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Columns::September 15, 2003
$6.7 million grant will support research that could eventually treat some cancers and Parkinson’s disease
U. of Tennessee administrator will head Georgia Center
Former administrative information systems director is named interim CIO
South (Georgia) campus
Study by UGA scientists reveals that laboratory rats ‘under the influence’ find it hard to concentrate
Study: Property values increase near greenspaces
Campus Closeup
Administrative Changes
Newsmakers
Forum essay: On revising student papers
Rolling out the welcome mat
Campus News
Rising numbers
Freshman class is more racially, ethnically diverse
By Larry B. Dendy
ldendy@uga.edu
The university’s largest class of freshmen is also one of its most racially and ethnically diverse as the number of entering minority students rose this year by about 40 percent, including a 25 percent increase in the number of African-American
students.
The class also reflects the continuing scholastic excellence of entering UGA students, presenting a 3.66 high school grade point average and an average SAT score of 1212. Seven students achieved scores of either 1600 on the SAT or 36 on the ACT, and 67 scored a perfect 800 on either the verbal or math portion of the SAT.
More than 600 students were joint-enrolled in a college or university while in high school, while 80 percent completed College Board Advanced Placement classes.
Preliminary enrollment figures from UGA’s admissions office show 5,175 freshman students attending fall semester classes, including 435 who were enrolled in summer semester and 4,740 who enrolled for the first time this fall. Last year, combined summer-fall enrollment totaled 4,281.
This is the first time total summer-fall freshman enrollment has topped 5,000 and is the result of a 58 percent “yield” rate--the percentage of accepted freshman applicants who actually enroll. The 58 percent yield is the highest since 1980, when the class was half the size of this year’s and had an SAT average 200 points lower.
The 2002 yield rate was 52 percent, and university officials had expected a similar figure for this fall. They attribute this year’s high yield to UGA’s surging popularity among high school seniors, sparked by the university’s fast-rising academic reputation, its affordability and the appeal of Athens’s youth culture.
“Although this class is notable for its size, the real story is the outstanding scholastic quality of the students,” says Nancy McDuff, director of admissions. “They will continue to enhance UGA’s stature as a center of academic strength in Georgia and the nation.”
Officials also say this year’s class reflects UGA’s stepped-up efforts to recruit minority students. About 800 freshman students (15 percent of the class) are non-Caucasian--up from 566 last fall--and 273 of those are African American, 55 more than last year.
About 53 percent of accepted African-American students enrolled, the highest yield ever for African Americans. The previous high yield was 48.7 percent, in 1995. The non-Caucasian yield is also 53 percent and includes increases in the number of Asian, Hispanic and “multicultural” students as well as African Americans.
The class also reflects Georgia’s population boom of recent years, spurred in large part by in-migration from other states. Although 85 percent of the freshmen are Georgia residents, a third of them have Social Security numbers issued in another state, indicating they were born elsewhere and moved to Georgia. For all freshmen (both in-state and out-of-state residents) 42 percent have Social Security numbers issued in other states.
The class includes 164 students whose native language isn’t English, and 155 who came to the United States to attend UGA.
About 900 freshmen had perfect 4.0 high school grade point averages. Of those attending schools that ranked students scholastically, more than 200 ranked first or second in their senior class and 20 percent ranked first through 10th in their class.
A total of 539 new freshmen are enrolled in UGA’s Honors Program, a selective program for academically advanced students. They have an SAT average of 1410 and a 4.0 high school GPA. |
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