WSU Welcomes Large, Well-Qualified Group of Freshmen

PULLMAN, Wash. — Washington State University has welcomed another large and highly qualified class of freshmen to its Pullman campus for the 2004-2005 academic year.

The incoming first-time freshman class at Pullman is comprised of 3,108 students with an average high school grade point average of 3.46. Last year’s freshman class, which was cited as the best-qualified in the university’s history, totaled 3,032 students with an overall GPA of 3.44.

The size of the class reflects a record number of both applications to the university and denials of admissions because of academic credentials or space considerations. A total of 9,463 students applied to WSU, up from 9,132 for the fall 2003 class. Overall, 1,017 were denied admission, up from 752 last year.

“It is gratifying for us to have Washington State University be the university of choice for so many well-qualified students. Overall, this class has the strongest academic credentials of any class in our history. We are also pleased to see an increase in minority enrollment,” said Charlene Jaeger, vice president of student affairs.

“But we also recognize that this process can be disheartening for students who do not gain admission. The demand for a WSU education is exceeding the supply of available spots in our incoming class, and that is a problem we are hoping the state can address,” Jaeger said.

Jaeger said she expects admission to WSU to continue to become more competitive.

Among the students who were accepted to WSU and confirmed their admission by making a deposit, only 152 canceled, compared to 236 last year. In part, that difference accounted for the freshman class being slightly larger than had been originally projected.

The incoming freshman class at the Pullman campus is made up of 52.4 percent women; 88.4 percent of the students in the class come from the state of Washington. Of the incoming students, 38.2 percent had a GPA of 3.6 or higher in high school.

The incoming class includes 14.5 percent ethnic minorities, up from 13.7 percent last year. Asian-Americans make up 6.4 percent of the class (6.1 percent last year), African-Americans 2.7 percent (2.4 percent last year), Native Americans 1.1 percent (also 1.1 percent last year) and Chicano/Latino/Mexican-Americans 4.3 percent (4.0 percent last year).

The Pullman campus is also welcoming 1,490 transfer students, up from 1,433 last year. The entering GPA of those students is 3.06, up from 3.05 last fall.

Overall, enrollment at the Pullman campus for fall 2004 is 18,609. Comparing this year’s Pullman enrollment to last year’s comparably adjusted figures shows an increase of 500 students, or 2.8 percent.

For the overall Pullman student body, students of color represent 13.7 percent of total enrollment, compared to 13.3 percent last fall; 50.3 percent of Pullman students are women.

Figures for WSU Spokane, including WSU students at the Riverpoint campus and the Intercollegiate College of Nursing, show a headcount enrollment of 1,427, an increase of 6.7 percent from comparable figures from last fall. Students of color represent 10.6 percent of WSU Spokane enrollment, compared to 10.7 percent last fall; 69 percent of WSU Spokane students are women.

At WSU Vancouver, headcount enrollment stands at 1,941, up 4.3 percent from fall 2003. Students of color represent 6.3 percent of enrollment, compared to 5.3 percent last fall; 63.4 percent of WSU Vancouver students are women.

The WSU Tri-Cities headcount enrollment stands at 1,144, down 4 percent from last fall. Students of color make up 9.1 percent of WSU Tri-Cities enrollment, compared to 8.7 percent last fall; 59.3 percent of WSU Tri-Cities students are women.