UC Minority Applications Surge; UCI Is a Top Choice

Record numbers of black and Latino high school seniors have applied to the University of California, marking a turnaround for the university, where administrators worried that minority students would no longer feel welcome because of a ban on affirmative action.

Overall, freshman applications from California high school students were up 7.9%, a bit higher than expected, according to statistics released Tuesday. But this growth did not nearly keep pace with the double-digit surge of two minority groups--African Americans by 11.4% and Latinos by 14.5%.

The largest jumps in freshman applicants were made at UC Santa Cruz with a 19.5% increase and UC Irvine with a 17.9% increase.

Both campuses had one thing in common: They sent letters to students ranked in the top 4% of each high school in the state guaranteeing them a spot on campus if they applied.

That was a significant departure from the statewide program launched this year that would guarantee the top 4% of each high school a spot somewhere in the system, but not necessarily the campus of the student’s choice.

UC officials attributed part of the jump in minority applications to outreach programs designed to help prepare underprivileged students for the university. Another explanation, they said, was the dramatic shift in the ethnic makeup of students in California schools.

“I’d love to take credit, saying we did it all,” said Rae Lee Siporin, UCLA’s admissions director. “Realistically, this is an impact in the growth of Chicanos and Latinos in the schools. To ignore that would be to pretend that we have been having a lot more effect than we really are.”

Officials also cautioned that the proportion of some minorities is likely to drop as admissions officers make selections for limited slots at the most competitive campuses.

Still, Regent Ward Connerly, who orchestrated the university’s ban on affirmative action, used the encouraging statistics to suggest that the university should not retreat from its policy of ignoring race, ethnicity and gender in making admissions decisions.

“These figures demolish the argument that the ban on race-based preferences has created a ‘hostile environment’ for black and Latino students, and because of that environment these students don’t want to attend UC,” Connerly said. “We have a success story here.”

Flood of Applications Exceeds Expectations

Connerly is gearing up for a fight later this year with fellow Regent William T. Bagley over a proposal to overturn the university’s 1995 policy ending affirmative action. Bagley hopes that newly appointed Democrats on the UC Board of Regents will help him end the ban.

If Bagley is successful, it would be merely a symbolic victory, given that the voter-approved Proposition 209 would still forbid any consideration of race. But Bagley said that such a move would help restore the UC’s tarnished reputation in minority communities.

Statistics released Tuesday showed increasing demand for all eight undergraduate campuses of the research university. A record 71,082 students applied to join this fall’s freshman class, including a record high of 58,424 from California high schools. The rest were from out of state or other countries.

UC Vice President Dennis Galligani said the flood of applications exceeded expectations, even though the university is preparing to absorb an extra 63,000 students by 2010. That is UC share of a tidal wave of students expected to hit as the children of baby boomers reach college age.

Galligani noted that 20,822 students sought to transfer to UC from community colleges and other schools, a significant increase from the previous year. He said UC officials were frustrated that transfers grew by less than 1% last year, but now are encouraged that transfer applications were up by more than 6%.

Yet these figures reflect applicants to the various campuses, not who will be accepted this spring or who will enroll next fall.

UCLA remained the most popular campus in the system, and, indeed, the most popular in the nation, with 40,121 applications.

As flattering as that may seem to rival colleges, UCLA’s admission director worries about the downside. “I’m dreading the end of March, because we are going to be turning down 3,000 more freshmen than last year,” Siporin said. “That’s the sad part for me.”

UCLA will turn away 29,000 applicants and send acceptance letters to about 11,000, she said. Of that group, 4,000 are expected to agree to enroll in the fall. The rest will choose other colleges and universities.

UC Berkeley, the most competitive campus, expects to turn down an even a higher proportion of its 35,473 applicants.

UC Irvine attracted 4,000 more applicants this year than last, including waves not seen before from high schools in Northern California and rural parts of the state, said Manuel Gomez, UC Irvine’s vice chancellor for student affairs.

“It shows that students respond when the university reaches out and tells them that we would like them to come here,” Gomez said.

He said UC Irvine would admit 14,000 to 16,000 students, from which they expect 4,050 to enroll. It will turn down 12,000 applicants.

UC Irvine sent about 10,000 letters to the state’s top students. Of those, 3,800 applied to the campus, Gomez said.

Although they are guaranteed admission to UC Irvine, the applicants are not guaranteed admission to their chosen major, he said, which could mean they would try another campus.

In all, 26,476 students applied to UC Irvine.

Besides the guaranteed admission policy, Gomez credited the growth in applicants to a U.S. News and World Report ranking that for the first time put UC Irvine among the top 10 public universities in the country.

Galligani suggested that guaranteeing a spot to the top 4% may be partly responsible for the systemwide 7.9% increase in applications, which surpassed the growth in students graduating from high school.

He noted that 80% of students in the top 4% of their high schools filed applications to at least one UC campus. Most students apply to three or more campuses.

He also suggested that money played a part. The total annual cost of attending a UC campus--including fees, room and board--for a California resident averages $14,736, less than half of the cost of attending comparable private universities.

In addition, a new $1.2-billion Cal Grant program will cover the roughly $4,000 in UC fees for many middle-class high school graduates who make better than average grades.

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Times staff writer Jeff Gottlieb contributed to this report.

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Across the Board

UCI freshman applications for fall 2001 increased for all ethnic groups.

Source: UC Irvine

Record Applications

A record 91,904 students sought admission to the eight University of California campuses that teach undergraduates. An all-time high of 71,082 applied to be freshmen, while 20,822 sought to transfer from community colleges or other schools. UC Irvine and UC Santa Cruz saw the biggest growth in freshman applicants this year, after promising high school seniors a spot if they graduate in the top 4% of their class.

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Freshman Applicants

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Campus Applicants* Increase from 2000 Berkeley 35,473 8.5% Davis 27,500 10.4% Irvine 28,547 17.9% Los Angeles 40,121 8.7% Riverside 16,295 9.2% San Diego 37,661 6.8% Santa Barbara 33,476 8.7% Santa Cruz 18,974 19.5% Systemwide 71,082 7.3%

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*Students generally apply to three or more campuses.

Source: University of California

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Ethnic Breakdown

Systemwide, freshman applications increased in every ethnic group, but were up most among Latinos, Filipino Americans and blacks.

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Group Applicants** Increase from 2000 Black 2,421 11.4% American Indian 368 2.2% Asian American 15,943 6.9% Latino 8,950 14.5% Filipino American 3,024 12.4% White/other 23,082 5.2% Declined to state 4,636 9.2% Total 58,424 7.9%

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**Figures include California residents only, not those applying from out of state or overseas.

Source: University of California