No early decision doesn’t change U.Va.‘s incoming class much

Associated Press

Published: August 11, 2008

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. (AP) — The University of Virginia’s entering class in the first academic year after the school scrapped its early-decision program largely resembles the previous year’s first-year students, admission officials said Monday.

About 3,295 students had accepted admission to U.Va. for the 2008-09 school year as of Monday. Dean of admission John A. Blackburn said he expects the same first-year class size as last year — 3,248 — after some students withdraw their acceptances in the final weeks before school starts later this month.

The median SAT score is up slightly, from 1,307 to 1,323. About 83 percent of the incoming first-year students finished in the top 10 percent of their class, down from 87 percent last year.

About 5.6 percent of the entering class are classified as coming from low-income backgrounds, about six more students than a year ago, and about 26.7 percent of the incoming students show at least some degree of financial need, up from 25.9 percent last year, Blackburn said.

``We have put a lot of effort into reaching out to lower-income students, and we plan to continue pushing to bring in great students, regardless of their economic backgrounds,‘’ Blackburn said in a statement.

U.Va. eliminated early decision largely to draw more students from lower-income backgrounds. Under early-decision programs, a student applies to one school before the regular admission cycle and agrees to attend if admitted. Eliminating the policy would allow the school to open more spots for those with financial need, who often must secure their financial-aid options before committing to a school.

Students who identified themselves as white make up 61.6 percent of the incoming class, up slightly from 60.6 percent last year. About 8.7 percent identified themselves as African-American; that was down from 10.8 percent last year, which U.Va. said was unusually high.

About 14 percent of the incoming class are children of U.Va. alumni, which Blackburn called typical.