UVa welcomes the Class of 2019 to Grounds

Closing the books on the 2014-15 admissions cycle, the University of Virginia will be welcoming over the next couple of days an incoming class of 3,707 first-year students—exactly two fewer than last year's largest class ever, according to numbers published by the State Council for Higher Education for Virginia (SHEV).

And they came from all over the world. The 2,473 in-state students (down from 2,500 last year) will be joined by first-years from all over the U.S. as well as 196 international students from 76 countries, including Kyrgystan, New Zealand, Ghana and Peru.

The class includes 335 first-generation students and 1,141 students self-identifying as being from a minority background.  According to a UVa press statement, African-American or partially African-American, Asian and Native American students are joining the class in larger numbers, as compared with last year.

“Each year, we strive to attract students who have the potential to transform this University – and the world,” U.Va. Dean of Admission Gregory Roberts said. “Academic accomplishments, grades and test scores receive a lot of attention – as they should – but the impact these students make outside of the classroom is often what sets them apart from their peers.”

Eighty-nine percent of the incoming UVa class is reported as finishing in the top ten percent of their high school graduating classes.  And among them, almost 55 percent are young women.

To create the UVa Class of 2019, admissions initially made 8,786 offers from 30,853 total applications received.  But unlike the previous year, UVa made substantial use of the wait list keeping it open nearly three months until June 22.  With 10 separate subgroups involving the management of both in-state and out-of-state students across five schools, UVa admissions yield can be challenging to predict.  But the class eventually came together and began appearing in Charlottesville, a few days ago.

Addressing admitted students and their families earlier this week, UVa president Teresa Sullivan said, “Students from across the United States and around the world work to get into this University through a very competitive admission process; you succeeded.  Congratulations!”