BOONE— Interest in attending Appalachian State University continues to soar. The admissions office has received 11,212 applications for the fall 2006 freshman class. That’s a 7 percent increase in the number of applications received last year.

Director of Admissions Paul Hiatt expects a freshman class of 2,675 students this fall, which would make the 2006 class the largest freshman class on record. “This represents the largest, the most competitive, and the most diverse applicant pool in the history of Appalachian,” he said.  “Our out-of-state numbers also are up.”

“Appalachian’s popularity is a result of the contributions’ of the entire university community,” Hiatt said. He pointed to the university’s freshman learning communities that provide support and services to first-year students, freshman-to-sophomore retention rate, academic programs and co-curricular activities.

“In every area that is measurable, Appalachian produces positive results,” Hiatt said.

The average SAT score for students who have paid deposits is 1130, a 29 point increase over 2001 and a 55 point increase over 1998. Their current grade point average is 3.7.

Twenty-nine percent (789 students) of the freshman class have a 4.0 or higher GPA, a four percent increase over the 2005 class.

Thirty-seven percent (1,011 students) of the freshman class have a GPA between 3.5 and 3.99. Twenty-seven percent (752 students) have a GPA between 3.0 and 3.49.

Officials also have seen an increase in applications from under-represented populations and out-of-state students.

Current freshman confirmations indicate that the class will consist of 294 (10 percent) students from under-represented populations. This is a 28 percent increase in the number of students from under-represented populations over 2005.

The incoming freshman class is comprised of representatives from 32 states, 21 countries, and 85 N.C. counties.