| 2-22/News/UCs | | Print | |
| Written by Camille Smyth | |
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A record-breaking amount of applicants this year to the University of California system led to another record at many high schools: rejections. UCs and California State Universities reported a 9-percent decrease in acceptances this year. According to an article in the Oakland Tribune, UC-Los Angeles had a 2-percent decrease in acceptances this year. At UC-Berkeley, two-thirds of the applicants with a 4.0 grade-point average were rejected, causing a 0.5-percent increase in the school’s rejections. Overall, the years 2007-2008 turned out to be the most competitive for students seeking out spots in elite universities. Currently, the California Master Plan for Higher Education ensures that every eligible freshman is guaranteed a spot in one of the 10 UC campuses. However, Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger's proposed state budget cuts put this plan in jeopardy. “The University very much wants to meet our historic commitment to offer a place to all UC-eligible students in 2008-09, but we are also wrestling with the serious funding problem we face,” undergraduate admissions director Susan Wilbur said. “At this time, no decision has been made to reduce the enrollments of new students for the 2008-09 year.” According to an article in Dateline, Davis Larry Vanderhoef, the chancellor of the University of California, said that the governor's office envisions that many of the students being turned away from UC schools will attend community colleges. "They're the top eighth (of graduating high school seniors). They have other options," Vanderhoef said. Lowell counselor May Choi estimated that 80 percent of this year’s senior class applied to UCs. “If students want to get into a UC, they need to apply broadly to most of the campuses,” she said. “Many of our students seem to restrict their applications to the most popular ones such as UCLA, CAL, UC-San Diego, UC-Davis and forget that there are others that may be less competitive but are equally good.” Choi expressed sympathy for students disappointed by this year’s results. “The sad thing is that when the UCs drop their admit rates and fewer students get in, our students feel depressed, hurt, and they have doubts about their personal worth and self esteem,” she said. “They wonder why they work so hard at Lowell when they cannot even get into their dream college.” Overall, the proposed educational budget cuts would reduce UC funds by eight percent and CSU funds by nine percent. Lowering acceptance rates is “one proposal of many on how to handle state budget cuts,” UC-Berkeley associate director Georgia Webb said. “If enrollment reductions happen, it would be a system-wide decision.” According to the Dateline article, CSU-Sacramento president Alexander Gonzalez believes that budget cuts could also decrease course offerings and lead to part time faculty layoffs. |
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