UAlbany's Class of 2015: Motivated and Diverse

Freshman class has mean high school GPA of 90.5

When University at Albany students return to classes Aug. 29, they will find a half-dozen upgraded classrooms, new apartment-style student housing rising, and a new School of Business under construction. (Photo by Mark Schmidt)

ALBANY, N.Y. (August 23, 2011) -- The University at Albany this week welcomes an accomplished class of incoming freshmen who will have access to innovative, personalized learning communities and an array of new and improved facilities.

Some 19 percent of the 2,450 students come from the top 10 percent of their high school class. The new students enter UAlbany from a pool of 21,052 applicants, marking the fifth consecutive year the number of applications has exceeded 21,000. They boast an average high school GPA of 90.5.

The Class of 2015 is one of the most diverse in the University's history, with 37 percent minority students.

"The academic strength and extraordinary achievement of our freshmen class is a reflection of the quality of our academic programs and the breadth of opportunity students find at UAlbany," said President George M. Philip. "We look forward to welcoming these talented and motivated first-year students, and urge them to take full advantage of all the University has to offer on their pathway to lifelong success.”

The freshmen join the UAlbany student population of approximately 12,700 undergraduates and 4,500 graduate students (final enrollment numbers are available mid-semester), number that include some 350 international students.

The first day of classes is August 29, 2011.

Living-Learning Communities
The University at Albany's incoming freshmen have access to an array of immersive and personalized living communities designed to introduce them to the breadth of academic, extracurricular, and social opportunities of the University community.

The University is bringing together like-minded freshmen around a wide variety of different themes, called living-learning communities. The themed experiences allow students to live and take classes together, receive personal attention from faculty and current students, as well as take part in similarly-theme extracurricular activities and student organizations.

The nine living-learning communities for 2011-12 are: Business, Pre-Health, Healthy Living, Laws and Justice, Women's Leadership, Community Service, Sustainability, Career Exploration, and Military Service.

"The new UAlbany Living-Learning Communities are meant to help new freshmen enter into and succeed in the incredible diverse 'Worlds' available within the University at Albany," says Linda M. Krzykowski, assistant vice provost for student engagement. "New students will be engaged both inside and outside the classroom and become active participants in their 'worlds,' providing them an opportunity to start the process of becoming engaged learners as soon as they arrive on campus."

New and improved facilities
When University at Albany students return to classes Aug. 29, they will find a half-dozen upgraded classrooms, new apartment-style student housing rising, and a new School of Business under construction. The work is part of ongoing efforts to create 21st century teaching, learning, living and research spaces that meet the needs of the UAlbany community.

Built in the 1960s when there was a massive expansion of the SUNY system, the campus that once held 10,000 students now holds more than 17,000.

The classrooms will be equipped with instructional technology and Internet access, flexible furnishings that adapt to team teaching, and expanded whiteboards.

The University is constructing the 500-bed Liberty Terrace apartment-style housing on the southeast portion of the uptown campus, expected to open in fall 2012. In addition, the residence unit Tappan Hall at State Quad will reopen this fall after a complete renovation.

The Liberty Terrace project includes extension of the University's walking/jogging/biking trail known as the Purple Path, from the baseball field to the east side's Boor Sculpture Studio.

Expansion of the Campus Center continues in the fall, with the first phase of the project – renovation of the lobby – completed over the summer.

Plans for a new 6,000-seat multi-use facility for football, soccer, and University events as well as a renovated varsity track are being implemented this fall. The project also includes the construction of a new artificial turf field for recreation and intramurals adjacent to the tennis courts by Dutch Quad.

The School of Business building is under construction next to the Grand Entry Plaza. The Business School building will provide 28 new, flexible and modern classroom spaces for general University use when completed in 2013.

An improvement students can enjoy now is the area between Dutch Quad and the Campus Center. The new benches and trees provide a comfortable green space for studying.

The University is also improving energy efficiency in lighting systems, a major project involving 2,600 rooms, including classrooms, on the UAlbany uptown campus. The University is in the midst of replacing the equivalent of eight miles of light fixtures (if laid end-to-end) in the rooms in the coming year. The new fixtures will be some 50 percent more energy efficient and are expected to save more than $250,000 a year on the University’s electric bill.

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