13 WTHR - Indianapolis News |IU admissions getting tougher

IU admissions getting tougher

Rich Van Wyk/Eyewitness News

Bloomington - More students are attending Indiana University this year, yet more students are being turned away. They're finding it is becoming more difficult to get into Indiana's namesake university.

IU's enrollment is slightly larger, but its new students are more than slightly smarter. The average SAT score of freshman is up significantly by 25 points. Roughly a third of them ranked in the top 10 percent of their senior classes.

"The word is getting out about the quality programs we have at IU-Bloomington," said Karen Henson, IU-Bloomington provost.

"What we are doing is making sure more of Indiana's brightest choose IU, perhaps instead of going some where else," said Henson.

Greater numbers of students are applying to IU, allowing the university to be more selective.

Last year  IU rejected about 20 percent of applications. This year closer to 30 percent of those high school seniors hoping for an admission letter were turned down.

"It was harder than most people thought it was going to be. I wouldn't say it was hard," said Charles Hemp, freshman.

Yet it was difficult enough  that many students we spoke with have friends surprised they aren't here. Vicky Adamova, another freshman, said some of her friends thought they would be accepted easily, but "they didn't get in."

IU is under pressure from the state to increase its admission standards and academic image.  Better students, educators explain, attract better professors and world renown researchers.

"And when other terrific students hear that IU is a distinguished school, they are interested in applying," said Henson.

That raises the admission standards even higher.

IU-Bloomington

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