latino students who stated they plan to
attend UCLA was 659 for fall 2006, compared to 683 for fall
2005.
The number of students who sign the SIR is usually an accurate
indicator of who will actually attend ““ normally there are
only about 100 students who sign the SIR and do not actually
enroll, said UCLA Vice Chancellor of Student Affairs Janina
Montero.
The UC’s largest group of in-state incoming freshmen will
be Asian-American, at about 42 percent. Comparatively, 32 percent
are white.
Montero voiced concern about the decreased number of
underrepresented minorities coming to UCLA in the fall.
“The number of (underrepresented minority) students,
especially African-Americans, is at a very low crisis point,”
Montero said. “We are very, very concerned about numbers and
are looking to start a fuller, broader dialogue with students and
the community.”
Underrepresented minority numbers at UCLA have consistently
dropped since the 1996 passage of Proposition 209, which banned the
use of race as a factor in university admissions.
“There aren’t large sweeping actions that can be
taken within the law,” Montero said.
Overall, there was a marginal increase since last year in
underrepresented minorities who chose to attend a UC after being
offered admission.
Brad Hayward, a UC spokesman, said the changes in enrollment
numbers from year to year are not necessarily surprises, because
“the admission process itself is unpredictable.”
“We’re trying very much to send a message that
students of all backgrounds, from all areas of the state, from all
regions, have a place at the university if they take the courses
and achieve at a level that prepares them for the
university,” Hayward said.
The one unanticipated statistic was the high number of students
who chose to attend UC Davis, Hayward said.
Davis may see 900 more students than expected in the fall.