http://www.uniontrib.com/news/uniontrib/sun/news/news_1n17admits.html BEYOND THE NUMBERS UC schools expand criteria for who gets admitted By Samuel Autman STAFF WRITER March 17, 2002 Beginning this week, 41,000 high school students seeking admission to the University of California San Diego will learn if they're among the 4,100 chosen to enroll in the fall. Many have creme de la creme academic credentials. But for the first time, UCSD and the seven other UC campuses will be required to consider other factors, including family income, family education, school environment, community service, talents and leadership. The heaviest weight is still given to classroom achievement, so it's critical for students to have earned a high grade-point average and to have excelled in challenging classes such as Advanced Placement calculus, honors English and physics. Students who are Eagle Scouts, team captains, cheerleaders and student body presidents have a better shot at admission under the new system. So do applicants who have experienced a family tragedy, or have a parent who is out of work. Maybe they've overcome a disease, or they regularly volunteer to deliver canned goods to a Tijuana orphanage. Much of the information is derived from a student's application, but not everything can be listed in an eight-page form. That's why a student's personal essay is so important. "If a kid has had some hardship, they'd better get it onto that essay," said Carol Rowe, a San Diego Unified School District counselor who helps 225 guidance counselors in the district. "It puts a little more pressure on the students writing those essays." Rowe, like counselors statewide, stays on top of the expectations of the UC system, one of the most competitive public university systems in the nation. Elite private universities such as Stanford, Harvard, Yale and Brown have used nonacademic factors for admissions criteria for years. Last fall, UC regents directed each of the campuses to follow the new admissions policy, though it will vary from campus to campus. Application readers at UCSD might have a different view than readers at UC Santa Cruz. What qualifies as a personal challenge at one campus might not at another. Critics argue that UC regents have lowered the threshold to circumvent a law requiring a race-free admissions policy. Minority student numbers fell when affirmative action was eliminated in 1995 as a consideration for UC admission. Defenders say the policy change in no way waters down the system's academic standards. At UCSD, roughly 85 percent of the points granted for admission under the new standards will be based on academics. The remaining 15 percent will be based on other factors such as family circumstances or leadership skills. "Many are called, but few are chosen," said Mae Brown, director of admissions at UCSD, where eligibility doesn't guarantee a spot. UCSD turned away 20,000 qualified applicants last year. The students took the necessary courses in high school and fell within the eligible grade-point average and standardized test score range, yet they weren't admitted. The San Diego Union-Tribune recently spent time with UCSD application readers observing what factors they consider for admission. The identities of applicants were concealed to protect their confidentiality. Once a week, application reviewers gather on campus, sit around a table and go over the details of applications. There are 50 readers, half of whom are university employees. The other half are high school counselors. There's little room for subjectivity because they're following an exact formula for assigning points. Here's how it works: Each application undergoes two readings. In the first, points are assigned based on grade-point average, course-taking pattern, SAT scores, a low family income and whether the applicant is in the first generation to attend college. The maximum points possible in this phase is 9,400. The second reading, in which 1,700 points can be awarded, examines nonacademic factors. The two readings combine for a possible 11,100 points. When reading applications, screeners look at enrichment programs, volunteer service, leadership, personal challenges, talents and achievements, and educational environment, under which a student receives points for attending an academically low-performing school. In most of the categories, students can earn between 150 and 300 points. In the hardship category, students can earn either 250 or 500 points. And in educational environment, students can earn 300 points. Until last year, students were admitted to UCSD based on two methods. The first batch was admitted based on academics. The cut-off score for those students was 6,686 points. The second batch was admitted using income, community service, leadership, special circumstances and talents, parents' education and school environment, the factors that are now mandatory. Their cut-off score was 6,592. This year there will be only one cut-off score. Students tend to list as many activities as they can, trusting that long lists will impress the readers. But reviewers are not easily impressed. That you are in "Who's Who in America's High Schools" or on the chess or science club doesn't necessarily give you an edge. Membership alone does not translate into the leadership or service factors for which readers are searching. "Just because a student writes down a lot of activities does not mean they are going to get a lot of consideration," said Jaime Velasco, an admissions officer and reader at UCSD. "We tell students to be specific. Listing a lot of clubs can be misleading." That's what a student from the San Francisco Bay Area did. She had straight A's, but her SAT scores were low, in the high 900s. The average grade-point average for high school seniors admitted to UCSD last fall was 4.0, and the average SAT score was 1,303. The student also was in Link Crew, Key Club, Ninja Youth Club and honor society. Although the activities were viewed positively, none of them earned her points. What did was leadership. She captured the maximum 300 points because she had been a basketball team captain. She got another 300 points for special talent because of her all-league basketball awards. Her final score was 6,518. Based on the point total, she would not have been admitted to last year's freshman class. Like the other 41,000 students, she will learn her fate for next fall any day. *****************