University of Virginia Library

Virginians' Complaints

According to Mr. Ern, Virginians have been
writing to their representatives complaining
that their qualified children have been denied
admission to the University. The legislators in
turn press for admission of their constituents'
sons and daughters and "the only place it can
give is in out-of-state people."

Refuting a prevalent belief that out-of-state
students are generally of higher quality than
Virginians, Mr. Ern related that "The statistical
attainment of Virginians and non-Virginians are
mirror images."

Why is the University experiencing a near
"flooding" of its applicant pool at a time when
many institutions, such as the University of
Richmond, are actually facing a decrease in the
number of their undergraduate applicants? An
article on admissions in the 1970 September
"Alumni News" gives the impression the
reverse should be true.

"The crisis in college admissions which hit
higher education with the World War II baby
boom now appears to be over," it says. "The
peak came in 1965, and more recently the
number of applications has leveled off.
Although more young people are going to
college, the new community college systems
have absorbed many of the extra students."