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UMN freshman are the smartest ever, at least by one metric

The University of Minnesota's new freshman class brings a school-record average ACT score of 28.1.

Bob McMaster, vice provost and undergraduate dean, said Thursday that a 28 average on the college entrance exam had been the target for the past several years as the U focused on raising the academic profile of its students.

"Our next goal is to continue to nudge that up," he said.

Nationally, 10 percent of high school students who take the ACT score a 28 or higher.

The U brought a record 5,771 freshmen to the Twin Cities campus this fall.