As it rebounds from last year’s disappointing admissions cycle, the University is receiving an increased number of applications this year — both overall and from underrepresented minorities, officials said.

Specific numbers will most likely be released later this week. The University would not comment on how many more applications it received or which specific racial groups saw an increase.

The higher number of minority applicants may be the result of a recruitment campaign seeking to reverse the figures from last year, when the number of black applicants dropped 25 percent from the year before and overall applications fell 18 percent. Over the past few years, the percentage of blacks as part of the overall undergraduate population has declined.

As part of its intensified recruitment efforts, the Office of Undergraduate Admissions, working with various organizations and student groups, has used a slew of strategies to spark as much interest in the University as possible, especially among blacks and Hispanics.

“We’re definitely trying to get people excited about Michigan,” said LSA sophomore Darla Williams, who works in the admissions office and is a member of the Division of Student Affairs Advisory Board. The University is focusing “not just on getting the numbers up, but getting quality applicants,” she added.

This year, University President Mary Sue Coleman has taken a greater role in the recruitment process. The admissions office has strengthened its ties with student groups like the Black Volunteer Network and La Voz Latina. It has also reached out to areas outside of southeast Michigan and solicited help from alumni.

But some of the University’s approaches have caused unease among students.

In an e-mail to black alumni last semester, Coleman asked the graduates to refer specific high school students, especially black students, to an official in the admissions office.

“As you know, admission has become increasingly competitive,” Coleman wrote in the e-mail.  “However, if you are aware of prime audiences, or top students with B or B+ grade point averages, who have not heard from Michigan yet, contact Chris Lucier, Associate Director of Undergraduate Admissions … He will be standing by to follow-up.”

Explaining the procedure, Lucier said that the University seeks out tens of thousands of prospective applicants before they apply, including minorities.

“All we’re asking for is contacts that we might not have contacted through other means,” Lucier said.

But some students say that such tactics border on preferential treatment and belies the argument that the admissions process is fair.

“Targeting any minority group just because it’s a minority group is wrong,” said LSA senior Laura Davis, who is a former co-chair for Young Americans for Freedom, a nationwide conservative group.

Business senior Michael Phillips, who is editor-in-chief of The Michigan Review, a campus publication, said he is worried that the University is using too much of its resources to increase minority enrollment at the expense of others.

“I wonder, are we giving you an equal opportunity or are we really giving benefits that other students can’t qualify for simply because of race?” Phillips said. “Is the goal to increase opportunity or is the goal to increase that percentage of minorities enrolled?”

The University has used a multi-pronged strategy to increase the number of underrepresented minorities on campus.

“We’re getting great support from the student organizations,” Lucier said. “This is one area that I’m particularly excited about because I think it will build a lot of momentum.”

Student volunteers have been calling potential minority applicants to answer their questions and spark interest in attending the University. The admissions office formed a Multicultural Student Recruitment Council, consisting of representatives of the office of Multi-Ethnic Student Affairs and the Black Student Union, among others.

The University has enhanced certain college visitation events, such as Slice of Life, a program where a prospective student trails a current student for a day, and Latino College Visit. Slice of Life, which focuses on underrepresented minority students, has been extended from twice a year to at least five times last semester.

“I know the admissions office has drastically expanded their visitation programs,” Williams said, adding that many students have a vested interest in recruiting minorities because it also strengthens the communities they represent.