CSUN has opened enrollment and granted admission to transfer students as a result of additional funding and the opening of new classes.

According to the CSUN Institutional Research website, 715 new transfer students will start their first semester at CSUN this spring as of January 13.

Dr. Bettina Huber, director of Institutional Research, said, “It wasn’t clear for a while whether we would accept applications from transfer students for this semester.”

But ultimately, she said CSUN decided to accept applications from transfer students but the number of applicants was lower than usual.

“This is going to be an increase (in transfer students) because we didn’t admit transfer students last spring,” Huber said referring to the numbers at this time last year.

Dr. Cynthia Z. Rawitch, associate vice president of Undergraduate Studies, said the funding that came in at the end of the fall semester helped the administration restore classes.

“We’ve added additional classes. There’s plenty of classes with seats in them. This spring semester everyone will do well in getting the classes they want,” Rawitch said.

With the recently proposed budget by Gov. Jerry Brown, the CSU and UC system took a massive hit with a cut of $500 million each.

Rawitch said the next academic year will be more difficult than this spring has been.

“We don’t know what the impact of the $500 million cut to the CSU will be,” Rawitch said.

Rawitch added CSUN will be given a share by CSU’s Chancellor, Charles B. Reed.

“We will have to organize our spending in a way that we come within the budget that we’ve been given by the chancellor,” Rawitch.

Rawitch said next fall, CSUN will likely have fewer classes available.

“We will do everything we possibly can to serve all of the students who are currently our students, either have been from earlier or starting this semester and as many of the students who apply and want to come in the fall,” Rawitch said.

Rawitch said unless money is found elsewhere or money comes into the state, she does not expect the $500 million cut to go away.

“I can’t imagine that things are going to be appreciatively better in the state of California between now and next fall,” Rawitch said.

Rawitch said the budget cut that is given to CSUN could be slightly less this year.

“Based on that, certainly this spring and what we are doing this spring is a high point,” she said. “Next fall will be much more difficult for us.”

Rawitch added that the budget cuts would not only affect students but also staff and its ability to hire more people to do jobs or to replace people who have retired.

“This has happened before in the state of California, we have had serious financial problems and crises, and Cal State Northridge has weathered it and has come out the other end and has been able to serve students. That’s what we’re going to assume we’re going to be doing this time,” Rawitch said.

Junior Judith Castellon, 36, is starting her first semester at CSUN as a transfer student from LA Pierce College.

“I noticed (CSUN) opened new classes and that made it easy,” said the psychology major. “I had to change one and then get another one because I didn’t know I was getting the wrong class.”

Castellon said she chose to transfer to CSUN because of the psychology program and the campus is near her home.

Castellon said she is worried about the recent budget cut announcement.

“I am a working adult and I have a family too, so it’s hard enough for me to get back to school and with all the new increases it’s going to make it harder for people like me,” Castellon said.