About the "Top 10%" stat

Colleges and Universities A-Z University of California - Davis
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<p>So I’m a little bit perplexed about something. Someone in this thread <a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/tulane-university/1365966-why-tulane-ranked-so-badly.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/tulane-university/1365966-why-tulane-ranked-so-badly.html</a> states that UCD is outright “lying” about the fact that its students come from the top 10% of their high schools. He says it’s completely impossible and that UCD Administration has lied about the stat in order to place more highly in college rankings.</p>

<p>But from what I read here [UC</a> Regents Adopt Changes to Freshman Eligibility - Frequently Asked Questions](<a href=“http://www.universityofcalifornia.edu/news/eligibilitychanges/faqs.html]UC”>http://www.universityofcalifornia.edu/news/eligibilitychanges/faqs.html) --both new and old standards–would seem to indicate that it’s indeed possible, perhaps even likely. </p>

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<p>Now since admission to UC campuses is more competitive than ever (the burgeoning state population hasn’t been matched by increases in UC enrollment sizes) it stands to reason that the more desirable campuses (I don’t know if that includes Davis) would certainly fill up with guaranteed admits. Does this not make sense? TIA.</p>

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<p>Guaranteed admission refers to that if you’re denied by every UC you apply to, then you’re given a chance at UCM (or UCR, or both).</p>

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<p>The “top 10%” claim shows up in many the UC campus data sets. I asked about this on another thread, because my son was definitely not in the top 10% at his high school, yet he easily qualified for admission to UCSB. UCSB claims that 99% of entering freshmen are in the top 10% of high school students, at least that is how it is listed in the USNWR data. It was explained to me that the statistic is referring to top 10% in the statewide context. So using the UC eligibility tool you put in your SAT scores and GPA to find if you are eligible (top 9%) in the statewide context:
[University</a> of California - Statewide path](<a href=“http://www.universityofcalifornia.edu/admissions/freshman/california-residents/admissions-index/index.html]University”>http://www.universityofcalifornia.edu/admissions/freshman/california-residents/admissions-index/index.html)</p>

<p>I agree this is very misleading. Kids can be top 20% at their high school but propel to top 9% statewide by virtue of their SAT scores.</p>