Application update

It's official. The University of California received a record number of applications for fall 2009. Almost 127,000 students applied for admission, an increase of nearly 5 percent over last year. Freshman applications are up 3 percent, and transfer applications are up 11 percent.

What makes the increase in applications especially challenging is that it comes at a time when UC plans to reduce freshman enrollment by 6 percent.

But the news isn't all bad. The rate of growth in applications seems to be slowing, since this year's 5 percent increase is smaller than last year's 9 percent.

Also, some UC campuses, including Berkeley and Merced, will actually admit more students this year. And more slots will be available for transfer students at all UC campuses.

UCLA will see less than a 1 percent reduction in the freshman class, and the number of applications held steady this year.

But competition will continue to be intense, as the average grade-point average of freshman applicants is 3.89, up from 3.87 last year, and 45 percent of applicants have GPAs of 4.0 or higher.

The number of applications increased at Irvine and Davis, and since both campuses are targeted for significant decreases in freshman enrollment, admission is likely to be more competitive this year.

UC Santa Barbara received 2,352 fewer freshman applications this year and will be admitting 275 fewer freshmen this year. Still, UCSB has 6,000 more applicants this year than two years ago.

Admission will remain competitive as the average gradepoint average of applicants is 3.71, with about a third having a GPA of 4.0 and above.

The Merced, Santa Cruz and San Diego campuses also received fewer freshman applications, but San Diego is likely to remain quite competitive since the school will be reducing the freshman class by 12 percent.

In the California State University system, San Diego State received more than 41,600 applications from prospective freshmen, a record number.

Students who applied to Cal Poly San Luis Obispo and other Cal State campuses will also find more competition for fewer slots this year.

Public universities around the country are experiencing similar crunches, as students who no longer see private colleges as an option increasingly apply to public institutions.

At the same time, state budget problems mean reduced funding and caps on enrollment at many schools.

Many of the most selective private schools, like Harvard, Yale, Princeton, Brown and Dartmouth, have also received record numbers of applications.

That may partly be due to an increase in the number of students graduating from high school and applying to college this year, but much of the rise in applications is probably due to financial aid programs at wealthy schools that will enable students from lower- and middle-income families to attend.

At other private colleges, particularly those that don't have the resources to meet full financial need, the situation is different.

A number of schools have quietly extended application deadlines, which tells me they are concerned about enrolling enough students. Students who in previous years would have been denied admission may be accepted at some of these schools.

As the recession continues to impact families over the coming months, enrollment numbers could drop over the summer, leading to more students being offered admission from wait lists.

It looks like we'll be living with uncertainty for a while. While that may not be pleasant, it is an opportunity for students to develop flexibility and resilience. Those who can adapt to changes in the economy and the college admissions landscape will thrive.

Audrey Kahane, MS, MFA, a private college admissions counselor,can be reached at (818) 704-7545 or audrey @audreykahane.com.