<p>Interesting article in the Newark (NJ) Star Ledger..</p>
<p><a href="http://www.nj.com/news/ledger/jersey/index.ssf?/base/news-12/1235280440279350.xml&coll=1%5B/url%5D">http://www.nj.com/news/ledger/jersey/index.ssf?/base/news-12/1235280440279350.xml&coll=1</a>
Number of applications hits record high
Sunday, February 22, 2009
BY KATHLEEN O'BRIEN
Star-Ledger Staff
The lousy economy has been accompanied by an unprecedented surge of interest in New Jersey's public colleges and universities, with nearly all reporting record applications. </p>
<p>At the College of New Jersey, early-decision applications are up more than 30 percent. Regular applications have jumped 20 percent at Montclair State University, 11 percent at Kean University, and an astonishing 40 percent at the New Jersey Institute of Technology. </p>
<p>"That's huge," said Jason Langdon, director of undergraduate admissions at Montclair State. "We usually don't see that kind of swing." </p>
<p>Much of the allure boils down to two little words: in-state tuition. </p>
<p>The economic slowdown means Carlos Lalata is leaning toward Montclair State for daughter Giselle, who has been admitted to that public school as well as Seton Hall University, a private school. </p>
<p>"It's $10,000 compared to $30,000," said Lalata, a Nutley resident who has seen business drop at his ice cream franchise. "It's an easy choice." </p>
<p>The big exception to this trend is the state's flagship university, Rutgers, where applications are running 2 percent below this time last year. "I wish I could explain it," said Courtney McAnuff, vice president of enrollment. He suspects some potential applicants are choosing community colleges instead -- tapping the NJ STARS program, which offers free tuition for top students. </p>
<p>"Although we are a great buy, it's still expensive to go to college in New Jersey," he said. "Families at the bottom tend to get help, and families at the top are okay. But families in the middle are being squeezed -- and they can't refinance their homes." </p>
<p>Even Rutgers is seeing signs of a roiling admissions landscape: a 4 percent rise in applications from out-of-state students looking to transfer, and a record number of applications for housing. McAnuff thinks families may be deciding a dorm room makes sense after weighing the cost of both commuting and off-campus housing. </p>
<p>RISING STANDARDS </p>
<p>The statewide surge in applications has created a paradox: Just when more Garden Staters want to attend public colleges, it may be harder for them to get in. </p>
<p>Average SAT scores are running 10 points higher at Montclair State University, 15 points at Rowan University, 20 points at Kean University. "It's not a good year to be on the bubble," said one admissions officer. </p>
<p>Admissions staff also sense an extra layer of worry this application season. </p>
<p>Parents who always dreamed of private schooling for their children may be abandoning those plans by necessity. "Maybe the money's not there anymore, so they're changing their plans on the fly," said Montclair State's Langdon. </p>
<p>Langdon also said his standard request for midyear grades produced a flurry of frantic calls from applicants' parents this year. </p>
<p>"You can feel their anxiety. I normally don't get calls from agitated parents about midyear grades," he said. </p>
<p>For years, educators bemoaned the fact that New Jersey tops the nation in the percentage of its students who go to other states for college. The tough economy may have accomplished something all the glossy recruiting brochures couldn't: persuade New Jersey high schoolers to stay in the state to attend college. </p>
<p>Here is a breakdown of the application changes in several Jersey schools: </p>
<p>The New Jersey Institute of Technology reports 40 percent more applications, a 15 percent jump in acceptances and, from those, a 50 percent increase in tuition deposits. </p>
<p>Kathryn Kelly, dean of admissions, reports students are also showing a preference for practical areas of study. "They're much more career-oriented, job-oriented," she said. "They don't know what the future looks like." </p>
<p>Montclair State University reports a doubling of interest in its invitation-only honors program. While in previous years it would consider applications that rolled in after the March 1 deadline, this year's flood of applicants means the deadline will be firm. </p>
<p>At Rowan, the number of applications is about the same as last year, but it is coming from a stronger pool of students, said Al Betts, director of admissions. As a result, Rowan has already accepted 2,600 students, compared with 1,700 by this time last year. </p>
<p>Registration deposits are up as well -- a fairly sure sign those students did not view Rowan as a safety school. "What this means, you tell me," said Betts. "Maybe it means they want to get a commitment and just get on with it." </p>
<p>Kean University will increase the size of the freshman class by 300 to 400, but even that won't be enough to accommodate the 11 percent jump in applications, said university president Dawood Farahi. The grade-point average of this year's applicants is almost 3.2, up two-tenths. "That's a huge jump," he said. </p>
<p>The College of New Jersey has seen no bump in applications, but has seen the average SAT score rise by 20 points. And even though the school's application deadline is March 1, all the slots for biology majors are taken, said Lisa Angeloni, dean of admissions. </p>
<p>In addition, her office is fielding an influx of calls from parents. "They're calling to say, 'I just lost my job. How can TCNJ help me?'" she said. </p>
<p>One big unknown is whether private colleges will respond to this shift by increasing their financial aid offers. Drew University, where applications are running 2 percent ahead of last year, is sending out its aid packages earlier in recognition of the uncertainty some families face, said Mary Beth Carey, Drew's dean of college admissions and financial aid. </p>
<p>Despite the higher sticker price of private schools, families need to look carefully at the bottom line before ruling them out, said Pete Nacy, assistant vice president for admissions at Seton Hall University. </p>
<p>Public schools often tack on costly fees and may not have as much grant money available, he said. Those factors combine to shrink the gap between Seton Hall and a midlevel state college to $2,000 to $4,000, he said. </p>
<p>ENROLLMENT MYSTERY </p>
<p>Still unknown is whether the surge in applications will result in more New Jersey students actually attending a public school. </p>
<p>Are teenagers applying to public colleges just to be on the safe side in case their first-choice private school fails to offer enough financial aid? When that acceptance letter from a hotshot private school arrives, will they somehow find the money? </p>
<p>Trying to predict how many admitted students will attend is always a knotty problem for colleges, one likened to landing a jumbo jet on a dime. If too few students attend, tuition revenue lags while expenses stay fixed. Yet if too many attend, there may be a shortage of dorm rooms, parking spaces, lab equipment or class sections. </p>
<p>The fact housing and tuition deposits are running ahead of last year hints that state schools could end up with record enrollments for the fall. </p>
<p>Still, admissions directors say plunging family finances make it almost impossible to predict enrollment this year. At Seton Hall, where applications are up 16 percent in large part because of a direct marketing campaign, Nacy said he remains uncertain how that will pan out in the fall. </p>
<p>"The 600-pound gorilla in the room is the economy," he said.</p>