Here’s what’s next as UC heads back to school
Its largest- and brightest-ever class, new buildings, and major milestones: The University of Cincinnati has plenty of reasons to celebrate
At this point, it’s starting to sound like a broken record. Scratch that — a lot of records.
For the sixth consecutive year, the University of Cincinnati will welcome a record number of students back to class.
But this year’s class — projected at or above 45,000 — won’t just be the university’s biggest. It’s also the brightest. This year’s class of first-years boasts the highest academic profile of any in the university’s 199-year history, with significant increases in average ACT score (26.3), SAT score (1257) and GPA (3.61).
“We’re proud to welcome the newest members of the Bearcat family,” says UC President Neville Pinto. “These students are coming to us better prepared for success, and their decision to join the UC community is a credit to our institution’s focus on Academic Excellence.”
Inclusive Excellence is a key part of the university’s strategic direction, Next Lives Here, and it’s clear that UC is on the right track. UC’s student government has sworn in Sinna Habteselassie, the student body’s first African-American female president.
There’s never been a more diverse crop of students entering the College of Pharmacy, and the College of Medicine’s incoming class has the highest percentages of female and African-American male students in its history. To top it off, one of every three graduate students comes to UC from another country.
Next Lives Here is UC’s vision for leading public urban universities into a new era of innovation and impact. The strategic direction, launched in February, includes three platforms: Academic Excellence, Urban Impact and Innovation Agenda.
Record housing demand
The days of UC being considered a commuter college for suburban Cincinnati locals are over. A record 6,800 incoming freshmen — up about 400 from last year — have chosen to live in university housing. The newly completed Marian Spencer Hall will welcome its first residents, as will the new 1MPACT House for Gen-1 and other first-generation college students. More upperclassmen are staying close to campus, too.
“We’re seeing demand grow all around,” says Carl Dieso, director of Housing, Food and Retail Services
While construction on new buildings for the Carl H. Lindner College of Business, the Gardner Neuroscience Institute, and the College of Allied Health Sciences will continue throughout the 2018-19 academic year, a long-awaited construction project is sure to generate excitement this fall: The completion of the renovation of Fifth Third Arena. The men’s and women’s basketball and women’s volleyball teams will once again have a court they can truly call home, and Commencement will return to its rightful place at the heart of main campus.
The 2018-19 academic year will see many milestones. This Homecoming, Oct. 6, will mark the beginning of UC’s year of celebrations, leading up to the official Bicentennial Signature Celebration on Nov. 9, 2019.
The 2018-19 incoming class will be greeted with signs of progress, but it will also be challenged to be Boldly Bearcat, the theme of UC’s Bicentennial celebration. “More than a motto, Boldly Bearcat is an attitude we expect you to carry out into the world,” Pinto told the class of Summer 2018 at Commencement. “It’s the grit, the guts and the grace to do what is right; stretching for excellence by seeking the highest; Working hard to shape the future you dream of – even when faced with obstacles or nay-sayers. Boldly Bearcat is paying it forward and making a positive difference.”
In addition to the university’s Bicentennial, UC will acknowledge the 10-year anniversaries of the founding of the Gen-1 program and Higher Education Mentoring Initiative, as well as 50 years of Upward Bound and the College-Conservatory of Music’s musical theater program.
As UC prepares to celebrate its Bicentennial, perhaps it’s only appropriate that this year’s incoming class is the first to have a majority of students born in the year 2000 and beyond. Generation Z grew up in a world already permeated by technology, one in which a telephone cord was every bit as anachronistic as a butter churner. These students will fit right in at UC’s 1819 Innovation Hub — the physical centerpiece of the university’s Innovation Agenda — which will host classes for the first time this fall.
In addition to Introduction to Innovation and UC Forward classes, the 1819 Innovation Hub is closing in on the completion of a 12,000-square-foot makerspace that will give students from a variety of backgrounds the opportunity to rapidly create prototypes and models for classes and co-ops alike. The 1819 building’s new classroom and community spaces are ready to go. Students will have the opportunity to work with industry thanks to the iHub’s anchor location within the transformational Uptown Innovation Corridor, as well as with new tenants on the building’s third and fourth floors that include Cincinnati Bell, the UC Simulation Center, the Live Well Collaborative and Village Life Outreach.
