The University of California recently released data on in-state students admitted to the Class of 2027 at its nine undergraduate campuses. The Class of 2027 was admitted prior to the Supreme Court’s recent decision banning race-sensitive admissions. But under state law, since 1996 the University of California has not been permitted to use race as a consideration in admissions decisions.
Systemwide, 4,855 Black students were admitted to at least one of the nine undergraduate campuses. This was the exact same number as a year ago. But overall, an additional 3,017 students were admitted compared to 2022. As a result, the Black percentage of all admitted students dropped from 6 percent to 5 percent.
At the flagship Berkeley campus, the number of Black admits dropped from 549 in 2022 to 524 this year. African Americans are 5 percent of the students admitted to the Berkeley campus.
At the University of California, Los Angeles, Blacks make up 8 percent of the admitted students from California. This is the highest percentage in the university system. But the actual number of Black admitted students declined by a small amount.
Blacks are 6 percent of admitted students at the Merced campus. But this was down from 7 percent a year ago.
Blacks make up 5 percent of admitted students at th,e University of California campuses at Santa Barbara, Riverside, and Irvine. Blacks are 4 percent of the admits at the Davis, San Diego, and Santa Cruz campuses
This is unacceptable!!!! I feel disheartened and SAD about the state of higher ed. There is SO MUCH WORK TO BE DONE. Even small private, selective colleges…mostly PWI’s, and some in the middle of nowhere (like Middlebury- 10%) have higher percentages of Black students. And the students they recruit aren’t admitted to make the college more money or climb in rankings through sports. They admit students because they actually care about Black students and put their money behind it to provide the financial support, mentorship, and resources needed for students to THRIVE throughout their college journey- to graduation and beyond.