Wednesday, February 2, 2011
Stanford's Applications Up, On Pace With Nationwide Rise In Applicants
It’s no news that Stanford is one of the most coveted universities for college-bound students. Applications for the Class of 2015 reached a record high for the University, totaling approximately 34,200 and representing a staggering 7 percent increase from last year. But what is it about Stanford that attracts so much interest?
According to Bob Patterson, director of undergraduate admission, the primary contributing factor to the increase in student interest was the University’s firm commitment to embodying the free spirit of learning, exemplified in the school’s motto, “Die Luft der Freiheit weht,” or “the wind of freedom blows.”
“Students are interested in pursuing their academic interests and [the Stanford message] aligns with those interests,” Patterson said.
Stanford’s increase in applications has not been markedly greater than figures at its peer institutions.
“We’re increasing at about the same rate,” said Patterson. “Last year had the highest number of high school graduates. This year, there’s been a decline, but more students are applying to more institutions.”
Another factor to be taken into consideration is Stanford’s prevalence in popular media. For instance, in James Cameron’s blockbuster “Avatar,” Dr. Grace Augustine, an eminent ecologist played by Sigourney Weaver ’72, wears a Cardinal tank top whenever she shifts into an alien body. Stanford’s reputation as a world-class institution, diffused through social media, may have a hand in boosting student interest as well.
“I don’t think it hurts to have that notoriety from the press, in films, important research, Orange Bowl victories,” said Patterson. “But it’s not something we can actually track in terms of affecting increases or decreases in applications.”
Despite the fact that Stanford played a big role in the plots of teen culture staples such as “High School Musical 3” and the series finale of Hannah Montana — the latter of which sparked rumors that its star, Miley Cyrus, would be joining the class of 2015 — the University does not seek to sell the Stanford brand. Any requests to use the Stanford brand must be approved first by University Communications.
“We never proactively market the Stanford brand,” said Lisa Lapin, assistant vice president of University Communications. “Instead, they come to us. We evaluate their request and approve it only if the character in the show adheres to the qualities embodied by the typical Stanford student. For example, in ‘Avatar,’ Weaver is a scientist, which fits with what a Stanford alum would do.”
Regardless of the free publicity, Stanford takes a staunch stance in adhering to the university’s educational mission.
“We’re not soliciting more applications,” said Patterson. “In general, there is a lot of student interest, [so] we try to reach out to students who are not aware of the Stanford message, students who’ve never heard of it before.”
Despite growing fears of a vanishing acceptance rate, Bob Patterson remains optimistic about its stability for the Class of 2015. He anticipates only a slight increase in selectivity, due to efforts by admissions staff to drive home the Stanford mission to prospective students of all backgrounds.
“Class size will be relatively the same,” said Patterson. “I think the acceptance rate will be relatively the same as last year’s, maybe a little more selective. We’re trying to make sure that students do their research before applying.”
Students who applied under the regular admission program will receive their admissions results by the end of March.
http://www.stanforddaily.com/2011/02/02/applications-up-on-pace-with-nationwide-rise-in-applicants/
According to Bob Patterson, director of undergraduate admission, the primary contributing factor to the increase in student interest was the University’s firm commitment to embodying the free spirit of learning, exemplified in the school’s motto, “Die Luft der Freiheit weht,” or “the wind of freedom blows.”
“Students are interested in pursuing their academic interests and [the Stanford message] aligns with those interests,” Patterson said.
Stanford’s increase in applications has not been markedly greater than figures at its peer institutions.
“We’re increasing at about the same rate,” said Patterson. “Last year had the highest number of high school graduates. This year, there’s been a decline, but more students are applying to more institutions.”
Another factor to be taken into consideration is Stanford’s prevalence in popular media. For instance, in James Cameron’s blockbuster “Avatar,” Dr. Grace Augustine, an eminent ecologist played by Sigourney Weaver ’72, wears a Cardinal tank top whenever she shifts into an alien body. Stanford’s reputation as a world-class institution, diffused through social media, may have a hand in boosting student interest as well.
“I don’t think it hurts to have that notoriety from the press, in films, important research, Orange Bowl victories,” said Patterson. “But it’s not something we can actually track in terms of affecting increases or decreases in applications.”
