97-09-12 Ohio State Expects Best Academic Freshman Class Ever OHIO STATE EXPECTS BEST ACADEMIC FRESHMAN CLASS EVER COLUMBUS -- The Ohio State University will welcome a freshman class this autumn quarter boasting the best academic credentials of any previous entering class of first-year students. Based on preliminary enrollment figures, approximately 5,800 freshmen are expected to begin classes on the Columbus campus Sept. 24. Official enrollment numbers will not be available until 14 days into autumn quarter. The incoming class’s average ACT score is expected to be 24, up from 23.5 last year and 22.8 in 1995. An estimated 175 students in the new class are valedictorians -- having the top grades of their high school classes -- and about 610 will be designated University Scholars, who typically rank in the top 3 percent of their high school classes and have ACT scores of at least 29 (out of a possible 36) or SAT scores of at least 1300 (out of a possible 1600). Last year, the incoming class included 171 valedictorians and 516 University Scholars. The class also is expected to include 99 National Merit Scholars, up from 96 last year, and at least 1,350 students enrolled in the Honors Program, an increase over the 1,227 honors freshmen in 1996. “It is going to be Ohio State’s best academic class. There’s no doubt about that,” said James Mager, assistant vice president for enrollment management. The class is more diverse than past incoming freshman classes as well, continuing the 10-year trend of rising minority enrollment, Mager said. About 550 African-American students are expected to enroll, up from 514 in the incoming freshman class last year. The number of Asian-American students also is expected to increase from 284 last year to approximately 310 this year. The number of Hispanic and American Indian students remains steady or slightly declined: 25 American Indians are expected -- the same as last year -- and about 110 Hispanic students are expected, down from 129 last year. Last year’s autumn quarter enrollment on the Columbus campus stood at 48,352 undergraduate, graduate and professional students; a similar overall enrollment figure is expected this year, Mager said. The number of freshmen is down from last year’s 5,976 students -- which was a larger entering class than expected, Mager said. “We overshot our 5,800 target last year. This year, the enrollment is expected to be very close to the projection of 5,800 incoming students. We’ve been monitoring that very carefully,” Mager said. Administrators began a plan to stabilize student numbers about six years ago, and have lowered the overall Columbus campus enrollment from approximately 54,000 students in the early 1990s to the roughly 48,000 students now. With a stabilized enrollment, students are better served when it comes to on-campus living, classroom availability, adviser-student ratios, parking, a variety of student services and use of recreational facilities, Mager said. Recruitment this year also involved a concerted effort to draw and admit a better-prepared student body, he said. The recruitment strategy included telecounseling -- students, faculty and administrators telephoning families of prospective students after they showed interest in the university. In addition, the Honors Program, the Office of Minority Affairs and the Alumni Association played major roles in recruiting this class. A new visitor center has improved the campus visitation program as well, Mager said. “We feel good, not only because of the statistics this year compared to last year, but also because of the three-year trend,” Mager said. “The academic quality and the diversity of our class have improved. Those are goals of the university, and we feel we’re meeting those goals.” # Contact: James Mager at (614) 688-5791 or mager.1@osu.edu. [Submitted by: Von Vargas (vargas.12@osu.edu) Fri, 12 Sep 1997 16:23:16 -0400 (EDT)] All documents are the responsibility of their originator.