Freshman move in for the fall semester. They attended the Week of Welcome which included lectures and the block party. (Charlotte Lao/The Daily Campus)
At the beginning of each academic year, UConn’s incoming freshman class appears to slightly outdo the previous one statistically. In certain respects, UConn’s undergraduate admissions department has fallen in lockstep with any modern technological corporation that releases updated device models frequently with incremental quality of life (QOL) enhancements. The upward trends among incoming UConn classes, while seemingly positive indicators of the future within and beyond this university, arguably have questionable validity behind them.
According to Stephanie Reitz of UConn Communications, members of the class of 2022 boast an average of “1306 on their SAT scores – higher than any previous class – and reflect the diversity of the state and nation, with more than 40 percent being students of color.” Additionally, UConn’s newest freshman class consists of 175 valedictorians and salutatorians and an unprecedented 550 Honors students.
Comparatively, UConn’s class of 2021 attained a mean SAT score of 1294, 35 percent minority representation, 184 valedictorians and salutatorians and 549 Honors students.
Retrospectively, UConn’s class of 2017 garnered “an average SAT score of 1233” (albeit on a different scale than those aforementioned, a minority population of 27 percent, 149 valedictorians and salutatorians and 456 Honors students.
Projecting one year forward, UConn’s class of 2023 may stake claim to an average SAT score of 1318, 45 percent minority representation, 166 valedictorians and salutatorians and 551 Honors students.
Extrapolating five years ahead, UConn’s class of 2027 could consist of a 1366 mean SAT score, a minority population of 53 percent, 201 valedictorians and salutatorians and 644 Honors students. (Note: These two sets of estimates aren’t entirely accurate.
Upon further evaluation, one should question the true generalizability of, and connotations surrounding these upward trajectories within a real-world context. If UConn has merely become more selective of its student pool, such a development could either provide it with more prestige and thus attract more prodigious students, or intimidate less confident prospects who might’ve acclimated to UConn’s academic and social rigors perfectly well otherwise. On the other hand, the slight ‘improvements’ among UConn’s incoming classes could reflect upon our ever-expanding society in various ways; the proportion of ethnic variance attributable to merit as opposed to obligatory typecasting remains undefined and although certain personality traits that contribute to academic success should persist in the transition from high school to college and beyond, confounding variables may interfere with any strong positive correlation between supposed indicators of academic success throughout high school and success throughout college and within the outside world.
Ultimately, UConn’s gradually improving student pools should excite yet also prove thought-provoking for onlookers.
Michael Katz is a contributor for The Daily Campus. He can be reached via email michael.katz@uconn.edu.