Rutgers Institutes Self-Reported Academic Records to Streamline Admissions Process

NEW BRUNSWICK, N.J. – Applying to Rutgers just got easier for the tens of thousands of prospective students expected to seek first-year admission to the Fall 2009 entering class.

Beginning this fall, first-year applicants to the state university can self-report their high school records in an online application without having to ask their schools to do it for them. Only accepted students who enroll at the university will be required to submit official transcripts at the end of their senior year.

The resulting efficiencies in time and paperwork are expected to translate into earlier decisions and a much-streamlined, better coordinated process for high schools and the university, according to Courtney McAnuff, vice president for enrollment management.     

 “Students will no longer need to ask their high school guidance offices to submit an official transcript until after they are accepted and decide to enroll,” McAnuff said. “By streamlining the process, we anticipate that Undergraduate Admissions will be able to process applications faster and render decisions earlier than in the past.

“For students who want to attend Rutgers, an earlier decision leaves more time to plan for their first-year experience and reduces the anxiety of a longer wait,” he said.

Last year, Rutgers received more than 32,800 applications for first-year admission to the university. With each application came a written transcript, usually days or weeks later, which then had to be processed and matched up with the correct applicant. Had the new procedure been in effect, official transcripts would have been requested only for the 7,275 who enrolled this fall as first-year students.

In implementing self-reporting of academic records, Rutgers is following the lead of other large institutions, such as California’s state university system, which includes UC-Berkeley and UCLA. The California system has used the procedure successfully for about 15 years.

Students are expected to submit their grades accurately and completely. Official transcripts will be examined for inconsistencies once students have enrolled.  Discrepancies could void their acceptance, McAnuff said. However, very few are expected, based on the University of California’s experience.

The new system is voluntary but strongly recommended for students applying for first-year admission for next fall, but will be mandatory beginning next year for fall 2010. The self-reporting system is not currently available for transfer or international students.