Review finds a handful of admissions given boost

By Maril Revette Stratton

A review of undergraduate admissions records of the past four years shows that prominent individuals inquired on behalf of 35 applicants--with a "handful" of queries likely making a difference in an applicant's prospects for admission.

Five of the 35 were denied admission, 29 were admitted and one application is still pending. Twenty-seven of the 29 were regularly admissible; two were admitted by exception (one for health reasons and one because strong math scores and attendance at a rigorous private high school counterbalanced an on-the-margin grade point average).

"Many applicants clearly would have been admitted on their own merits, some inevitably would have been--and were--denied, and some few others were sufficiently close to the cutoff that they would have been admitted had they appealed on their own behalf," said Carol Wall, vice chancellor for student affairs. "But a handful appear to have benefited from the support of an influential person who had taken an interest in their admission."

Said Chancellor Larry Vanderhoef: "I am glad we did the review. For the vast majority of applications--tens of thousands--we are fine. But in a few cases, we have discovered that some development officers went too far in making special requests and that some admissions officers were too cooperative. The individuals involved are all good people, believing, I expect, that they were doing what was best for the university. But they were not, and I can assure there will be no more such cases."

While complete records exist only for fall 1996 applicants, this fall's admissions requests and decisions are typical of years past, Wall said. Of eight requests for special consideration, three
were denied and, in all but one of the remaining cases, the applicant would have been admitted on his or her merits or on the basis of an informal appeal by the applicant, Wall said.

Each year, the admissions office fields about 500 informal appeals from students who have been denied admission and grants approximately 100.

Successful appeals provide "new and compelling information" about a student's health, financial hardship, special talents or academic awards of significant stature, Wall said.

This year UC Davis received 23,000 undergraduate applications, admitted 17,000 students and expects to enroll 5,200.

The admissions office each year receives hundreds of inquiries about the status of individual applications, Wall said. Parents, high school counselors, faculty members and the applicants themselves account for the majority of the requests for information. The relatively small number of requests from prominent individuals typically comes through campus fund-raisers, senior administrators, and the offices of government and community relations and alumni relations. "We are happy to provide information to anyone requesting a status check," Wall said. "Sometimes we learn more in talking to a family member or an individual than appeared on the application and will bring that to the attention of the admissions director. But, as Chancellor Vanderhoef is reminding us all, we cannot be expected to offer admissions favors."

Wall's findings, plus reviews of graduate and professional school admissions, are being forwarded this week to UC Provost Judson King, who has been directed by President Richard Atkinson to submit a report by May 20 on how admissions inquiries from prominent individuals have been handled throughout the university over the past five years.

Graduate admissions

The Office of Graduate Studies, which annually receives an average 4,700 applications and admits about 1,550, doesn't log inquiries but reports that "we have no documentation to indicate that specific inquiries have led to any special consideration of applications for admission."

Professional schools

The School of Veterinary Medicine, which annually receives 400-750 applications for a class of 108, counted 13 inquiries from prominent individuals over the past five years, typically asking for reconsideration after an applicant has been turned down. No decisions were overturned. All applicants receive an "equitable and fair evaluation," according to the school's report to King, and external inquiries and requests are not forwarded to the admissions committee.

The School of Law, which annually receives about 3,000 applications for 160 spots, received approximately 28 inquiries from prominent individuals over the past four years. "The substance of these contacts is never conveyed to the admissions committee," according to the law school report. In a typical year, no appeals of admissions decisions are granted and, "to our knowledge, no appeal that has been granted has involved an inquiry from a prominent individual."

The School of Medicine, which annually receives about 5,000 applications for a class of 93, doesn't log special inquiries but estimates it receives "a handful" each year. "I am not aware of a single instance in the 14 years that I have served as the primary admissions officer of the School of Medicine where such letters of recommendation or special requests have resulted in a different decision regarding the applicant," said Ernest Lewis, associate dean for student affairs.

The Graduate School of Management receives 250-300 applications each year for 55 spots in its full-time program and 150-200 applications for 90 slots in its working professional program. The school reports receiving one letter requesting special consideration but has not taken any action on the request.