Editorial: State should stick with Master Plan
By Daily Bruin Staff
July 5, 2004 9:00 p.m.
The UC regents are expected to approve strict new academic
eligibility requirements which will block about 6,000 students from
entering the UC each year. The new requirements, while consistent
with the goals of the 1960 California Master Plan for Higher
Education, are a response to the continuing failure of the state to
prioritize the funding of higher education.
The UC will stiffen the eligibility requirements by raising the
minimum high school GPA from 2.8 to 3.1, increasing the number of
grades factored into eligibility GPAs and removing preferences
granted to the top 4 percent of high school students.
The changes will guarantee UC admission to 12.5 percent of
California high school students, down from the current 14.4
percent.
The Master Plan calls for 12.5 percent eligibility. But the new
rules are hard to swallow in a state which has grown accustomed to
the days when there were enough funds to afford higher eligibility
rates. Hopefully, the state will see the UC is doing its part to
uphold the Master Plan and reduce costs and thus, will do the
same.
