Anteaters Excel
UCI’s growth in drawing a diverse student body is a key driver of success in the city of Irvine
Irvine City News staff
Impressive enrollment growth is reported at UCI, as the city’s iconic educational institution continues to gain students and academic stature. Applications from incoming freshmen and transfer students for the fall 2018 class totaled 116,192, which is a record for the 51-year-old school. That’s an increase of 12,000 applicants over the 2017 entering class of 104,000. Over the past five years, UCI has seen a 41 percent increase in applications, the largest increase in the UC system.
“The verdict is in: high school and transfer students understand that UCI’s distinctive combination of quality, accessibility and affordability makes it a preferred destination among America’s leading universities,” said UCI Chancellor Howard Gillman. “Earlier this year, The New York Times selected UCI as the college ‘doing the most for the American dream,’ and these 116,000-plus applicants exemplify our continued commitment to inclusive excellence.”
Among UC campuses, UCI ranks third—behind only UCLA and UC San Diego—for total first-year applications (94,866). Of those, 71,130 come from in-state students, which places UCI second in that category.
The first-year applicants to UCI include the largest number of underrepresented minority California residents in the UC system (29,978), including the most Chicano/Latino applicants (25,930) and the second-highest count of African American applicants (3,770) at any UC school. And here’s an inspiring fact: almost half of the in-state, first-year applicants (48.5 percent) to UCI are first-generation students.
“These spectacular results represent exactly what we have set out to achieve: sending the message to California residents of all cultural or economic backgrounds that an exceptional education is not only available but affordable at UCI,” said Thomas Parham, vice chancellor for student affairs. “Our campus is the best place to nurture and support their dreams and aspirations.”
Part of the increase is credited to UCI’s participation in the Achieve UC initiative, which reaches out to schools and communities that have significant numbers of UC-eligible students, but send relatively few to UCI.
Parham visited students at Cabrillo High School in Long Beach this year, for example, “to share the message that their academic goals can be achieved at UCI,” according to reports from UCI.
UCI was recently named one of the top-performing schools for Latino students by The Education Trust, and the school was recognized as a Hispanic-serving institution for the first time this year. That’s a federal designation awarded to universities with more than 25 percent Latino undergraduates. UCI is also designated as an Asian American and Native American Pacific Islander-serving institution, “demonstrating the school’s dedication to providing a superior education to every qualified student.”
“The verdict is in: high school and transfer students understand that UCI’s distinctive combination of quality, accessibility and affordability makes it a preferred destination among America’s leading universities,” said UCI Chancellor Howard Gillman. “Earlier this year, The New York Times selected UCI as the college ‘doing the most for the American dream,’ and these 116,000-plus applicants exemplify our continued commitment to inclusive excellence.”
Among UC campuses, UCI ranks third—behind only UCLA and UC San Diego—for total first-year applications (94,866). Of those, 71,130 come from in-state students, which places UCI second in that category.
The first-year applicants to UCI include the largest number of underrepresented minority California residents in the UC system (29,978), including the most Chicano/Latino applicants (25,930) and the second-highest count of African American applicants (3,770) at any UC school. And here’s an inspiring fact: almost half of the in-state, first-year applicants (48.5 percent) to UCI are first-generation students.
“These spectacular results represent exactly what we have set out to achieve: sending the message to California residents of all cultural or economic backgrounds that an exceptional education is not only available but affordable at UCI,” said Thomas Parham, vice chancellor for student affairs. “Our campus is the best place to nurture and support their dreams and aspirations.”
Part of the increase is credited to UCI’s participation in the Achieve UC initiative, which reaches out to schools and communities that have significant numbers of UC-eligible students, but send relatively few to UCI.
Parham visited students at Cabrillo High School in Long Beach this year, for example, “to share the message that their academic goals can be achieved at UCI,” according to reports from UCI.
UCI was recently named one of the top-performing schools for Latino students by The Education Trust, and the school was recognized as a Hispanic-serving institution for the first time this year. That’s a federal designation awarded to universities with more than 25 percent Latino undergraduates. UCI is also designated as an Asian American and Native American Pacific Islander-serving institution, “demonstrating the school’s dedication to providing a superior education to every qualified student.”
