More state colleges are admitting students — before they apply

More state colleges are admitting students — before they apply. Direct admissions policies allow colleges to make students offers based on reported grades. More states are easing the stress of the college search by letting high school students know they are promised admission before they even apply.

https://www.washingtonpost.com

 

It sounds like state colleges and universities are trying to secure their funding from the Government as a result of this.

 

I never applied to be admitted to Community College. It was also really cheap. Most classes were 30 students or less. At Berkeley the few lower division classes I took were mostly hundreds of students and cost much more.

 

UC Berkeley, at least current day, has between 30,000 and 35,000 undergrads. It makes sense that the lower level courses have hundreds of students. I think UC Berkeley is a phenomenal school but this is why I tell folks who ask me that I loved pursuing my undergrad at a small state school where I had 20ish students per course, got to personally know my professors, and then pursued my graduate education at my dream school, Duke, where I had small a small cohort of 40ish and again, got to know my professors. I would do it 10 times over.

 

Will knowing that one is accepted in to University make them try less harder?
Ultimately, whether students try harder or not after being accepted depends on their mindset and values. Some might feel it's just the beginning of a more challenging journey, while others might relax, thinking the hard work is over.

While not prestigious, those who don't get straight in to a University still have the Comunity Colleges option.
Our daughter studied her first 2 years of undergraduate degree at local CC.

Community colleges serve as an
excellent stepping stone to universities, offering a number of benefits to students seeking to eventually transfer to a four-year institution:
1. Cost-Effective Education
2. Flexible Scheduling
3. Smaller Class Sizes
4. Transfer Agreements: Many community colleges have articulation agreements with universities, guaranteeing that credits earned at the community college will transfer seamlessly to the partner universities.
5. Preparation and Academic Support
6. Opportunities to Explore Majors
7. Access to Resources and Networks
For many students, community colleges provide a flexible, affordable, and supportive pathway to further education, making them a valuable stepping stone to a university degree.

 

I didn't know this was something new. Back when I was in high school, several state universities in Illinois had explicit standards regarding whether you were admitted or not. You could be admitted solely based on your SAT/ACT scores, solely based on your GPA, or based on a combination of the two. They wrote exactly what those requirements were in their admissions information.

If you didn't meet those requirements that's when the admissions office would have to make a decision based on your entire application and interview.

In my case, I had a terrible high school GPA but I absolutely crushed the SAT so I did my first year at Western Illinois University because I easily met their SAT/ACT score requirement for admissions.