Maureen Wolff | Contributing Writer
You probably can’t go a day on campus without hearing a joke about “the ratio.” APU is famous (or infamous, perhaps?) for its roughly 2-1 ratio of female to male students. But have you ever wondered about other ways that the student body can be broken down? Here are some quick facts about the undergraduates of the Zu based on data collected fall 2013.
Major
Some of the most frequently declared majors among undergraduates include psychology, with 615 students, business management with 435 and liberal studies with 403. The largest school is the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, totaling 2,514 students, or 38.4 percent of undergraduates.
Among the Zu’s smallest majors are management information systems (six enrolled), math and physics (three enrolled) and screenwriting, with just two declared in the field of study.
Gender Ratio by Major
Among larger majors, the most female-dominated areas of study include liberal studies (92.7 percent female), nursing (89 percent) and social work (89.2 percent), according to calculations by APU’s director of institutional research, Chris Olson. Among the majors with high male concentration are computer science (85.7 percent male), business finance (80 percent) and business economics (77.4 percent).
Race/Ethnicity
Out of 6,543 undergraduate students, the ethnic breakdown consists of 49.7 percent white, 23.1 percent Hispanic, 8.3 percent Asian, 4.7 percent black/African-American, 0.8 percent Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander and 0.4 percent American Indian/Alaskan Native.
APU has dramatically increased in racial diversity since 2003, just 10 years prior to the percentages above. The Office of Institutional Research and Assessment reports a 2003 undergraduate population comprising 73.4 percent white, 12.19 percent Hispanic, 4.55 percent Asian, 3.36 percent black and 0.34 percent Native American (Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander not reported).
Top Five Religious Affiliations
With almost 50 distinct religious affiliations reported, APU boasts an impressive diversity of denominations and spiritual backgrounds. The most frequently reported affiliations include non-denominational (15.9 percent), Christian (15.2 percent), Baptist (6.7 percent), Catholic (6.5 percent) and Presbyterian (3.6 percent).
This differs significantly from 2014 undergraduate religious affiliations at APU’s rival school Biola, which reports its top five affiliations as non-denominational (37.6 percent), Baptist (14.4 percent), Evangelical Free Church (8 percent), Calvary Chapel (3.9 percent) and Assembly of God (3.0 percent).
Top States and Countries
While the majority of APU students (83.2 percent) are from California, APU cougars have migrated from all over the U.S. to attend school in the Zu. The top states students come from include Washington (3.4 percent), Oregon (1.9 percent), Arizona (1.6 percent), Hawaii (1.1 percent) and Illinois (1 percent). With more than 150 international undergraduate students representing 40 different countries, the top three foreign homelands are China (31 students), Republic of Korea (23 students) and Japan (16 students).