Employer rights vs. gay rights
Viewpoint, page 5
WEATHER
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Soderbergh’s surreal vision
Life / Arts, page 7
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Volume CXVII, Number 18
—He
University of Sou^'orn California
Monday :ebruary ir 1992
Applications up 17%
New admissions approach emphasizes ‘marketing’ univeristy and need-based aid
By Toni Sciacqua
Assistant City Editor
Financial incentives and a new, witty brochure may be responsible for a 17-percent increase in undergraduate applications over last year's priority period deadline, according to figures supplied by Dean of Admissions and Financial Aid Cliff Sjogren.
As of this yearns Feb. 1 deadline, 11,600 applications have been submitted. At the 1991 deadline of March 1, only 9,585 were filed. Transfer applications have doubled. And, compared to this time last year, 64 percent more applications have been filed, according to Sjogren.
But Duncan Murdoch, director of undergraduate admissions, said there is "no wa/' applications will stay that far above last year and is hoping to close out the filing period 10 to 12 percent higher than 1991.
Murdoch said even that may not be enough to enroll 2,800 freshman, a goal the university has been struggling unsuccessfully to meet for the past few years.
"It's too bad we're in a recession. The economy may wipe out what may have been a healthy increase in freshmen. But
if we hadn't done this we'd be that much farther behind," Murdoch said.
Last year's applications totalled 10,400. Murdoch said 7,400 people were admitted last year and 2,350 enrolled.
Murdoch attributed the increase to several factors, including promising prospective students that the university will meet all of their demonstrated financial need, making it possible to graduate in four years and providing on-campus housing for freshman.
The university also implemented a new set of incentives to push students to apply early. Students who applied before Dec. 15, 1991, are eligible for merit scholarships, an early financial aid estimate and only paid half of the normal application fee.
"We were willing to sacrifice half the fee for increased applications. If that translates into more freshmen, that will off-set the cost by a tremendous amount," he said.
Murdoch said 7,500 people applied before the Dec. 15 early fee deadline.
Murdoch said the university also received a tremendous response from a new brochure design that features two
Application Explosion
tourcc Oftc* ol Admmiont
The number of undergraduate applications for admission received this year is on pace to set a new record.
Applications filed by March 1st of year:
1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 9,948 9,149 12£61 11,534 9,585
Applications received by February 7sf of this year: f
11,600
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faculty members dressed in a football and band uniform under the slogan, "At USC, you'll get more than just a great football team." The brochure also features short, witty biographies on the professors. He said the number of mail-in reponse cards sent in last spring was twice the amount of any other year.
The university also implemented a new
phone recruitment program in which approximately 6,000 university employees were each given the addresses and phone numbers of four students and asked to write or call them.
The priority period deadline was moved up a month in order to be more competitive with other schools, Murdoch said.
Rainy days still do not end drought
By W. Guy Finley
Staff Writer
While Wednesday's storm created puddles to splash around in and backed up storm drains, university and Department of Water and Power officials are still worried that it won't help the current drought problems.
John Welsh, energy management supervisor for the university, said Friday that while further restrictions from the DWP aren't expected, the university isn't letting up on its conservation efforts.
"Right now, we're working with the DWP to bring the university's water usage down," Welsh said.
The restrictions — a 1U percent reduction in water usage by the university — have been in effect for close to a year now, according to DWP officials.
While the rain helped water lawns and wash cars, it also created some problems.
"We expect the usual problems with a rain of this size. Trash will get washed down the storm drains and that will clog them up with this large amount of rain," Welsh said on Friday.
After the restrictions were put into place last year, the university took several actions to comply with them, said Jim Peralta, director of landscaping and irrigation.
(See Drought, page 2)
All this for an espresso?
John Hoffman / Daily Trojan
Joe Aumentaeo, a sophomore majoring In physics, works on a million dollar vacuum system, the only one of its kind In the world. Most of its parts were made In America.
Grants survive U.S. budget cuts
Government will	^gefitscal year for ,he ,ederal still help programs
By Kim Wilner	but it is still hard to tell. There is
Staff Writer	great uncertainty," said Philip
University officials said that	Muntz, professor and co-chair-
federal research funds allocated	man of aerospace engineering,
to the university this year — in	The university receives $150
the defense-related fields — will	million annually in total federal
not be cut as far as they can tell.	research funds. This amount
Though national defense bud-	does not include funds that each
get cuts are planned for next	school receives individually,
year, money for research from	said Dennis Dougherty, admin-
the Department of Defense and	istration senior vice president,
the National Institute of Health	"That amount is growing each
remains solid, said Cornelius	year, which is definitely a reflec-
Pings, university provost and	Hon on the quality of our facul-
senior vice president.	ty," Dougherty said. "All grants
Cuts in the federal defense	that the university receives are
budget will not go into effect un-	peer reviewed. Our scientists
til after October, the start of the	(See Research, page 3)
Groups get a home
SOC a base for campus organizations
By Michelle Owens
Staff Writer
The Student Organization Center (SOC), self-described as -The One-Stop Shopping Center for Student Organizations," will have an Open House on Tuesday, Feb. 11, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. in Student Union Suite B-4. A formal dedication of the office and a ribbon-cutting
zeremony will take place at noon.
The SOC's main goal is to be a resource center for USC's 237 recognized student organizations. SOC is designed to provide the groups with advisement, resource materials and access to telephones, meeting offices and storage space.
(See SOC, page 6)