EUGENE–Freshman class records are falling this year, and University of Oregon officials could not be happier.

Preliminary numbers for Fall 2000 admissions at Oregon’s largest public university show freshman numbers rising a record-breaking 15 percent over last year–from 2,371 freshmen in fall 1999 to 2,722 in fall 2000. This marks the largest one-year increase in new students since contemporary record-keeping methods began in the late 1970s.

Oregon residents are flocking to the UO in especially high numbers. This fall, the school will enroll the second-largest number of Oregon resident freshman ever–1,906 resident freshmen; the record of 1,954 was set in 1988. The number of nonresident freshmen is also up, for the third year in a row, from 707 first-year students last fall to 816 this fall.

But quantity is only half the story. The quality of this year’s freshman class is also setting records.

"The trend toward higher grade-point averages and test scores that we have seen for several years is continuing," says Jim Buch, UO associate vice president for enrollment management. "This year marks the highest ever."

UO freshmen this year have grade-point averages–3.41 GPAs–and Scholastic Achievement Test (SAT) scores–558.1 verbal and 555.2 math–that are higher than any freshman class ever.

Another record is being set in the important area of racial and ethnic diversity. Students of color comprise 15.1 percent of this year’s freshman class, compared to 14.3 percent last year.

"This is the most diverse freshman class I have ever seen," says Buch, who has been working in admissions at the UO since 1974. Buch credits the diversity increase to more intensive recruiting, including more personalized outreach to students of color, as well as a new program of student-to-student phone calls.

Final figures have yet to be tallied, but officials project overall enrollment at the University of Oregon this year to total roughly 17,700 students, a significant increase over last year’s total of 17,278.

"We are extremely pleased with the enrollment picture because, not only are the numbers up, but the quality of student is up, as is the overall diversity," says Martha Pitts, UO director of admissions. "This proves that we are making significant progress with a major goal, to keep the best and the brightest students in Oregon."

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