The university has an extensive system of branch campuses, which should relieve some enrollment pressures at the main Tampa campus. Efforts to beef up those branches began in earnest last year, especially in Pinellas County, where the St. Petersburg campus has always had room to grow. This fall the St. Petersburg branch welcomed its first freshman class in 30 years. A new joint-use agreement with St. Petersburg Junior College has made it much easier for students to earn a USF degree without ever leaving Pinellas County. But even students who don't have the academic credentials to make it into the state's premier institutions still have hope.
Universities make plenty of exceptions to admission policies.
At UF, for example, only about 60 percent of the freshmen class is admitted each year based solely on tests scores and high school grades. Others get an edge because their parents are alumni, or because they are members of a minority group, or because they have desired talents, such as athletics or music. One of Miller's jobs is to analyze student transcripts to make sure they are on track for college. She begins when students are in the ninth grade. St. Petersburg Times.