By Jen Cardone | The Duquesne Duke
Duquesne’s Class of 2018 may be a more widely diverse addition and derived from more educated families, but it took many of them awhile to decide to become Dukes.
According to associate provost for enrollment management Paul-James Cukanna, it was a very “competitive admittance season.”
“One observation that is hard to measure and we experienced, is that these students had a lot of choices, so we noted that students took longer to decide which school to go to,” Cukanna said. “They visited more times, they called more times, they sought more evidence within the decision-making than other classes have.”
But that didn’t stop 1,370 freshmen from ultimately choosing the University.
The incoming class is more ethnically diverse than in the past, according to director of marketing and communication for enrollment Kelley Maloney. There are students from 31 states and 19 countries, including Canada, China, Saudi Arabia and Rwanda.
“The ones I have met seem to be very active and spirited, which is great,” the Rev. Sean Hogan said.
Duquesne’s Class of 2018 is the eighth largest freshmen class in the history of the University, but not nearly as large as last year’s class of 1,547, which holds first place.
The acceptance rate this year was approximately 73 percent, topping out in third place in Duquesne history.
Their SAT scores averaged around 1136, which is the fourth highest in the school’s history. The national average is 1010.
Of the freshmen, 97 percent had Duquesne listed as their first or second choice. Sixty-three percent are female and 37 percent are male.
Primary reasons students selected Duquesne were programs of study, urban location, size of school—not too large or small—and academic reputation.
Another addition to the Duquesne family is 23 biomedical engineering students, part of a new program that was recently added to the University’s agenda.
“We have partners across campus, departmental faculty, resident life, student life, public affairs, everyone has put effort into building this class, even present students have helped,” director of undergraduate admissions Debra Zugates said.
Cukanna said it takes a University community to enroll a diverse and academically-talented group of freshmen each year.
“We are proud of them,” Cukanna said. “They are reflective of the mission of Duquesne, and I can tell you that Duquesne has a bright future.”
This idea directly coincides with the orientation theme for this year, “Rise! You’re Limitless.”
According to orientation director Jade Leitzel, the school will use hot air balloon imagery to visualize no limitation.
“Duquesne gives you the potential to rise as high as you want to,” Leitzel said.
There are many planned activities during the orientation program, which runs until Aug. 24. The Graffiti Dance and the orientation photo on Rooney Field are the most notable.