Despite the fact that Stanford played a big role in the plots of teen culture staples such as “High School Musical 3” and the series finale of Hannah Montana — the latter of which sparked rumors that its star, Miley Cyrus, would be joining the class of 2015 — the University does not seek to sell the Stanford brand. Any requests to use the Stanford brand must be approved first by University Communications.
“We never proactively market the Stanford brand,” said Lisa Lapin, assistant vice president of University Communications. “Instead, they come to us. We evaluate their request and approve it only if the character in the show adheres to the qualities embodied by the typical Stanford student. For example, in ‘Avatar,’ Weaver is a scientist, which fits with what a Stanford alum would do.”
Regardless of the free publicity, Stanford takes a staunch stance in adhering to the university’s educational mission.
“We’re not soliciting more applications,” said Patterson. “In general, there is a lot of student interest, [so] we try to reach out to students who are not aware of the Stanford message, students who’ve never heard of it before.”
Despite growing fears of a vanishing acceptance rate, Bob Patterson remains optimistic about its stability for the Class of 2015. He anticipates only a slight increase in selectivity, due to efforts by admissions staff to drive home the Stanford mission to prospective students of all backgrounds.
“Class size will be relatively the same,” said Patterson. “I think the acceptance rate will be relatively the same as last year’s, maybe a little more selective. We’re trying to make sure that students do their research before applying.”
Students who applied under the regular admission program will receive their admissions results by the end of March.
http://www.stanforddaily.com/2011/02/02/applications-up-on-pace-with-nationwide-rise-in-applicants/
Friday, January 28, 2011
An estimated 36,273 students submitted applications for Cornell's Class of 2015
Despite a surge in applications for other Ivy League schools, the number of high school students applying to Cornell remained relatively flat for the Class of 2015, according to information released by the University’s Undergraduate Admissions Office on Jan. 26.
An estimated 36,273 students submitted applications this year — an increase of 128 applicants, or less than one percent, from last year — according to Jason Locke, director of undergraduate admissions. Previously, application totals typically increased 5 to 10 percent per year.
Locke said even though the number of applications has not increased dramatically, the fact that it has not decreased reflected high school students’ continued interest in Cornell.
“[That] Cornell has continued … to maintain its increases from the past decade speaks to the fact that prospective students and families recognize the value of a Cornell education,” Locke stated in an e-mail.
Meanwhile, many of the University’s peer institutions reported double-digit growth in application numbers.
Columbia saw a 32-percent increase in applicants this year after its admissions office switched to the Common Application. At Harvard and Dartmouth, applications rose 15 percent and 15.7 percent, respectively. The University of Pennsylvania also saw a 15-percent increase, while Yale reported a 5-percent rise.
Cornell was the last Ivy to formally announce its applicant pool total.
Although Cornell’s increase was not as much compared to other Ivies, Locke noted that the compared to other Ivies, Locke noted that the University’s selectivity rate has skyrocketed in the past decade. In 2000, Cornell received 20,199 applications, resulting in an acceptance rate of 30 percent. Since then, the number of applications has nearly doubled in the past decade, leading in part to an admission rate of 18 percent last year.
“We’ve increased the number of applications by 74 percent over the past decade,” Locke said.
Locke attributed the increase in applications during the past 10 years to the University’s “sweeping changes” on its financial aid policies. Last fall, Day Hall announced the University would match financial aid offered by other Ivies in an effort to increase the yield total.
The vast increase in applications has been a national phenomena at top schools as applicants are applying to even more colleges.
Locke said that Cornell’s applicant pool increase is correlated to the increase in the “overall number of high school graduates,” a trend that he said the media labeled a “baby boomlet.”
But according to William Shain, an educational consultant and former dean of admissions at Vanderbilt and Bowdoin, the growth in applications is not due to “the number of high school seniors increasing,” but due to the fact that students are “just applying to more schools.”
“It isn’t even necessarily anything Cornell hasn’t done … there aren’t more bodies, there are more applications per body,” Shain said.
Admissions offices are under a lot of pressure to “inflate” the applicant totals, he added, in order to increase selectivity and maintain a decent credit rating.
