The University received a record number of applications from a diverse pool of high school students for the undergraduate Class of 2013, making this applicant pool a testament to the work of Admissions Dean John Blackburn, who passed away last week.
Associate Dean of Admissions Greg Roberts said the Office of Undergraduate Admission received more than 21,000 applications, representing an increase of 16 percent compared to last year’s pool of applications.
Roberts said the applicants include 56 percent more Hispanic students, 22 percent more black students, 50 percent more international students and 100 percent more American Indian students.
The increase in the number of applicants, Roberts said, can be traced to a significant change made in the University’s application process last July: the acceptance of the Common Application. The Common Application, launched in 1975, “provides a common standardized first-year application form for use at any member institution,” according to its Web site. There are currently 346 college and universities that accept the Common Application.
“A lot of it can be attributed to the move to the Common Application,” Roberts said. “We expected an increase because of that movement.” Roberts noted, however, that the decision to accept the Common Application may also result in an increased number of incomplete applications.
“Since it’s easier to apply, some might be throwing in their applications at the end, and their interest in the University may not be as strong,” he said.
Aside from the Common Application, Roberts said the economy may also have played a role because, as a public institute of higher education, the University’s tuition is less expensive than the cost of attending many private universities.
The University is “a bargain in and even out of state,” he said.
These factors drawing students to the University attracted a diverse group of students this year, which pleased Roberts and his co-workers.
“We’re excited because ... it is ethnically very diverse,” he said.
Though Blackburn passed away last week, Roberts said Blackburn was aware of the demographics of the applicant pool and was very happy about them.
“The deadline was Jan. 2 and you could tell early on how things were going,” Roberts said. “I had a conversation with [Blackburn] probably about two weeks ago telling him about the class, and he was thrilled.”
William Harvey, vice president and chief officer for diversity and equity, said it is too early to tell how much of a step forward this is for diversity efforts at the University.
“That really depends on the final numbers and the actual number of students we enroll,” he said.
Harvey did say, however, that he felt this year’s applicant pool is a tribute to Blackburn’s years at the University.
“It’s quite appropriate and fitting that we’re seeing this increase at [this] unfortunate time,” Harvey said. “He was a champion of diversity at the University, and this is a testimony to his work.”
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