Schools
UC Lowered Standards for Out-of-State Students, Audit Finds
The practice "has made it more difficult for California residents to gain admission to the university."
The University of California has decreased the number of California students accepted in favor of out-of-state students who pay more money, according to a report released last week by the California State Auditor.
The report notes, “The university’s decision to increase the enrollment of nonresidents has made it more difficult for California residents to gain admission to the university.”
The report notes that the state’s Master Plan for Higher Education specifies that “the university should only admit nonresidents who possess academic qualifications that are equivalent to those of the upper half of residents who are eligible for admission.” However, after relaxing admission standards for non-residents in 2011, “the university admitted nearly 16,000 nonresidents whose scores fell below the median scores for admitted residents at the same campus on every academic test score and grade point average that we evaluated.”
- See graphic above
The state audit faults the University for allowing salary costs to rise to $13 billion. In fact, salaries have risen eight of the last nine years, barely slowed by the Great Recession when Californians overall suffered double-digit unemployment.
The audit also faults the University’s oversight of hundreds of millions of dollars spent on non-academic programs.
The report recommends that the legislature amend California law to “limit the percentage of nonresidents the university can enroll each year.”
Included at the end of the report is a seven page rebuttal from University of California President Janet Napolitano. She flatly denies that the University system turned away California students while admitting out-of-state students with lower qualifications, “If anything has constrained the enrollment of California students, it has been reductions in state funding. Nonresidents pay the full cost of their education--and more.”
Napolitano also lauded faculty and staff for maintaining high standards.
The report was signed by State Auditor Elaine M. Howle, CPA, and was requested by the Joint Legislative Audit Committee.
--Image by Gku via WikiMedia Commons; Graphic from California state audit
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