Shain explained that “the admissions statistics are related to the bond rating,” and universities sell bonds to fund building projects. This creates a potential conflict of interest because institutions can decrease their cost of borrowing by inflating their applicant totals.
Today, many universities “are acting like a business” by trying to “maximize the numbers and statistics,” Shain said.
Shain also attributed today’s admissions frenzy to deans of admissions paying more attention to outside publications such as U.S. News & World Report.
The Cornell’s admissions office received 3,456 applications for early decision, a slight decrease of 4 percent from the previous year.
The University will announce regular application decisions April 1.
An estimated 36,273 students submitted applications this year — an increase of 128 applicants, or less than one percent, from last year — according to Jason Locke, director of undergraduate admissions. Previously, application totals typically increased 5 to 10 percent per year.
Locke said even though the number of applications has not increased dramatically, the fact that it has not decreased reflected high school students’ continued interest in Cornell.
“[That] Cornell has continued … to maintain its increases from the past decade speaks to the fact that prospective students and families recognize the value of a Cornell education,” Locke stated in an e-mail.
Meanwhile, many of the University’s peer institutions reported double-digit growth in application numbers.
Columbia saw a 32-percent increase in applicants this year after its admissions office switched to the Common Application. At Harvard and Dartmouth, applications rose 15 percent and 15.7 percent, respectively. The University of Pennsylvania also saw a 15-percent increase, while Yale reported a 5-percent rise.
Cornell was the last Ivy to formally announce its applicant pool total.
Although Cornell’s increase was not as much compared to other Ivies, Locke noted that the compared to other Ivies, Locke noted that the University’s selectivity rate has skyrocketed in the past decade. In 2000, Cornell received 20,199 applications, resulting in an acceptance rate of 30 percent. Since then, the number of applications has nearly doubled in the past decade, leading in part to an admission rate of 18 percent last year.
“We’ve increased the number of applications by 74 percent over the past decade,” Locke said.
Locke attributed the increase in applications during the past 10 years to the University’s “sweeping changes” on its financial aid policies. Last fall, Day Hall announced the University would match financial aid offered by other Ivies in an effort to increase the yield total.
The vast increase in applications has been a national phenomena at top schools as applicants are applying to even more colleges.
Locke said that Cornell’s applicant pool increase is correlated to the increase in the “overall number of high school graduates,” a trend that he said the media labeled a “baby boomlet.”
But according to William Shain, an educational consultant and former dean of admissions at Vanderbilt and Bowdoin, the growth in applications is not due to “the number of high school seniors increasing,” but due to the fact that students are “just applying to more schools.”
“It isn’t even necessarily anything Cornell hasn’t done … there aren’t more bodies, there are more applications per body,” Shain said.
Admissions offices are under a lot of pressure to “inflate” the applicant totals, he added, in order to increase selectivity and maintain a decent credit rating.
Shain explained that “the admissions statistics are related to the bond rating,” and universities sell bonds to fund building projects. This creates a potential conflict of interest because institutions can decrease their cost of borrowing by inflating their applicant totals.
Today, many universities “are acting like a business” by trying to “maximize the numbers and statistics,” Shain said.
Shain also attributed today’s admissions frenzy to deans of admissions paying more attention to outside publications such as U.S. News & World Report.
The Cornell’s admissions office received 3,456 applications for early decision, a slight decrease of 4 percent from the previous year.
The University will announce regular application decisions April 1.
Friday, January 21, 2011
Cornell's Early Admissions Acceptance Rate Increases to 35.2 Percent for Class of 2015
Cornell accepted 35.2 percent of early decision applicants this year, an increase of about 2 percent over last year but a decrease from previous years.
Of the 3,456 students who applied early to the University, 1,215 were accepted in mid-December, according to Interim Deputy University Spokesperson Claudia Wheatley.
Last year, Cornell accepted 1,189 students under early decision from a pool of 3,594 applicants, an admittance rate of 33.1 percent.
Early applications to Cornell for this year’s admissions cycle decreased for the first time since 2003. The University has not yet announced how many regular decision applications it received. That number will be released early next week, Wheatley said.
Cornell accepted a larger percentage of early applicants than any of its Ivy League peers who have early admission programs.
