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SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — A record number of prospective undergraduates have applied to the University of California for the fall, the 12th consecutive year of increasing demand and the first time the number of applicants surpassed 200,000, the university reported Monday.
The university said preliminary data show its nine undergraduate campuses received applications from 206,339 people seeking admission as freshmen or transfer students, a 6.4 percent increase over last year.
Every UC campus saw an upsurge in interest from potential students during the application period that closed on Nov. 30 for freshmen and on Jan. 4 for transfers. System-wide, transfer applications increased nearly 12 percent compared to 5 percent for freshmen.
The system expects to award transfers a third of the seats reserved for new students.
"In particular, our efforts to boost the number of applicants transferring from California's community colleges are paying off," UC President Janet Napolitano said in a statement.
UCLA, which typically attracts more applicants than any other school in the country, again led the field, receiving 97,064 submissions from would-be freshmen and 22,262 from students who hope to finish their college years as Bruins.
Fueled by interest from students from other states and abroad, UC Berkeley received the next-highest number, 19,116 from transfer applicants and 82,539 from freshmen.
Students from outside California accounted for four out of every 10 applications to Berkeley even though the UC system's governing board has approved increasing the annual tuition premium that non-residents pay by 8 percent, bringing their total to $39,975 compared to $12,291 for residents.
The UC campuses in Irvine, San Diego and Santa Barbara were the most popular picks after UCLA among California high school graduates.
Application growth was highest at the schools in Merced, Riverside and Santa Cruz, which historically have seen less demand.
Campuses expect to start notifying the students they admit in March.
The good news for this year's large applicant pool: The system plans to enroll 5,000 more undergraduates from California in the fall than it did for the current academic year.
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