Thousands of Connecticut\u2019s most talented high school graduates are coming this week to UConn as part of the new freshman class, comprising three-quarters of a group that is the most diverse and among the most academically accomplished in recent history.<\/p>\n
More than 4,000 of the approximately 5,500 freshmen enrolling across UConn\u2019s campuses are Connecticut residents, hailing from 164 of the state\u2019s 169 towns and cities.<\/p>\n
The Class of 2022 represents UConn\u2019s largest freshmen class ever, with about 1,000 transfer students \u2013 also mostly from Connecticut \u2013 joining the 5,500 new freshmen, according to preliminary figures released Aug. 22.<\/p>\n
About 3,764 of the freshmen will be based at UConn Storrs, where first-year students begin moving into residence halls Aug. 24 and other students return throughout the weekend. Classes begin Aug. 27 at all campuses.<\/p>\n
They\u2019re also academically exceptional, with the freshmen at UConn Storrs averaging 1306 on their SAT scores \u2013 higher than any previous class \u2013 and reflect the diversity of the state and nation, with more than 40 percent being students of color.<\/p>\n
President Susan Herbst said the recruiting successes are not due to luck; rather, she credits the state\u2019s investments in the University to make it one of the best research institutions in the nation.<\/p>\n
\u201cUConn is today competing with many of the best schools in America for talented Connecticut high school graduates,\u201d Herbst said Wednesday, as the new figures were announced at a State Capitol event featuring some of the new freshmen, along with legislators from throughout the state and other guests.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re so successful at recruiting them because we have established a winning formula at UConn: exceptional academics, great faculty, and outstanding campus facilities \u2013 at a cost that is a value for Connecticut students and families, thanks to financial aid,\u201d she said. \u201cWhen you invest in UConn, you are investing in Connecticut\u2019s future. And this class, like all our freshman classes, is some of the best evidence of that.\u201d<\/p>\n
This fall, UConn\u2019s overall undergraduate student body will number about 24,375, with about 19,331 of those students based at Storrs.<\/p>\n
About 74 percent of UConn\u2019s incoming freshmen are Connecticut natives, the highest number in recent years. Overall, about 80 percent of UConn\u2019s undergraduate student body hails from Connecticut, a figure that has held steady for about the past decade and is not expected to change in the foreseeable future.<\/p>\n
Academically, their credentials are also impressive: UConn attracted 175 valedictorians and salutatorians this year across all campuses, and will add a record 550 freshmen students to its Honors Program.<\/p>\n
\u201cUConn offers so many opportunities academically, and I really trusted the close friends I have who\u2019ve come here before me and told me how much they love it,\u201d Annie Foley, an incoming Honors Program freshman from Orange, said of her choice to forego other schools and stay in Connecticut.<\/p>\n
\u201cI knew right away that UConn was the right place for me,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
Foley is part of an academically exceptional class: Fifty percent of the incoming freshmen at Storrs were in the top 10 percent of their graduating high school classes, and 84 percent were in the top 25 percent.<\/p>\n
\u201cAs we reviewed this year\u2019s applicants, our admissions team marveled at the talent and diversity in the applicant pool,\u201d said Nathan Fuerst, UConn\u2019s vice president for enrollment planning and management.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhile competition for admission was intense, our entering students can rest assured that they earned their space in this class and are equipped with all the necessary tools for success at UConn,\u201d he said. \u201cWe are awed by their achievement as the most diverse and academically gifted class in UConn\u2019s history.\u201d<\/p>\n
All of this year\u2019s incoming freshmen have already crossed a major hurdle in their college careers by being offered spots in UConn\u2019s Class of 2022, since they were competing in a field of more than 38,000 applications.<\/p>\n
Not only is that a new high, but 14,000 of those applications came from Connecticut residents \u2013 meaning one of every three graduating high school seniors in the state applied to UConn.<\/p>\n
As was the case last year, new enrollment is also especially strong this year at UConn Hartford and UConn Stamford, both of which are far outpacing projections as the university\u2019s investments in its regional campuses are drawing students specifically to those sites.<\/p>\n
In fact, almost one-third of UConn\u2019s new freshmen this year chose to enroll at one of the four regional campuses, up from about one-quarter of the freshmen in fall 2015.<\/p>\n
Like many UConn freshmen from Connecticut, Windsor resident James Parsley said he initially considered a few out-of-state schools, but was so impressed when he delved into UConn\u2019s offerings that deciding to pursue his education there was an easy choice.<\/p>\n