Campus officials say that this is turning out to be a very strong year for applications and admissions.

Based on preliminary data compiled by the Office of Admissions, approximately 53 percent of the record 37,492 applicants for next fall’s entering class have been accepted by UC Santa Barbara. About 93 percent of all admitted students are California residents. Both the academic quality and diversity of the class of students accepted for next fall appear to be the strongest ever for UCSB.

Applicants who have been accepted by any UC campus have until May 1 to submit a signed Statement of Intent to Register. UCSB expects its fall 2005 entering class to number approximately 3,800.

All UC campuses will be releasing complete information on admissions later this week. The UC Office of the President will post systemwide statistics about fall admissions on its Web site at <www.ucop.edu/news/factsheets/fall2005adm.html>.

Applications from 8,523 students seeking to transfer to UCSB are still under review, with admission decisions to be announced early next month. The campus expects to enroll some 1,400 transfer students in the fall.

At 3.99, the high school grade point average (GPA) of those admitted for the fall is the highest on record. More than half of all admitted students had a GPA of 4.0 or higher. In addition, the average combined score on the required SAT I test is 1260, the highest it has ever been.

The preliminary numbers also indicate that the campus has admitted more first-year applicants from underrepresented minority groups than ever before.

“We are just extremely pleased with this class of admitted students,” said Christine Van Gieson, director of admissions. “The academic achievements and background of these students show them to be an extraordinary group, and we are delighted.”

As happens every spring, Chancellor Henry T. Yang and a great many members of the campus community are now involved in a variety of activities aimed at making personal contact with applicants who have been accepted, talking to them about the campus and the opportunities it offers.

Last month, Chancellor Yang served as the host of very successful and well attended regional receptions in the Bay Area, Orange County, and Los Angeles. At each of these three Sunday events, UCSB volunteers—including students and alumni as well as faculty, staff, and administrators­—met with high-achieving applicants and their family members.

This year’s open house for admitted students, called “Spring Insight,” drew more than 4,000 to the campus on April 9. In addition, record numbers of visitors have been taking part in tours of the campus in recent weeks.