The ups and downs of the college admissions process usually
cease in May when prosepctive students send in letters of
intent.
But this year there were arguably a few more bumps along the way
for many University of California hopefuls.
Nearly 6,000 students initially denied entrance were later
presented with a guaranteed alternative: Attend a community college
for two years and then transfer.
This new offer presented prospective students with a tough
decision, and most opted out. But the 1,357 who agreed got some
good news on July 31 when the state budget erased the deferrment,
allowing some students to go directly to a UC.
After enduring months of uncertainty, 316 of these denied, then
deferred, then accepted students will walk onto the UCLA campus
come winter or perhaps spring quarter.
The constant tug-of-war between the state and the UC has created
a crude and schizophrenic admissions process unfair to some of the
most promising students in the state. High school students
shouldn’t have to endure a roller-coaster ride driven by the
state’s budgetary woes.
Unless the state and the UC can find some stable ground,
prospective students may find attending a UC to be an alarmingly
ambiguous and unpredictable option.