Become a Bearcat
Apply online or get more information about undergraduate enrollment by calling (513) 556-1100. Learn more about UC's many undergraduate and graduate programs
Tags
- Lindner College of Business
- Clermont College
- College of Engineering and Applied Science
- Student Experience
- College of Pharmacy
- College of Education, Criminal Justice, & Human Services
- College of Allied Health Sciences
- College of Arts and Sciences
- College-Conservatory of Music
- College of Nursing
- Blue Ash College
- Graduate School
- College bound
- College of Law
- College of Medicine
- Bicentennial
- College of Design, Architecture, Art, and Planning
More back to school coverage
Here’s what’s next as UC heads back to school
August 21, 2018
As the University of Cincinnati returns for the 2018-19 academic year, it is getting ready for a major milestone, implementing a new strategic direction and opening brand new buildings
What’s changing on UC’s campus? A lot.
August 21, 2018
UC is in the midst of a building boom that’s reshaping the vibrant urban campus.
UC housing more popular than ever
August 20, 2018
Living on the University of Cincinnati campus has never been more popular — and with a brand-new residence hall and special learning-living communities, emerging housing options are giving students even more reasons to call UC home.
New artwork at UC's CenterCourt immortalizes a Cincy legend
August 21, 2018
UC's CenterCourt dinning facility now boasts paintings of Martha, the last passenger pigeon.
UC student body elects first African-American woman as president
August 21, 2018
Sinna Habteselassie, a double major in neuroscience and organizational leadership, is the first African-American woman to serve as student body president in UC 's 200-year history. She wants to open leadership positions to other inspired students.
UC Pharmacy Class of 2022 More Diverse Than Ever
August 21, 2018
In keeping with the University of Cincinnati's overall Diversity Plan, the James L. Winkle College of Pharmacy is reporting an increase in minority admissions for 2018.
Advice to Med Students: Stay Purpose-Driven, Connected and...
August 21, 2018
Ndidi Unaka, MD, discovered and nurtured her humanism as a physician with the help of mentors early on during her medical training. The pediatrician at Cincinnati Children’s says it helps her remember her purpose and stay empathetic and connected to patients and colleagues.
UC College of Medicine and Pharmacy Students Will Now Learn...
August 21, 2018
For the first time in the history of the University of Cincinnati’s (UC) Academic Health Center, first-year students in UC’s colleges of medicine and pharmacy will take a required course—together.
UC student Fulbright winners make positive global impact
August 21, 2018
Five UC student Fulbright winners will teach and perform cutting-edge research in Europe, North Africa and Guatemala.
New UC coaching program breaks barriers for low-income,...
August 21, 2018
New initiative launching this fall at UC’s McMicken College of Arts and Sciences helps level the college playing field by pairing low-income, first-generation students with success coaches
UC co-op students earned a record $66 million
August 21, 2018
UC co-op students earned a combined $66 million during the 2016-17 academic year, and several graduate students give the cooperative education program credit for finding jobs well before they earned their degrees.
New UC Arts and Sciences Cares initiative connects A&S students...
August 21, 2018
A&S students in distress or need can find help by emailing the college at artscicares@uc.edu
UC gives high schoolers a head start in earning college credit
August 21, 2018
More UC students are earning college credit in high school through College Credit Plus.
UC students gain experience of a lifetime in Venice
August 21, 2018
Architectural projects created by UC faculty and students that explore these urban challenges are featured during the 16th International Venice Biennale. The Biennale, which runs May 26-Nov. 25, 2018, is regarded as the worldâ s most prestigious platform for contemporary art and architecture. "Alchemy," an exhibit funded through the Simpson Center for Urban Futures, focuses on the societal challenges within the socioeconomic landscape of Cincinnati.
UC advisor raises awareness of endangered paradise in face of...
August 21, 2018
As climate change jeopardizes remote Pacific islands, UC advisor becomes advocate for change.
UC study: exposure to tobacco smoke significantly impacts teen...
August 21, 2018
Secondhand smoke linked to poor health, higher absenteeism, increased likelihood to seek medical attention
Crash course: UC physicists hunt for antimatter in Japan's new...
August 21, 2018
Clad in white gowns and surgical masks, UC physics professor Alan Schwartz, left, and UC postdoctoral fellow Boqun Wang assemble a quartz detector in a clean room in Japan's High Energy Accelerator Research Organization. (Photo by Saurabh Sandilya)
Media coverage of UC's first day
August 27, 2018
All four local television stations carried live coverage of UC's first day back to school on Aug. 27, 2018.