University of California Berkeley - Blue and Gold Yearbook (Berkeley, CA)

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STUDENTS cil Cal. as Jciiioiislrulecl by these two tinisiciuns, have a n-tilc variety of talents. Appproxitnalely 25-50 percent of the incoming freshman class is udmiltcd Iniscd on factors that lake these talents into AMONG MANY other dedicated students, a Cal student tables on Sproiil Plaza. The extrucurricidar activities of prospective students are becoming increasingly important, due to the competative admissions process. ludcnts who are in the top 4 ' ' ' c of ihcii- high school classes in California. This will ensure ihai the siiKlenis w lio ha e excelled in their schools will ha e the opportunits to attend a UC school, fhis isn ' t expected to increase ininorit applicants b more than l o system wide, but it ' s been touted as an important first step to making the campus more accessible to the students in the state, lesus . lena of the office of public information predicted that no real change will appear in the di ersii of the Beikele campus based on the simple lacl that all of the students here are in the lop 4 v of their high school classes already. The Regents are voting on the proposal in March, and it is predicted to pass. The increase in competition for admission to Berkeley has presented man challenges to the administrators in charge of admissions polic . ' fhe plan that the have come up with is. in iheii ' e es. the most comprehensisc and lair polic possible w ithin the law. Lentil I ' lop 20 ' -) is re ersed or other changes are made, thi-- policv will continue to decide the composition of this campus. Afcadio Lainez Jr admissions

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A Challenge SUPPORTERS of affirmative action believe that diversity, once the lialhtiark ofCal. has been threatened since abohshment of the poHcy. The new admissions process has been adopted in an attempt to ensure fair assessment of individual students ' abilities. for Arcadio L3inez Jt by Diana Chai HARVARD, YALE, AND PRINCETON HAVE SOME OF THE MOST COMPETITIVE ADMISSIONS standards in the world. Acceptance rates are low, tuition high. Getting into an Ivy league school is every scholar ' s dream. What does this have to do with Berkeley? More and more students are realizing the benefits that Berkeley can provide and are applying to the University, making the decision for the administration more difficult. Simply having a 4.0 GPA isn ' t enough to get into Harvard, and it sure isn ' t enough for Berkeley anymore cither. Since the end of Affirmative Action with Prop 209. the admission ' s policy has been under fire and has undergone many changes. This year ' s class was selected using a new admission ' s policy that emphasizes not only academies and test scores, but also the extracurricular accomplishments of the individual students. We have developed an admis- sions process that evaluates each student, judging all of their accomplishments and the context in which these were achieved. Associate Professor jenny Franchot. head of the nine member Academic Senate Committee on Admissions, Enrollment and Preparatory Education told the Berkeleyan this year. Some of the main changes are the elimination of the Academic Index Score as the main measurement of a student ' s academic potential. Also, capping an applicant ' s GPA, where all classes were recognized as the same, has been ceased, and recognition to students who opt to take more challenging courses but may not get as high of a grade. According to lesus Mena of the Office of Public information. 50-75 c ' of the class is still admitted based on academics. This isn ' t solely on SAT ' s and GPA, but these two components are still important because they give an objective method of choosing applicants - a must for a public university The rest of the class is then admitted based on character, leadership, and hardships overcome. These are the people who may not have the academic grades yet, but show that they have the motivation and drive to succeed at a competitive university Each applica- tion is read at least twice to ensure equal treatment oi all students. This new admissions policy allows a tairer assessment of indi idual students ' abilities and a more competitive way of comparing them to make the admis- sions process as objective as possible. in addition to the changes made last year in admissions policy, the Regents have looked at several possible changes to the admissions policy for the entire UC system. The main pi ' oposal is to guarantee admission to the 2.. features

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Diversity Under tire PlaintilTs challenge the discriminatory components of UC BerJKeley ' s admissions process and its definition of academic merit... This is an excerpt of the lawsuit filed against the University over racial admissions issues. UC Bci-keley. once recognized lor its diversity, has come under increasing criticism tor the reduction in admissions of minority applicants. This recent lawsuit is unique in that it doesn ' t directl attach Proposition 209 as many other lawsuits have, but instead at- tacks the newly created admissions policy of UC Berkelc), which was changed in accor- dance with Resolution SP-I . adopted by the UC Regents to eliminate affirmative action in the University system alter the passing of Prop. 209. The plaintiffs of this lawsuit are Atrican American. Chicano Latino, and Pilipino American past and future applicants for admission to UC Berkeley (Lawsuit text.) They are represented by well-known organizations such as the NAACP and ACLU. This lawsuit contends that the policy of UC Berkeley grants unjustified preferential consideration to applicants who have taken certain courses that are less accessible in high schools attended largely by [the plaintiffs |. and that the policy allows and encourages the admissions officers to stress standardized test scores and to make judgements based i I features