With more students joining the Sacramento State community last fall, there is a rising concern for some much-needed space for the growing student body. 

With the latest update from the University’s admissions office, the school has received almost 33,000 applications for the upcoming fall semester – and has already admitted roughly 8,000 with more acceptance letters being sent out in February and March.  

In the last few years, Sac State and the rest of the CSUs have been on a tight budget while dealing with overcrowding and tuition hikes. Despite efforts by the student body, administration and the state legislation, no concrete solution has presented itself. 

Last fall, Sac State welcomed 8,759 new students to the university with an acceptance rate of 32.2 percent. The incoming class was the largest addition to the university in the last five years and was certainly felt throughout campus. Parking on campus became a pressing issue as well as the struggle to add the necessary classes to graduate. 

With an increase of about 1,000 new incoming freshmen being admitted next fall, the possibility of overcrowding the on-campus housing is becoming more imminent. 

President Alexander Gonzalez said in his Spring Address Thursday, “The Student Housing Advisory Committee has been working on a proposal for more on-campus housing. The proposed site of the new, 350-bed residence hall is in front of Desmond Hall.”

Alright, great. New dorms are a great way to build up the on-campus culture outside of class and expand the Sac State community. So now that we have solved that problem, when will they be ready?

“If the project is approved by the Chancellor’s Office, we hope to open for the Fall of 2017,” Gonzalez said. 

Oh, perfect. 

While the new dorms may be a good idea for the University’s future, the immediate solution for overcrowding would be to ease back on admissions. 

Last fall, out of the 23 CSU campuses, Sac State ranked second, behind Humboldt State University, in admittance rate with 75 percent. Humboldt State handed out a whopping 77 percent, but third highest was only 69 percent from Sonoma State and CSU East Bay. 

The high number of students admitted is only a reflection of the standard Sac State holds. Sure, our campus is one of the biggest in the CSUs, but we also let in almost anybody. 

The amount of professors has slightly increased. but the demand for certain classes is not being addressed as a problem that needs quick fixing. If we enroll nearly 8,000 incoming students every fall, with roughly 5,000 graduating yearly, this campus is growing quickly. 

This leads to more issues: the student body is outgrowing the faculty, classrooms and parking lot, and yet the university is still raking in the tuition dollars. 

We don’t know how many other acceptance letters Sac State plans on handing out this spring, or how many of those applied will actually enroll, but the university must be cautious. 

Sac State is a few years away from adding perhaps enough room on campus to fit significantly more students, but to keep bringing in students when it is taking longer for those to graduate, is a risky move for everyone.  

So do us a favor, University Admissions Office, take it easy on the enrollment the next few years so the campus’ facilities and faculty can catch up.