As UCI admits too many students, curriculum may suffer

Editor’s note: This editorial was updated on 1/20/2025 to remove the incorrect use of the term “over-enrollment.”

The University of California prides itself on “expanding access and opportunity” for California residents through its rigor and curriculum, but as UC schools admits more incoming students than previous years, course quality may be put at risk. Just under 3,000 more students were admitted in fall 2024 than the previous year, and as the campus continues to grow, the facilities students need often do not expand alongside it. 

UCI has had a history of making headlines for over-enrollment in previous years, including in fall 2017, when it rescinded nearly 500 admission offers for incoming first-year students, claiming the students had not submitted their transcripts on time. In fall 2022, many incoming first-years applying for housing were denied because there were not enough beds available. 

Now as this pattern seems to continue — with “more than 146,000 students appl[ying] for admission to UC Irvine for the 2024-25 academic year” — it becomes worrisome that courses, particularly those involving smaller discussions and workshops, will suffer from larger class sizes. Many writing-intensive courses that require one-on-one feedback from professors and classmates must remain small and tight-knit to truly be effective. Adding more students to these courses divides the time spent on each student’s work. 

Student interactions with professors are vital in creating lasting relationships with connected individuals in their desired fields. The 10-week quarter is already expedited relative to other universities on a semester schedule, making it difficult to settle in before shifting gears for a new quarter. Larger class sizes would only exacerbate this problem. 

It is becoming increasingly frustrating to see what the university values — and what it does not.  

It is time for UCI to make it clear that it values its students over its quotas. Instead of boasting about enrollment numbers, the university might focus on announcing that it has enough housing for its admitted students, making workshops even smaller and hiring new professors to accommodate these growing numbers. 

Editor’s note: Editorials should not be interpreted to reflect the opinion, thoughts or beliefs of any individual New University editor, staff member or affiliate.

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