TU has a freshman waiting list for the first time in its history

Most college students across the state are gearing up for finals week, but the University of Tulsa is trying to solve another equation. <br/><br/>TU is putting prospective freshmen on a waiting list for

Wednesday, April 27th 2005, 10:43 am

By: News On 6

Most college students across the state are gearing up for finals week, but the University of Tulsa is trying to solve another equation.

TU is putting prospective freshmen on a waiting list for the first time in the school's history.

News on 6 anchor Terry Hood explains how the university is navigating the uncharted territory of this booming enrollment.

TU saw its largest freshman class ever last year, admitting almost 700 new students. But no one expected the University would have 50 more qualified students on a waiting list before the next school year. TU administrators say itâ€™s a pleasant problem to have. They say they're beginning to be able to pick and choose students they want and shape their incoming classes like scouts do for sports teams.

And their team is getting national attention. This week, the Princeton Review named TU one of its "Best Value" colleges, along with schools like Yale, Amherst, and the Naval Academy. TU Dean of Admissions John Corso: "We've actually had to back off, because our application pool is the same if not higher this year, the quality of the class would appear to be even higher than last year, and so we're in a position that we have about 50 students that are sitting on a wait list, and we'll have to see what happens in the next couple of weeks."

TU's glad more qualified seniors are applying, but making room for more students isn't easy.

May 1st is the deadline for most students to declare where they plan on going in the fall, and itâ€™s when TU plans on deciding who on the wait list gets in, and who stays out.