In recent years, the quality of the Ohio State incoming freshman class has risen significantly because of tougher standards for enrollment.

Gail Stephenoff, interim director of enrollment management, said in 1994 OSU made a conscious decision to set goals to increase the quality and diversity of the freshman class.

“The university invested significant resources in recruitment and in financial aid to attract students that would increase our quality and diversity profiles,” she said.

Since then, OSU has seen a significant rise in the standards of incoming freshmen. Since 1995, the average ACT scores of new freshmen has increased from 22.8 to 25.2 in the fall of 2002. Numbers have been steadily rising across the board of the freshman class profile.

Mabel Freeman, assistant vice president for undergraduate admissions and First Year Experience, said OSU’s Academic Plan called for the enrollment of an academically-stronger undergraduate student body.

“The university is committed to enrolling students who will be successful and graduate,” she said.

Stephenoff said OSU continually assesses the environment and gets feedback from prospective students and their parents to see if the rise in standards is helping the image of the university.

“Anecdotally, this certainly has increased our reputation,” she said.

While many factors can affect the reputation of a university, having a well-prepared and successful student body is certainly one of them.

“Future students want to know what their opportunities for success will be at a university. They evaluate that based on what is happening to students previously enrolled,” Freeman said.

She also said this recent rise in standards of the incoming freshman class has not adversely affected the amount of students who wish to come to OSU.

“The number of applicants for the freshman class has remained relatively constant over the past several years. For autumn quarter 2003, we have about 20,000 applicants and only have 5,980 spaces,” she said.

Stephenoff said there hasn’t been a significant decrease in the number of applicants because the type of students the university is attracting has changed over time.

“Students who now know that they have not done well in high school and have not done well on standardized tests may not even chose to apply to the university,” she said.

Kevin Gwin, an undecided freshman, said with these higher admission standards, he was lucky to make it in.

“I did relatively well in high school, but I was not an ‘A’ student. I was able to just barely make it in with a 3.0 (grade point average),” he said.

Gwin said his twin brother was not so lucky.

“He got somewhere around a 2.5 (GPA) and was not admitted,” he said.

Students admitted just a few years ago said they have observed the rise in qualifications to enter OSU.

Jessica Winger, a senior in finance, said when she came to the university in 1998, she was able to make it in with lower grades and a lower ACT score than would be currently considered for admission.

“I did not have an ACT score even close to what the average of this year (is),” she said. “I’m glad I came here when I did.”

Stephenoff said while it is certainly more difficult to get in, the university looks at other factors for admission.

“We consider diversity, both racially and geographically; special talents and special circumstances,” she said.

But the primary factors are how a student did in high school and how he or she performed on standardized tests.

“You need to have done well on these in order to be a strong candidate,” she said.

OSU offers alternative ways to enroll if a student is not admitted their first year.

“Students who do not yet have the skills necessary for the Columbus campus are encouraged to begin their college career on a regional campus or at another university,” Freeman said.

After they have proven themselves academically at these other schools, students can then transfer to Columbus after one year.

Jarod Mulloy, a junior in accounting, said he started his college career at OSU in this manner.

“I went to the Lima campus for a year then transferred to here. I really wanted to come to OSU, so this was the only way I could do it,” he said.

Freeman said the university plans on a continued increase in the freshman profile for the future.

“We know that academically prepared students become a magnet for more good students,” she said.

She added prospective students who want to earn an OSU degree can do so with appropriate preparation, and they’ll be aided by OSU’s numerous enrollment options.