Most of the freshman no-shows at the University of Cincinnati this fall declined to come because they were rejected by UC's highly selective departments.

        Some also said that race and crime concerns played a role.

        UC's Institute for Policy Research recently completed a survey of 417 freshmen who did not register at UC despite being accepted there this fall. When asked why they enrolled elsewhere, the no-shows' typical answers were:

        Another school “had my major, and they were pretty good in it.”

        “I could get right into my major, where at UC I had to start in another college.”

        “I was able to get into the honors program with smaller classes.”

        Fatter financial aid packages also were frequently cited.

        That's not all bad, said UC officials. Talented students with choice scholarships did enroll at UC, and this year's freshman class is 3 percent larger than last year's.

        But the end of the mid-August telephone interviews also showed an uglier picture. The randomly selected no-shows surveyed — about 6 percent of the total 6,500 no-shows — were asked explicit, probing questions, comparing UC to their chosen college or university.

        Among the half who said UC remained their second choice, these negative comparisons were prominent:

        • Concerns about personal safety in neighborhoods on

        the fringe of campus and on campus.

        • Concerns about racial issues in the city and on campus.

        “These are the things that really drove students away,” said institute Director Alfred J. Tuchfarber.

        Dissatisfaction with housing and safety in Clifton Heights and Corryville echoes complaints by students in a similar study in 1998, but perceptions of racial problems on campus and in Cincinnati have generally worsened slightly during the past three years.

        When asked for the most important reason a student chose for going elsewhere, one student said: “Because the campus was too close to downtown, and I didn't like the environment.”

        Explicit concerns about racial tensions in the city were new this year, but they were rare and did not undermine admissions, said Stanley Henderson, the associate vice president for enrollment management.

        Mr. Henderson commissioned the survey after racial unrest was suspected for the initial dip in applications.

        Freshman enrollment rose 3 percent over last year to 5,145, and African-American freshman enrollment was 6 percent more than fall 2000.

        “That's an outstanding year,” said James Williams, director of enrollment services, applications overall rose a half-percent.

        Most of the 417 students had positive things to say about why they applied to UC: families or friends near Cincinnati or at the school, good academic programs and reputation, liked UC in general or the school's location.

        That coincides with a recent study of UC student satisfaction that rated faculty and classes highly.

        No-shows also liked UC's timely acceptances, jobs obtained by grads, and social life on or near campus. Even when they compared UC to schools they chose, UC rated highly for its cost, cost-of living and campus life.

        Because there was no way to ask people who didn't apply for their reasons, there was no agreement about the impact of April's race riots on applications other than they didn't help.

        UC received low ratings in general from the 417 no-shows on the perennial problem of old or inadequate on-campus housing, insufficient scholarships, loans and other financial aid, as well as admissions interviews and interaction with faculty and staff.

        Other students, including those admitted to UC's highly selective academic programs, probably received the best scholarships, Dr. Tuchfarber cautioned, while some professors were puzzled by the negative comment on interaction with faculty.

        Generally, they told Dr. Tuchfarber during his presentation to the Faculty Senate, professors rarely if ever meet prospective students.

        That may be true in their programs, Dr. Tuchfarber said later, but UC is a large, varied institution and some students met faculty in some colleges.

        Dr. Tuchfarber and colleague Grant W. Neeley chose the 417 randomly from no-shows and estimated a sampling error of plus or minus 5 percentage points. Eight-four percent were Ohioans, 54 percent were women and 75 percent were white.

        The 6,500 no-shows are typical of recent years, Mr. Williams said, because UC accepts more than 11,000 students and fewer than half show up.

        That percentage is “just about on target” for an urban public university, spokeswoman Lisa Rosenberg said at the American Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admissions Officers. She said 90 percent of prospective freshmen apply to three or more colleges and 88 percent are admitted by more than one school.

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