About 530 first-year students and a record 102 transfers will begin classes at University of Lynchburg on Aug. 23. The transfer students include 13 from China.
The Class of 2016 is academically strong with an average GPA of 3.24 and SATs of 1026 with 75 percent in the top half of their class. Forty-three of the first years are Westover Fellows with a 3.88 average GPA and SAT of 1257. In addition, 136 students participated in the Scholarship Competition and 45 students through the Visual and Performing Arts Competition. The diversity rate for this class is 20 percent.
The students hail from 27 states and two countries: China and the Bahamas. Exchange students include one from Canada and two from South Korea. The percentage of out-of-state students rose 5 percent from last year to 37 percent.
The 13 new transfer students from China come to Lynchburg as a result of an associate membership in the U.S.-Sino Pathway Program that allows students from China to complete college course work in China and transfer to a select group of U.S. universities and colleges. These students also complete an academic “summer bridge” program at Northeastern University. The students have enough course work to enter University of Lynchburg as transfer students and have already begun transitioning to life in the U.S.
