CHEYENNE, Wyo. — Minority students would have a tougher time being automatically accepted to the University of Wyoming than White students under new admission standards being considered by the UW board of trustees.
According to a study by the university, 56 percent of Blacks, Native American and Hispanic students who entered UW in 2009 would be assured admission to the state’s only four-year university under the new standards, compared with 83 percent of White students.
Dr. Carol Frost, UW vice president for special projects and a geology professor, said UW has few minority students who, in 2009, represented just 109, or 6.8 percent, of the 1,594 students starting their first year of college.
“Apparently, compared to students as a whole, what they come in from high school with in terms of grades and test scores and what coursework they’ve taken they’re on average, a little lower,” Frost said Wednesday.
Minority students who entered UW in 2009 had average ACT scores of 21.9, compared with 24.1 for White students, the study showed.
“If you have an ACT below 21, that correlates strongly with the grades you get your first year at UW,” Frost said. “So a lot of those students are ending up on probation if we don’t provide them assistance.”
The proposed admission standards put more emphasis on math, science and foreign language courses taken in high school.
