Chancellor Larry Vanderhoef says UC Davis is "working hard right now" to enroll the "very talented" freshmen and transfer students who have been offered admission for 2006-07.

The subject came up during his quarterly brown bag chat last week. Nearly 28,000 admission letters went out in March, and students have until May 1 to declare their intent to register.

Vanderhoef said the university expected to host 10,500 students and their parents at "Welcome" events April 14, and today and Saturday. "We've learned over the years that if students visit, they'll likely enroll," the chancellor said.

"Their interactions with you make a difference," he told the brown bag audience. "Thanks for helping us recruit our next class."

Two other "Welcome" events took place in Southern California and were well-attended, the chancellor said. He noted that for an event in Long Beach, the university underestimated the attendance, planning for 900 guests and then having to set up an overflow room.

"Interest in UC Davis has been high and we're optimistic we'll meet our enrollment targets," Vanderhoef said. For the fall of 2006, UC Davis is aiming to enroll about 4,850 new freshmen directly from high school and about 1,755 new transfer students.

The brown bag started with a My Personal Compass segment, with a staff member and student reading their essays. The speakers, whom Vanderhoef had invited to share their essays, were Faith Maul, management analyst and assistant to Police Chief Annette Spicuzza, and Harjot Singh Maan, a junior biochemistry major.

All of the essays are online, http://mypersonalcompass.ucdavis.edu — click on "All essays," then, under "Browse essays," click on November 2005 for Maan's essay and January 2006 for Maul's essay. Some essays are available by podcast; click on "Podcasts."

Essayists wishing to record their essays for podcasting, are advised to contact Assistant Chancellor Maril Stratton, (530) 752-9566 or mrstratton@ucdavis.edu. People wishing to post their written essays can find a form at the My Personal Compass Web address listed above (click on "Contribute an essay").

— Dave Jones

— Sylvia Wright