UCLA is succeeding in its efforts to increase the number of admission offers extended to non-resident students, based on admissions data released Tuesday.
The number of out-of-state students admitted to UCLA this year increased by almost 32 percent and the number of international students increased by about 35 percent compared to last year, according to the report.
“We are increasing the number of non-residents as part of a deliberative process and plan to expand enrollment,” said Youlanda Copeland-Morgan, associate vice chancellor of enrollment management.
Increased tuition from non-resident students will give UCLA the financial support necessary to maintain the quality of education, she said.
The number of California residents accepted to UCLA decreased 15 percent, because of the fact that the university is trying to return to its target number of California admits after last year’s unexpectedly large freshman class, Copeland-Morgan said. More in-state students than expected decided to attend the university last year, exceeding enrollment targets, she said.
System-wide, the University of California admission rate for California residents grew only modestly amid record-breaking admission numbers. Admission offers for Californians grew by less than 4 percent ““ a reflection of the impact of state budget cuts, officials said.
Meanwhile, the number of international students increased by 58.4 percent.
“It’s good news for the university to see demand,” said Kate Jeffery, interim director of undergraduate admissions for the University of California. “The bad news is that state budget cutbacks constrain the number of California residents.”
The UC did not cut back on California resident admission this year, but future budget cuts may make enrollment limitations a reality. The system currently supports 11,000 Californians the state does not provide funding for, Jeffery said. This is just part of the reason the system is relying so heavily on non-resident enrollment, she said.
The UC has a 10 percent enrollment target for non-resident freshman at UC campuses in order to supplement the state’s limited funding. But UCLA has not allowed the non-resident enrollment goals to affect the admission of California residents, Copeland-Morgan said.
Of the California residents admitted to UCLA, 85 percent will graduate in the top 9 percent of their high school class, Copeland-Morgan said.
Nearly one-third of the freshman class will be first in their family to graduate from a four-year college, and about another third come from low-income families, Copeland-Morgan said.
In terms of the ethnic makeup of acceptances, the number of students identifying as Chicano/Latino accepted to UCLA increased by about 3 percent, the most substantial increase of any minority group this year.
Compiled by Alessandra Daskalakis, Bruin reporter.