Fewer freshmen being accepted
Suzanne Pittman, Assistant Vice President for Enrollment Management, explains just how tough it’s getting for prospective students.
“Contrary to what people might think, we actually accepted fewer freshman this year than we did last year,” said Pittman.
More students are choosing to stay at GCSU than in recent years, leaving less room for new students to enter. Each year, the university determines how many students it’s going to accept before any applications are received.
“It all goes into one big picture,” Pittman said. “So, really, you have to take into account one set of students before admitting the others.”
GCSU has no plans to increase the size of the undergraduate class.
“We are, however, trying to increase our graduate size,” Pittman said.
Factors that limit the number of students admitted include the number of faculty, classroom space and housing.
Although Admissions will admit over 2,000 students, only about half will actually choose GCSU.
“It’s totally unpredictable,” said Mike Augustine, director of admissions, “but we hope to see about 50 percent in the fall.”
Compared with the profile of last year’s freshman class, this year’s applicant pool is much stronger. They are taking more honors and AP courses and have taken three, if not four years of a foreign language.
“Students are going above and beyond the college prep curriculum,” Augustine said. “That’s what we like to see.”
Test scores are also rising.
As of Feb. 1, 3006 students have applied. 1168 students have been admitted with an average SAT score of 1147. Since the application deadline is April 15, these statistics will change, but still remain a few points higher than last year.
“The middle 50 percent has gone up,” Augustine said. “In the world of SAT scores, four points is a lot.”
Admissions ranks applicants and their test scores on a scale, demonstrating the highest and lowest scores and the majority ofstudents who make up the middle 50 percent.
A narrow margin of GPA’s and test scores makes it harder for applicants to stand out on paper.
Augustine explains how students can get a foot in the door.
“It’s that extra step – demonstrating interest,” Augustine said. “We want to see that they really want to be here.”
After acceptance, students must send in a $200 deposit, which reserves their seat in the freshmen class, and a $230 housing deposit. Prior to orientation, each student will POUNCE, which is now mandatory for all incoming freshmen.
Posted by Colonnade Archives
on Feb 13 2009. Filed under News.
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