CSU Breaks Record for Student Applications
A record 609,000 prospective students have applied for admission to the California State University, up 28 percent from last year. The largest increase came from community college transfer students whose applications increased 87 percent over last year with a total 195,113 applicants. First-time freshmen applications were up 12 percent with just over 412,000 submissions.
A large number of students — nearly 74,000 — applied on Nov. 30, the final day of the priority application period, which began Oct. 1. Ten thousand of those came in between 10 and 11 p.m., the highest volume of the day. Applications from African American, Latino and Native American students rose by more than 24 percent from the previous year.
The CSU made a concerted effort to encourage students to apply early this year to avoid missing the closing date of campuses or programs. The CSU has been forced to reduce enrollment by 40,000 students over the next two years due to a $564 million budget cut from the state, the largest in its history. As a result, at least 17 campuses will no longer accept first-time freshmen applications, and of those, at least 15 will no longer accept transfer applications. Most CSU campuses will also need to apply additional criteria to out-of-area applicants to give priority to local area students.
For a full list of campuses accepting applications see the CSUMentor Application Status Report.
CSU Briefs Legislative Staff on Enrollment Challenges
CSU officials were in Sacramento recently to lay out the challenges of managing student enrollment while ensuring access to the state’s underserved students in the face of massive budget cuts.
CSU Assistant Vice Chancellor of Budget Robert Turnage and Assistant Vice Chancellor of Student Academic Support Allison Jones made a presentation to legislative staff on the goals of CSU’s enrollment management program discussing how the CSU will maintain its student diversity while reducing admissions over the next two years.
The CSU has undertaken a comprehensive plan to mitigate a $564 million cut to its current budget that includes reducing enrollment by 40,000 students over the next two years. “Because the state is unable to provide the resources needed to fully fund demand, we are forced to make this difficult decision,” said CSU Chancellor Charles B. Reed. “We cannot admit students if we are unable to provide adequate classes or instruction, support services or classroom facilities. We are taking this step to ensure the academic quality of the institution.”
The enrollment management goals include: achieving, but not exceeding, enrollment targets at each campus; maintaining or increasing diversity to reflect California’s demographics; facilitating graduation; and ensuring that enrolled students have access to courses needed for their major and graduation.
CSU’s campuses will deploy a range of tools to meet these goals such as declaring campus impaction or major impaction (when a campus or major has more applicants than slots available); admitting only fully eligible applicants; adhering to deadlines; and precluding students from enrolling in courses once they have met all the necessary degree requirements by conferring their degrees.
CSU’s leaders and many members of the CSU community are meeting with state lawmakers and public officials in Sacramento and in the local campus districts to underscore the need for adequate funding and long-term investment in the CSU.
New Student Trustee Appointed to CSU’s Board
Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has appointed Curtis Schlaufman as Student Trustee to the California State University Board of Trustees. During 2008-09, Schlaufman was president and chief executive officer of the Associated Students at CSU Fullerton. From 2004 to 2009, he also served on the California State Student Association’s Board of Directors. Student Trustees serve two-year terms. More information.