Colleges can't keep up with growing demand


		Scott Eklund / P-I
	Freshman Sean Roon studies biology at Seattle Pacific University, a college that plans to admit 72 percent of its applicants this year as opposed to 91 percent a decade ago.

The falling admission rates occur as the number of high school graduates in Washington is expected to peak and as colleges and universities have made it easier for students to apply using online and shared applications.

The heightened competition means that many of today's entering freshmen have better grades and test scores than those from just 10 years ago, and students who might have been accepted to a private college a generation ago might not today.

"The problem is that because we can only admit so many students, not all of the children of alumni are getting in, or even counselors who we've had wonderful relationships (with) used to say, 'Take a chance on this kid,' and we could, and we just can't do that anymore because there's too many," said Julie McCulloh, dean of admissions at Gonzaga University.

Today is the deadline for high school seniors to tell colleges if they will attend.

The most noticeable drop in admission rates is at some of the state's private colleges and universities, according to statistics provided by the institutions.

Seattle Pacific University, for instance, intends to admit about 72 percent of the high school seniors who applied this year; it admitted 91 percent a decade ago.

Seattle University sent acceptance letters this spring to about 65 percent of those who applied for the fall freshman class; just 10 years earlier, it accepted 88 percent.

"I genuinely believe that this place has gotten a heck of a lot more selective," said Michael McKeon, dean of admissions at Seattle University.

The state's public universities also saw a decrease in admission rates, though it was less substantial. At the University of Washington, the admission rate remained largely unchanged and is expected to be about 68 percent this year.

The university has maintained a fairly steady admission rate in part because it has continued to increase its class size, said admission Director Philip Ballinger. That could change, though, as the university intends to expand its branch campuses in Bothell and Tacoma but not necessarily the main Seattle campus.

But admissions at the state's largest public institution -- which changed its approach to reviewing freshman applications this year -- haven't necessarily become more competitive. People just think they have, Ballinger said.

"Part of it is how we review and admit students, that just because a student has a high GPA doesn't mean that they're going to be admitted to the UW," he said.

"When a student like that is not admitted to the UW, that reverberates a bit more strongly in the community so that sometimes perceptions on the selectivity at the UW are amplified a little bit."

The number of students a college admits is typically much higher than the number it enrolls. The UW, for instance, accepts 200 or more students for every 100 freshman slots.

Increased competition to get into college comes from several factors, admission officials said.

Demand is up. The number of high school graduates has increased and is expected to peak in Washington with the graduating class of 2008. Population booms in other Western states -- notably California and Arizona -- have meant more out-of-state applications.

Washington campuses are doing more to connect with students, particularly those in other parts of the country. Officials at Gonzaga credit some of the increase in applications to the success and national profile of the school's basketball team.

It also is easier for students to apply to college now with online applications and the Common Application -- a shared admission form that is accepted by more than 270 colleges and universities around the country.

That -- coupled with the anxiety of not getting into a particular institution -- has prompted some students to apply to more colleges than they would have several years ago, flooding some schools with applications.

"People just have to throw wider nets because nothing is a given anymore," said Bruce Bailey, director of college counseling at Lakeside School, a private school in Seattle.

As a result of the greater competition, today's college students are academically stronger than those before them, admission officials said. At Seattle University, the mean SAT score has risen at least 50 points in the past 11 years, McKeon said.

That has enabled admission counselors to be more choosy when they pick the freshman class -- and they don't have to worry about having enough qualified applicants.

"We've been able to shape a community that we were unable to shape before, so it's a better learning community here," McKeon said.

That means that some students who would have been admitted aren't now. And that could hurt poor students.

High school students from low-income families may not be as well prepared as their peers and may not be able to get into schools once open to them, said Barmak Nassirian, associate executive director of the American Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admissions Officers.

But by "moving up the food chain in terms of selectivity" colleges and universities could admit high-caliber students who can pay full tuition -- and provide more need-based financial aid to other students.

Nassirian said higher education is still accessible to most students, despite the recent increase in selectivity.

"The last thing I'd want to do is to leave the impression that getting into college is impossibly difficult."

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