Portland State University

Research Update


Office of Institutional Research and Planning

Volume 4, Issue 1 Fall 2000

PROFILE OF THE ENTERING CLASS OF 2000

This annual edition shares a profile of the new students with the PSU community.

First-time Freshmen and Transfer Students

The entering class, consisting of 3,291 students, represents 26% of the undergraduate student body. The size of the entering class increased by 181 students (6%) over last year. Two types of students comprised the entering class of fall 2000: first-time freshmen (35%) and transfers (65%). As shown in Figure 1, first-time freshmen are students who come directly from high school (78%), transfer fewer than 30 college credits to PSU (17%), or obtain a GED (5%). These proportions are similar to those of last year. Compared to last fall, fewer first-time freshmen this fall came from the Oregon high school system. Of those entering PSU directly from high school, 73% came from Oregon high schools in fall 2000 compared to 77% in fall 1999. The rest of the first-time freshmen are students from other states, foreign students, or students with GEDs, representing 27% in fall 2000 and 23% in fall 1999. As shown in Figure 2, transfers are students who come to PSU with at least 30 hours of college credit. Most transfer 90 to 134 credit hours (46%) or 45 to 89 credit hours (34%) to PSU. These proportions are similar to last fall. In fall 1999, 47% of transfer students entered PSU with between 90 and 134 hours of college credit and 34% entered PSU with 45 to 89 credit hours. Of all first-time freshmen, 81% attend PSU on a full-time basis. This is slightly smaller than the proportion last fall. Of all new transfer students, 72% attend PSU full-time, which is equivalent to the proportion last fall. (See Figure 3.) The residency status of first-time freshmen and transfers indicate that a large majority, 85%, claimed Oregon residency. This proportion of residents has increased 3% over 1999 figures.


 Age and Gender The average age of first-time freshmen upon entering PSU is 19 years. As with previous entering classes, transfer students are older than first-time freshmen; their average age is 25. The proportion of men and women in the 2000 entering class is similar to previous years. Women represent 57% of all entering students.

Ethnic Diversity

One fifth (20%) of the entering student class are members of ethnic minorities. (See Figure 4.) Another 4% are international students. The ethnicity of 8% of the entering class is unknown because these students declined to provide ethnic information. The largest minority group of entering students is Asian/Pacific Islander (10%). Black, Hispanics, Native American persons and persons of multiple ethnic backgrounds together constitute 10% of the entering class at PSU. The overall proportions of new students from ethnic minorities have remained stable over the past two years. Ethnic minorities represented 18% of all entering students in fall 1998, 20% in fall 1999, and 20% in fall 2000. Figure 5 shows the representation of specific ethnic minorities as a percentage of all entering students.
 
Although the population of entering ethnic minority students has grown, the rate of growth has slowed compared to last year. Between fall 1998 and 1999 entering ethnic minority students increased from 504 to 624, representing a 24% increase. Between fall 1999 and 2000 entering ethnic minority students increased from 624 to 652, representing a 4% increase. The most notable increase is evident among African American students; last fall, 93 new African American students enrolled compared to 107 this fall, representing a 15% increase in this sub-population

Academic Background and Major: First-time Freshmen
For first-time freshmen, high school grade point average (GPA) and Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) scores are commonly used as indicators of academic preparedness. The mean high school GPA for 2000 first-time freshmen is 3.18 and the median is 3.13, indicating that, in general, these students enter with a B-average. The average composite SAT score is 1019. These scores are similar to (albeit slightly higher than) the GPA and SAT scores of the 1999 first-time freshmen (3.11 and 1017, respectively). Although most first-time freshmen (17%) are undecided about their major upon entering PSU and many change majors before graduating, those students who declared a major listed Psychology and Computer Science most often (6% for each major). This reflects the national trend, which includes Psychology and Computer Science among the top five most popular majors, along with Elementary Education, Business Administration and Pre-medicine (The Chronicle of Higher Education, Jan. 28, 2000).

Summary
New freshmen and transfer students exhibit many similarities but also differ in important ways that may have an impact on programs and services focused on new students. Note that the two largest categories of entering students are at different ends of the spectrum; the majority of first-time freshmen come directly from high school while most transfers enter PSU with 90-134 credit hours. For additional information on entering students (such as their reasons for attending PSU, educational plans, academic experiences, and satisfaction with the institution) refer to the results of the Entering Student Survey posted on the Office of Institutional Research and Planning Web-site. (http://www.oirp.pdx.edu/).            
Jodi Brekhus, Graduate Assistant, and Juliette Stoering, Institutional Research Analyst, created this edition of the Portland State University Research Update.