<p>Yes, Berkeley seems to have an unusually high number of people who graduate in 3.5 or 4.5 years, as opposed to the standard 4. Their graduating in December creates a vacuum that gives the Admissions committee an opportunity to accept more people via the FPF-Spring admit route.</p>
<p>I find it strange that Berkeley would be less selective this year; it was thought by some that yield rates dramatically rise this year, as more people chose Berkeley, the cheaper alternative, over expensive privates. Of course, your school is not a large enough sample size to make a generalization; perhaps other high schools somewhere else saw an unusually low number of people get accepted.</p>