Penn accepted 26 percent of students who applied early this year. Brown and Dartmouth accepted 23 and 25 percent of early decision applicants, respectively. Yale offered admission to 14.5 percent of its early action applicants. Columbia accepted 19.6 percent of early applicants.
Harvard and Princeton ended their early admission programs in 2007.
http://cornellsun.com/section/news/content/2011/01/20/cornells-early-admissions-acceptance-rate-increases-352-percent
Of the 3,456 students who applied early to the University, 1,215 were accepted in mid-December, according to Interim Deputy University Spokesperson Claudia Wheatley.
Last year, Cornell accepted 1,189 students under early decision from a pool of 3,594 applicants, an admittance rate of 33.1 percent.
Early applications to Cornell for this year’s admissions cycle decreased for the first time since 2003. The University has not yet announced how many regular decision applications it received. That number will be released early next week, Wheatley said.
Cornell accepted a larger percentage of early applicants than any of its Ivy League peers who have early admission programs.
Penn accepted 26 percent of students who applied early this year. Brown and Dartmouth accepted 23 and 25 percent of early decision applicants, respectively. Yale offered admission to 14.5 percent of its early action applicants. Columbia accepted 19.6 percent of early applicants.
Harvard and Princeton ended their early admission programs in 2007.
http://cornellsun.com/section/news/content/2011/01/20/cornells-early-admissions-acceptance-rate-increases-352-percent
Yale sees 5 percent increase in applications for class of 2015
The number of applications to Yale College rose this year, but not as drastically as those to its peer rivals. Yale has received 27,230 applications — up more than 5 percent from the 25,869 it received last year, said Dean of Undergraduate Admissions Jeffrey Brenzel. While all the Ivy League schools, along with Stanford and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, reported increases in applicants this year, Harvard, Dartmouth and the University of Pennsylvania all experienced around 15 percent jumps.
Brenzel said year-to-year fluctuations in total applications have little meaning, and that instead of trying to increase the number of total applicants to the University, the admissions office focuses on attracting the best-qualified students. In that department, Yale is doing very well, he said.
“The scores and grades of our applicants … average the highest of any school in the country,” Brenzel said in an e-mail. “I am extremely satisfied that we are achieving our critical objectives of achieving the strongest applicant pool and the greatest access, while at the same time engaging in ethical recruiting practices.”
Last year, Harvard’s applications rose by 5 percent, Princeton’s by 19 percent, Brown’s by 20 percent, and Dartmouth’s by 4 percent. Yale’s more modest increase may indicate more about its competitors than the University itself, college counselors said. Jon Reider, college counselor at San Francisco University High School, said schools like Harvard aggressively recruit across the country in order to find a “gem in the ocean” — a qualified student who would not have known about Harvard, or its financial aid, if they had not received a mailing.
“They’re very good at finding these kids, and they spend a fortune collecting applications from everyone and their third cousin,” said Reider, adding that unfortunately, the vast majority of students who read these mailings are not qualified to attend top-tier universities like Harvard. “I don’t think this is an honorable thing to do,” he said.
Other counselors echoed Reider’s sentiments, and said Yale’s strategy is more responsible than other schools’. Beth Slattery, college counselor at Harvard-Westlake School in North Hollywood Calif., said Brenzel has been a leader in making sure not to “artificially inflate” Yale’s application number.
Brenzel said Yale has matched its competition in growing application numbers over the past 10 years.
“In terms of competitors, there are only a handful of schools — Yale, Stanford, Harvard, Princeton and MIT — that compete with one another for the most accomplished students,” he said. “Whatever the year-to-year fluctuations may be, the application growth at all five schools has shown similar strength over the past 10-year period.”
College counselors said Yale’s rise in applicants was predictable, and pointed to several University initiatives that they think are attracting more applicants.
Leonard King, director of college counseling at the Maret School in Washington D.C., said the University’s financial aid may be pulling in more applicants, especially from lower-income families. Nancy Beane, college counselor at the Westminster Schools in Atlanta, Ga., said Yale’s recent efforts to advertise its science and math programs have not gone unnoticed. University President Richard Levin pledged $500 million to the sciences in 2000, and Yale has since undertaken building projects on Science Hill, hired new professors, and invested in equipment.
