For the second time in its history, applications to Union surpassed the 5,000 mark.
The 5,064 students who applied for a spot in the Class of 2015 represent an increase of 4 percent from a year ago, when 4,874 students sought admission to Union. And this year’s applications approached the record 5,271 received for the Class of 2012.
“We compete for some of the best students in the country, and we know students who are admitted to Union have a variety of good options,” said Matt Malatesta, vice president for Admissions, Financial Aid and Enrollment. “Our goal is to help the ‘right’ students find their match at Union. We are a great place for students who have interests in more than one academic discipline, and we work hard to help them make connections between the varieties of things they study.”
Malatesta said in this challenging economy, the return on investment is a critical factor in which school a prospective student chooses. The value of a Union education is among the best in the country and tops in New York state, according to a recent Bloomberg Businessweek study of the career earnings of college graduates.
Union is committed to meeting the full financial need of all admitted students. The average need-based scholarship at Union is $29,000 and the average merit scholarship is $10,000.
Students who join Union in the fall will experience a campus undergoing a number of dramatic renovations. Construction on the Peter Irving Wold Center for Science and Engineering, a three-story, 35,000-square-foot research and education facility, will be complete. The Wold Center will host interdisciplinary programs in biochemistry, environmental studies, music and electrical engineering.
In addition, the College’s growing neuroscience program will have a new home, the Center for Neuroscience on the third floor of Butterfield Hall. The center will include five research laboratories, several support and research training areas, and space for faculty.
And work is under way on a major renovation of the Social Sciences building, to be renamed Lippman Hall. The renovations include “smart classrooms” that employ state-of-the-art technology and will support the work of faculty and students within and across departments. The building houses classrooms and faculty offices for the departments of Anthropology, Economics, Sociology, Political Science and History.
Union is consistently included among the country’s leading liberal arts colleges, according to U.S. News and World Report’s annual rankings, the Princeton Review Guide’s annual book, “The Best 371 Colleges,” and the “Fiske Guide to Colleges,” which features 330 of the country's best and most interesting colleges and universities.
The expected size of the Class of 2015 is 565 students. Regular decision letters will be sent by April 1. Accepted students have until May 1 to commit.