The number of students admitted to the University of California
fell 6.7 percent this year, declining for the first time since
2000.
University officials reported 46,923 California freshmen were
offered fall admission, down from 50,291 freshmen admitted in fall
2003. Following this trend, UCLA admitted 8,823 students, down from
9,461 from last year.
Many students who could not be accommodated in the fall received
alternative offers: 2,661 freshmen applicants received winter or
spring admission to UC Berkeley and UC San Diego. Another 1,120
students received a referral offer to an engineering program at UC
Riverside.
“It has been a very difficult year for students and the
university,” said Susan Wilbur, UC director of undergraduate
admissions. “We certainly don’t like turning away
students. … We regret we cannot take all eligible students for
fall 2004.”
The decline in admissions is due to budget cuts, which have
forced the UC to reduce enrollment by 3,200 students.
“The state of California is placing the university in a
position where it can no longer live up to its master plan
commitment,” said Matt Kaczmarek, external vice president of
the Undergraduate Students Association Council, referring to an
agreement between the state and the university which dictates that
the UC will accept all eligible applicants if the state provides
the funding.
The UC also routed 7,600 students through the Guaranteed
Transfer Option, a program that guarantees eligible students a spot
at a specific UC campus after they complete their lower division
coursework at a California community college. Gov. Arnold
Schwarzenegger’s budget proposes to waive community college
fees for students who accept the option. The fee waiver must still
be approved by state Legislature.
Students would have up to four years to take classes and
complete requirements to gain admission to the campus that offered
them the guaranteed transfer. The average GPA of students offered
transfer options was 3.46, compared to 3.8 for all admitted
students.
Admissions for underrepresented minorities were down across the
system. African American admissions suffered most with a 15 percent
decline, which “disappointed” many UC officials, said
Thomas Lifka, assistant vice chancellor for student academic
services.
But the overall proportion of underrepresented minority students
admitted systemwide increased slightly from 19.8 percent to 20
percent.
Applications to the UC also decreased in 2004 for the first time
in more than a decade, declining 4.1 percent. Applications for
African American students were down 7 percent.