“Yale has been focusing on math and science quite a bit,” Beane said. “Yale has always had really strong programs [in these areas], but now our students that might have veered towards schools more focused on science are including Yale in that list.”
Slattery said many schools’ numbers have increased because students feel their chances of getting in somewhere will be better if they apply to more places. She said this belief, which is not necessarily accurate, is especially prevalent in the demographic applying to Ivy League schools.
Since 2005, Yale, Harvard and Princeton have seen increases of 84 percent, 85 percent and 90 percent in applications received, respectively.
http://www.yaledailynews.com/news/2011/jan/21/yale-attracts-more-applicants/
Brenzel said year-to-year fluctuations in total applications have little meaning, and that instead of trying to increase the number of total applicants to the University, the admissions office focuses on attracting the best-qualified students. In that department, Yale is doing very well, he said.
“The scores and grades of our applicants … average the highest of any school in the country,” Brenzel said in an e-mail. “I am extremely satisfied that we are achieving our critical objectives of achieving the strongest applicant pool and the greatest access, while at the same time engaging in ethical recruiting practices.”
Last year, Harvard’s applications rose by 5 percent, Princeton’s by 19 percent, Brown’s by 20 percent, and Dartmouth’s by 4 percent. Yale’s more modest increase may indicate more about its competitors than the University itself, college counselors said. Jon Reider, college counselor at San Francisco University High School, said schools like Harvard aggressively recruit across the country in order to find a “gem in the ocean” — a qualified student who would not have known about Harvard, or its financial aid, if they had not received a mailing.
“They’re very good at finding these kids, and they spend a fortune collecting applications from everyone and their third cousin,” said Reider, adding that unfortunately, the vast majority of students who read these mailings are not qualified to attend top-tier universities like Harvard. “I don’t think this is an honorable thing to do,” he said.
Other counselors echoed Reider’s sentiments, and said Yale’s strategy is more responsible than other schools’. Beth Slattery, college counselor at Harvard-Westlake School in North Hollywood Calif., said Brenzel has been a leader in making sure not to “artificially inflate” Yale’s application number.
Brenzel said Yale has matched its competition in growing application numbers over the past 10 years.
“In terms of competitors, there are only a handful of schools — Yale, Stanford, Harvard, Princeton and MIT — that compete with one another for the most accomplished students,” he said. “Whatever the year-to-year fluctuations may be, the application growth at all five schools has shown similar strength over the past 10-year period.”
College counselors said Yale’s rise in applicants was predictable, and pointed to several University initiatives that they think are attracting more applicants.
Leonard King, director of college counseling at the Maret School in Washington D.C., said the University’s financial aid may be pulling in more applicants, especially from lower-income families. Nancy Beane, college counselor at the Westminster Schools in Atlanta, Ga., said Yale’s recent efforts to advertise its science and math programs have not gone unnoticed. University President Richard Levin pledged $500 million to the sciences in 2000, and Yale has since undertaken building projects on Science Hill, hired new professors, and invested in equipment.
“Yale has been focusing on math and science quite a bit,” Beane said. “Yale has always had really strong programs [in these areas], but now our students that might have veered towards schools more focused on science are including Yale in that list.”
Slattery said many schools’ numbers have increased because students feel their chances of getting in somewhere will be better if they apply to more places. She said this belief, which is not necessarily accurate, is especially prevalent in the demographic applying to Ivy League schools.
Since 2005, Yale, Harvard and Princeton have seen increases of 84 percent, 85 percent and 90 percent in applications received, respectively.
http://www.yaledailynews.com/news/2011/jan/21/yale-attracts-more-applicants/
Wednesday, January 19, 2011
Brown’s Undergraduate Applications Increase to Record 31,000 for Class of 2015
Jan. 18 (Bloomberg) -- Brown University received almost 31,000 applications for undergraduate admission for the next academic year, an all-time high and part of a 50 percent increase over three years.
The university got its highest-ever number of international applicants, about 4,800, from countries including China, Korea, India, Pakistan and Turkey, James Miller, dean of admission for the university in Providence, Rhode Island, said today in a statement. The total number of applications rose about 2.9 percent from 30,136 a year ago.
