The last of some 14,400 offers of admission have been mailed to prospective fall 1999 freshmen-the second class to be chosen by UC Davis without consideration of race, ethnicity or gender. With slight variations, the numbers of traditionally underrepresented minority students remained stable this year, and the number of admits of Asian and Caucasian ethnicities increased. Of the 14,400 admitted, 3,700 fresh-men are expected to eventually enroll at UC Davis. "This year's admitted class has a very strong academic background enhanced by high levels of leadership and community involvement," said Gary Tudor, UC Davis director of undergraduate admissions. "This is a diverse and highly qualified student body drawn from throughout California." A record 22,683 applications-up 12 percent from last year-were reviewed this year, with 60 percent of the admitted students chosen on academic grade-point average, test scores, number of courses completed in core subjects and the number of approved honors courses completed. The remaining 40 percent were selected on the basis of academic accomplishment plus such other considerations as leadership promise, special talents, initiative, persistence, disadvantaged educational background, low income, significant disability or status as a veteran. This year, fewer admitted students declined to state their ethnicity-only 7.9 percent of those admitted compared to last year's 14.3 percent. Admissions officials indicate that students were likely more inclined to state their ethnicity because this year's admissions form made it easier to report ethnicity. Mix of students Students from historically underrepresented groups-African American, American Indian, Mexican American and Latino-formed 12.4 percent of this year's admit pool, down slightly from last year's 12.9 percent. Asian American students this year comprised 32.2 percent of this year's admit pool compared to 30.8 last year; and other ethnicities made up 5.0 percent of this year's pool compared to 4.3 percent last year. Caucasians this year represented 42 percent of the admit pool compared to 37.7 percent last year. Changes in numbers The number of admitted students identifying themselves as members of historically underrepresented groups remained stable this year at 1,730 compared to 1,726 last year. There were slight decreases among Mexican Americans (from 946 to 926 or 2.1 percent) and American Indians (from 100 to 96 or 4 percent). There were slight increases in African Americans (from 331 to 344 or 3.9 percent) and in Latinos (from 349 to 364 or 4.3 percent). Students identifying themselves as Asian American this year increased by 11.6 percent, from 4,021 to 4,486. The number of Chinese admits grew by 10.6 percent, from 1,986 to 2,199; Japanese by 10.3 percent, from 272 to 300; Koreans by 8 percent, from 488 to 527; Vietnamese by 16.1 percent, from 472 to 548; Filipinos by 4.2 percent, from 497 to 518; other Asians by 28.1 percent, from 273 to 351; and Pacific Islanders by 30.3 percent, from 33 to 43. The number of students identifying themselves as Caucasian increased by 17.7 percent, from 5,047 to 5,938. East Indian and Pakistani students increased by 20.1 percent, from 378 to 454, while students identified as other ethnicities increased 33.9 percent, from 186 to 249. The number of students not claiming an ethnicity decreased this year, dropping by 41.7 percent from 1,884 to 1,099. Outreach efforts During the next two months, UC Davis will make extensive efforts through a series of statewide and on-campus outreach programs to encourage admitted students to enroll. "I'm really pleased with the tremendous involvement of our faculty, administrators and students in helping to boost the campus's enrollment yield efforts," Tudor said.