By Zack Rosenfeld
Editor-in-Chief
After the University of California system’s years of prominence, the school system is losing touch with its core values of providing the best education in the world to California students.
Last year, each UC school released its respective admissions statistics for the applicants for the fall 2012 term. Schools like UCLA and UC Berkeley proudly announced they broke new records for the number of applicants, while also boasting about achieving their goal of admitting more out-of-state applicants.
Yet, the UC system isn’t what it used to be due to the economic downturn and subsequent budget cuts. Admitting more out-of-state students with higher tuition costs to make up for the difference in the budget won’t solve the problem.
This policy will perpetuate the abandonment of the UC system’s commitment to providing an affordable, high quality education for all California residents.
Because the UC’s are accepting more out-of-state applicants, California applicants are having a tougher time getting in and are starting to go to schools out of state. If our parents have paid taxes in California most of their lives, how is it justified that UC admission is becoming easier for those who do not live here?
The UC Regents try to rationalize increasing out-of-state admission by diversifying the student population. Yes, the UC’s may not be limited in geographic diversity, but holistic diversity is much more important to a student’s learning environment.
Currently, UC admissions accept students with incredible academic statistics, but fail to put enough emphasis on extracurriculars and essays. An holistic approach to admissions would greatly diversify the student populations on UC campuses and create a better learning environment.
The UC’s are losing money because they are no longer competitive with top universities across the country. UCLA and Berkeley used to be the “cream of the crop” public universities. Now, however, the UC’s are unable to compete due to major budget cuts, which make it tough to hire top professors and fund research.
One way the UC’s can increase funding is to stop California students from going to college out of state. If more California students remain in-state and attend a UC, we can stop losing our great minds to other states where they will be contributing to their economies. We need that financing to come back here.
California can’t afford to keep losing these students.
The UC Regents also need to cut departments and majors that aren’t useful in the workforce. This doesn’t mean that Liberal arts education isn’t important, but we need to put more of an emphasis on departments that can prepare students for participating in a productive California economy. We need to emphasize business, engineering, research and medicine. With better departments in competitive career fields comes well-educated people contributing and starting up businesses in California. We can’t let innovation leave our state.
If the UC system does not make major reforms, the once-shining beacon of public education will fade into irrelevance and out of reverence.
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