BU admits half of 2013 hopefuls

Boston University Office of Admissions admitted about 19,000 incoming freshmen this year to graduate in 2013.

Although BU officials declined to provide a specific number of accepted students, about 50 percent of the 37,768 applicants were accepted, or about 19,000, BU spokesman Colin Riley said.

‘The acceptances have gone to an extremely talented and high-caliber applicant pool sufficient to enroll a class of 4,125,’ Riley said. ‘We’re certainly delighted to have accepted them and are looking forward to them selecting us.’

Collegeboard.com reported that BU usually accepts 54 percent of its applicants, which would mean a little more than 20,000 applicants would have been accepted this year.

Despite the poor economic forecast, BU had its second highest number of applications this year, Riley said. The class of 2012 received the largest number of applicants.

At this point, it is up to BU’s individual colleges and schools to convince students to enroll. ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘

College of General Studies Associate Dean Robert Oresick said CGS has undergone some changes in structure in order to draw more students, a measure taken in response to worries across the university that the economy would make attracting students more difficult.

‘We really go out of our way to try to explain our program,’ Oresick said. ‘We try to be as realistic as possible, but then again we’re very excited.’

CGS eliminated its freshman natural science requirement, to allow freshman to take additional electives. Oresick said students are beginning to see CGS as less of a structured core curriculum and more of a guided program that will allow them to refine their educational goals for when they transfer to other BU schools two years later.

‘At first I was hesitant about [CGS], but now I think BU might have made the smarter decision for me,’ Bridgett Ko, who applied to the College of Communication but was ultimately accepted at CGS, said. ‘Now I get to experience all the different types of majors that I can pursue at BU.’

Holly Tran, who was accepted into the College of Arts and Sciences, said she is not sure if she will enroll at BU because of the high tuition.

‘It is a wonderful facility,’ Tran said. ‘However, my financial aid package was heavy in loans, something that I cannot afford to place upon my family in our current financial state. I absolutely adore Boston University but am quite worried about whether or not I will be able to afford to attend.’

Jay Gibbons said he had already decided against BU based on the aid he was given. He will be attending Suffolk University in the fall.

‘I understand that it’s really hard for schools to come up with the financial aid needed for every student, especially during these tough economic times,’ he said. ‘I think nowadays the amount of financial aid you get strongly dictates where you go. It’s a shame that it turns out that way, but it’s impossible to satisfy the financial needs of every student.’