Fraternal twins Erin and Martin Lencki hope to join their two older siblings at UF next year.
The two 17-year-old Jupiter High School seniors are among a pool of 25,098 freshman applicants this year who applied by Sunday's deadline despite a diminishing admission rate.
Students can still apply until March 1 but will be considered on a space-available basis, UF spokesman Steve Orlando said.
As of Tuesday, 25,190 people applied, about 1,300 more than at the same point last year.
Orlando said the football and basketball national championships in recent years may have contributed to UF's increase in popularity.
"We don't know the bottom line, but it could be a factor," he said.
With in-state tuition now $4,300 a year while the national average for public universities looms at about $7,000, the price might also attract students.
The Bright Futures scholarship program and the short distance to her hometown made UF an appealing option for Erin Lencki.
"More and more people are realizing that an education at UF is a stunning value," Orlando said.
Though UF's applicant pool continues to rise, the number of students accepted has been steadily declining.
Two years ago, the target population for the incoming freshman class was 6,600.
Last year it was 6,400 and this year, it's 6,200, Orlando said.
A year and a half ago, UF set a goal to cut undergraduate enrollment over the next four years by 4,000, he said, partially in response to a $150 million decrease in the state-funded portion of UF's budget.
"We had to make choices. We had to reduce the number of students we're accepting so we don't reduce the quality of the education," he said.
Decreasing enrollment also might help lower the student-faculty ratio, which is 20 to 1 at UF, he said.
Roughly 10,000 people will be admitted this year.
"I'm kind of iffy about it," Martin Lencki said, adding that UCF is his second choice.
"I know my grades aren't the best, but I think overall it will be OK."
