California colleges and universities decided to implement waiting lists this year so that they could better control the flood of students applying this year. A couple of the CSU schools like San Diego State and Cal Poly San Luis Obispo have used waiting lists for years, but now almost all of the California universities and colleges will put them to use. The budget crisis in California has really hurt UC and CSU schools, as they struggle to keep up with student demand, while dealing with limited budgets. Therefore the waiting list process will allow the California colleges and universities to more accurately control their enrollment targets. This will make them more efficient overall, but as a student the process is very awkward and difficult to deal with when trying to make your way into college after high school.
This year had a record number of applicants for the UC and CSU systems, and now many of these students face difficult decisions as they may have been accepted to some schools, but got the wait list for others. Students who excelled in high school are not always getting into their number one choice, so now have to decide if they want to deal with the wait list process. Many students feel frustrated and discouraged by the wait list process, as the fall term is only five months away and students want to solidify their plans for the future. While many California students have voiced their concern, but the hard data is not out until April 14 on how many students have been admitted and wait-listed. If the wait list process continues at CSU and UC schools, then there needs to be a bigger and better education process about it so students understand all of their options.
Tags: California Colleges, California Universities, wait list, waiting list
