University of California admission offers breaks record in number and diversity

OAKLAND, Calif. - The University of California has sent out its largest amount of admission offers to the most diverse group of prospective students for Fall 2021, the university announced Monday. 

The UC system admitted 132,353 freshmen applicants and 28,453 transfer applicants across the 9 campuses, both are all-time records. 

This year was also recording-breaking for the admission of underrepresented students. 

The pool of admitted freshmen includes 43% of students from underrepresented racial and ethnic groups, the UC said. 

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Notably, the admission of Latinx students and African American students increased significantly. Latinx students represented the largest ethnic group of admitted UC freshmen at 37%. That was an 8% increase from last year, when Latinx students were also the largest group.

Admissions of African-American students rose by 15.6%, from 3,987 students in 2020 to 4,608 in 2021.

The record-breaking number of admission offers came after a 13% increase in freshmen applications from California, rising to 128,266 applications university-wide.

The school acknowledged that one potential reason for the unprecedented number of freshman applications is that SAT and ACT scores will no longer be considered in admissions decisions. 

The number of admission offers also includes students on the waitlist and referral pools, the university said.