NANCEE E. LEWIS / Union-Tribune Siblings Dan, (from left) Van, Kim and Nguyen Nguyen will all attend UCSD this fall. Dan is majoring in biochemistry, Van is majoring in chemistry, Kim is studying bioengineering, and Nguyen will study biochemistry. The Nguyens were all home-schooled together. UCSD by the numbers 28,561: Estimated number of students arriving at UCSD for fall quarter 4,300: Estimated number of incoming freshmen 3.94: Average grade-point average of incoming freshmen SOURCE: UC San Diego

The oldest of the siblings, Kim Nguyen, is a graduate student studying bioengineering, followed by Dan Nguyen, a senior majoring in biochemistry. The newest additions are Nguyen Nguyen, a transfer student who will major in biochemistry, followed by Van Nguyen, a freshman who turned down UC Berkeley and UCLA to pursue chemistry at UCSD.

“We never knew we'd all be here at the same time,” said Kim Nguyen. “It's crazy. We didn't plan it that way, but it's pretty cool.”

There are advantages. Since they all live at home with their parents, they can carpool together. And the older ones can hand down expensive textbooks to their younger siblings, who will take some of the same classes.

“We're all really close,” said Nguyen Nguyen, who transferred to UCSD from the San Diego Community College District.

UCSD may serve more members of the Nguyen family, as two younger siblings at Mira Mesa High School are also thinking of applying to the La Jolla campus.

Newcomers to UCSD include an estimated 4,300 freshmen, 1,800 transfers and 1,050 graduate students. The freshman class boasts an average high school grade-point average of 3.94. Average SAT scores include 600 for reading, 652 for math and 612 for writing, out of a possible 800 in each section on the college entrance exam. Classes start Thursday.

Among the newcomers are standouts such as Matt Mogi, who overcame a major hurdle to reach this milestone.

Mogi, a former Navy hospital corpsman, was set to enter UCSD last fall as a transfer student, nearly eight years after graduating from high school.

In high school, college had never seemed like an option. He wasn't a great student, Mogi said, and his parents couldn't afford the tuition. But after several years in the military, Mogi realized that higher education was the key to a well-paying job.

So after six years in the Navy, Mogi attended Mesa College. He was preparing to enter UCSD when doctors discovered a mass in the bottom of his brain compressing his optic nerve. Hours after the second surgery to remove it, Mogi was blind, the result of multiple mini-strokes throughout his brain, he said. His education plans were derailed.

Gradually, he regained partial vision in his left eye. And today, at 27, Mogi is making another foray into college with the help of a guide dog and a cane.

“I'm pretty nervous, mainly because I missed a year of school,” said Mogi, who is majoring in biochemistry and cell biology. “And I haven't been back into the classroom with my current visual limitations.”

Mogi lives with his wife in Clairemont. However, nearly 35 percent of UCSD's students will live on campus. And many newcomers will find a number of “green” additions to their quarters.

Freshmen at Sixth College are moving into renovated dorms with new solar thermal heating, carpet and furniture made from recycled material, low-flow shower heads and energy-efficient lighting. Each apartment is equipped with a bucket of eco-friendly cleaning supplies.

Sherry Saavedra: (619) 542-4598; sherry.saavedra@uniontrib.com