U of G Remains A Popular Choice
June 23, 2006 - Campus Bulletin
To keep the community informed, the University is providing updated information about fall enrolment.
Recent figures released by the Ontario Universities’ Application Centre (OUAC) reveal that U of G will have a larger-than-expected first-year class this fall on its main Guelph campus. The University is making plans to accommodate the additional students, including continuing to guarantee on-campus housing for those new students who applied by the deadline, says Maureen Mancuso, provost and vice-president (academic).
“Given that the number of applications was down from previous years, we were not anticipating a first-year class of this size,” she says. “But there happened to be a dramatic increase in the percentage of students accepting U of G offers.”
Mancuso adds that U of G did not change any of its standards or cut-off rates. “The simple fact is that more qualified and motivated students are choosing to come to Guelph. It’s a testament to the strength of the University’s reputation and its programs, and to our outstanding faculty and staff. That’s great news, but it also represents significant challenges for all of our departments and programs.”
Mancuso says the University community has responded purposefully to the news. “Although the current figure is higher than our enrolment target of 3,600, our deans, associate deans, program counsellors, chairs, faculty advisers and student housing and registrarial staff are working diligently to accommodate up to an additional 800 students while maintaining quality.”
She adds that the University is still working to determine which services and departments will be most affected by the increased number of students, and will be focusing resources and efforts in those areas. In addition, Mancuso and the University’s deans will be reviewing the longer-term issues for resources and folding these discussions into the integrated planning process.
Preliminary figures indicate that most of the increased acceptances are in the bachelor of arts program, followed by the bachelor of commerce and bachelor of science programs.
OUAC’s figures reveal that there will be some 640 entering students at Guelph-Humber in the fall, about 100 above the predicted number. John Walsh, Guelph-Humber’s vice-provost (chief academic officer), says the university was aiming to increase its number of entering students.
“This is fantastic news for us, something for which we were hoping and planning. The fact we can look forward to even more students coming to Guelph-Humber reflects the hard work and efforts of all of our staff," Walsh says.