After last year’s application surge of about 20 percent, the university couldn’t accommodate assembling hundreds of boxes of paper forms in its undergraduate admissions office and was forced to open a satellite office on campus. Brown switched to an entirely electronic format, Miller said.
“We are glad to be conducting this year’s admission cycle in a more efficient, environmentally friendly, online-imaging process, which has eliminated the need for us to print, track and file more than 1 million individual pieces of paper,” Miller said in the statement.
Brown, a member of the Ivy League group of eight universities in the northeastern U.S., admitted 9 percent of applicants last year. Undergraduate tuition, room, board and fees are $51,360 for the 2010-11 school year.
About 8,400 students attend Brown, including about 6,000 undergraduates. Next year’s freshman class is expected to be about 1,485 students, Miller said.
Harvard, Columbia
Undergraduate applications to two Ivy League colleges, Harvard University and Columbia University, also rose to all- time highs, the institutions announced Jan. 14 in separate statements
Harvard, in Cambridge, Massachusetts, received almost 35,000 applications for the next academic year, a 15 percent increase from 30,489 for the current year. At Columbia, in New York, applications rose 32 percent to 34,587, from 26,179 a year earlier.
Applications at Stanford University near Palo Alto, California, climbed 6.8 percent to 34,200 from 32,022 a year ago, Bob Patterson, director of admission, said Jan. 13 in an interview.
Brown, founded in 1764, lists among its alumni Meredith Whitney, the financial analyst who heads New York-based Meredith Whitney Advisory Group, and Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal.
http://www.businessweek.com/news/2011-01-18/brown-s-undergraduate-applications-increase-to-record-31-000.html
Brown admitted 577 early decision applicants for class of 2015
Brown admitted 577 early decision applicants Dec. 13 to its class of 2015. The acceptance rate was just under 21 percent, with 2,796 applicants, according to the Office of Admission.
Academically, this year had "the strongest early decision applicant pool we've seen," said Dean of Admission Jim Miller '73.
This year's numbers are similar to last year's. Of the 2,847 students who applied early decision last year, 567 were admitted to the class of 2014, an acceptance rate of 20 percent.
Applicants have shown a slight increase in interest in the sciences over the past few years. The trend may reflect increased recruiting in the sciences and a recent increase in Brown's national recognition in the sciences, Miller said.
A combined 46 percent of students are primarily interested in the sciences, with 26 percent in the life and medical sciences and 20 percent in the physical sciences.
Thirty one percent are primarily interested in the social sciences, and 19 percent are interested in the humanities. Four percent of students are undecided, according to the Office of Admission.
Seventeen students were admitted to the Program in Liberal Medical Education, which grants students admission to Brown's Alpert Medical School pending the completion of undergraduate study at Brown.
Fifty four percent of those accepted are women, similar to last year, Miller said.
Of those admitted, 11 percent identify as Asian, nine percent as African American, seven percent as Latino and one percent as Native American. Half identify as white. Others identified as unknown or international.
International students accounted for 11 percent of those admitted and hail from 20 different countries. China, Canada, South Korea, the United Kingdom and India top the list.
Students were accepted from all but six states, the most common being New York, California, Massachusetts, New Jersey and Connecticut.
Twenty percent of those admitted are from New England, a slight decrease from last year, Miller said. Thirteen percent are from New York, and 17 percent are from the Mid-Atlantic. Nine percent are from the Midwest or Central areas of the country. Four percent hail from the Mountain or Pacific regions, and 13 percent are from California. Thirteen percent of students come from the South, an increase from last year, he said.
A majority of students — 57 percent — attended public schools. One third attended private schools, and 11 percent attended parochial schools. There are slightly more first-generation college students than last year, Miller said.
The acceptance rate for early decision applicants tends to be much higher than that for regular decision. The early decision applicant pool has a large number of recruited athletes, accounting for part of the discrepancy in admittance rates, Miller said.
"Last year's pool was the biggest early decision pool in our history," he said. The number of early decision applications last year jumped by about 20 percent from previous years. This year's was the second largest in the University's history.
The deadline for regular decision applicants is January 1, 2011.
