UC Davis enrolled a record 41,239 students in fall 2024. Photo by University of California, Davis

SACRAMENTO REGION, CA (MPG) - The University of California, Davis, released systemwide enrollment statistics on Jan. 7. The University of California, Davis, welcomed one of its most diverse entering classes and became eligible to be one of the nation’s few research-intensive universities designated as a Hispanic-Serving Institution, as it enrolled a record 41,239 students in fall 2024.

At Davis, overall enrollment, including undergraduate, graduate and professional students as well as 1,174 veterinary and medical residents and interns, increased by 391 students, or 0.9%, over fall 2023.

UC Davis enrolled 9,443 new undergraduates: 6,767 as first-year students direct from high school, 2,656 as transfer students and 20 others seeking a second undergraduate degree.

In late October, UC Davis announced Latinx enrollment had reached a new peak of about 8,100 students or 25.1% of undergraduate full-time-equivalent students. That surpasses the U.S. Department of Education’s criteria of at least 25% to be considered a Hispanic-Serving Institution.

The campus has long-sought Hispanic-Serving Institution designation to underscore its commitment to serving Latinx students. The status would also make the university eligible to apply for competitive grants from the federal government and foundations to support student success, innovation and institutional transformation benefiting all students.

The campus already secured the federal government’s status as a Minority Serving Institution in 2019 when it was designated an Asian American and Native American Pacific Islander-Serving Institution.

The new undergraduates come from 56 of California’s 58 counties, 47 states and U.S. territories, and 48 countries. Approximately 83.4% are California residents, 4.6% are U.S. domestic students from outside California, and 12.1% are international students.

Among new California undergraduates, the percentage of students from historically underrepresented groups (African American, American Indian, Hispanic/Latino(a) and Pacific Islander) increased to 37.5%, the highest percentage in more than 25 years. Last fall, the percentage was 36.2%.

Among the new students, 40.8% indicated they would be in the first generation of their family to graduate from a four-year university. About 31.3% of all new undergraduates were considered low income, and 38.8% were recipients of the federal Pell Grant for low-income students.

Robert Penman, executive director of Undergraduate Admissions, said the average grade point average, or GPA, for first-year students was 4.04, and the median was 4.08. More than 75% of first-year students had a weighted GPA above 3.92.