In recent years, University officials have aimed to have incoming freshman classes with 1,485 students. The class of 2015 should be similar, Miller said. Last year, administrators said they planned to maintain the size of the incoming first-year class while increasing undergraduate enrollment, according to a campus-wide e-mail sent by President Ruth Simmons summarizing the Corporation meeting Feb. 27. The University is planning to accept more transfer students to make up the gap, she wrote in the e-mail.
For the first time, admission officials read all applications electronically. "The process went remarkably smoothly," Miller said.
Last year, due to the overwhelming number of applications, the Office of Admission had to temporarily store some applicants' files in Alumnae Hall. "Nobody's yearning for paper applications anymore," Miller said.
This year's admission cycle also marks the first with the new School of Engineering, which was approved by the Corporation in May. But Miller said the engineering school did not have much of an impact on admission.
Unlike many other engineering schools, Brown's does not have a separate admission process. Applicants apply to the College and do not have to declare a concentration until the end of sophomore year.
"We've tried to publicize the existence of the school," Miller said. "I'm hoping we'll see an uptick in engineering interests" among applicants.
http://www.browndailyherald.com/web-update-after-record-setting-year-early-acceptance-rate-steady-at-20-percent-1.2428014
Academically, this year had "the strongest early decision applicant pool we've seen," said Dean of Admission Jim Miller '73.
This year's numbers are similar to last year's. Of the 2,847 students who applied early decision last year, 567 were admitted to the class of 2014, an acceptance rate of 20 percent.
Applicants have shown a slight increase in interest in the sciences over the past few years. The trend may reflect increased recruiting in the sciences and a recent increase in Brown's national recognition in the sciences, Miller said.
A combined 46 percent of students are primarily interested in the sciences, with 26 percent in the life and medical sciences and 20 percent in the physical sciences.
Thirty one percent are primarily interested in the social sciences, and 19 percent are interested in the humanities. Four percent of students are undecided, according to the Office of Admission.
Seventeen students were admitted to the Program in Liberal Medical Education, which grants students admission to Brown's Alpert Medical School pending the completion of undergraduate study at Brown.
Fifty four percent of those accepted are women, similar to last year, Miller said.
Of those admitted, 11 percent identify as Asian, nine percent as African American, seven percent as Latino and one percent as Native American. Half identify as white. Others identified as unknown or international.
International students accounted for 11 percent of those admitted and hail from 20 different countries. China, Canada, South Korea, the United Kingdom and India top the list.
Students were accepted from all but six states, the most common being New York, California, Massachusetts, New Jersey and Connecticut.
Twenty percent of those admitted are from New England, a slight decrease from last year, Miller said. Thirteen percent are from New York, and 17 percent are from the Mid-Atlantic. Nine percent are from the Midwest or Central areas of the country. Four percent hail from the Mountain or Pacific regions, and 13 percent are from California. Thirteen percent of students come from the South, an increase from last year, he said.
A majority of students — 57 percent — attended public schools. One third attended private schools, and 11 percent attended parochial schools. There are slightly more first-generation college students than last year, Miller said.
The acceptance rate for early decision applicants tends to be much higher than that for regular decision. The early decision applicant pool has a large number of recruited athletes, accounting for part of the discrepancy in admittance rates, Miller said.
"Last year's pool was the biggest early decision pool in our history," he said. The number of early decision applications last year jumped by about 20 percent from previous years. This year's was the second largest in the University's history.
The deadline for regular decision applicants is January 1, 2011.
In recent years, University officials have aimed to have incoming freshman classes with 1,485 students. The class of 2015 should be similar, Miller said. Last year, administrators said they planned to maintain the size of the incoming first-year class while increasing undergraduate enrollment, according to a campus-wide e-mail sent by President Ruth Simmons summarizing the Corporation meeting Feb. 27. The University is planning to accept more transfer students to make up the gap, she wrote in the e-mail.
For the first time, admission officials read all applications electronically. "The process went remarkably smoothly," Miller said.
Last year, due to the overwhelming number of applications, the Office of Admission had to temporarily store some applicants' files in Alumnae Hall. "Nobody's yearning for paper applications anymore," Miller said.
This year's admission cycle also marks the first with the new School of Engineering, which was approved by the Corporation in May. But Miller said the engineering school did not have much of an impact on admission.
Unlike many other engineering schools, Brown's does not have a separate admission process. Applicants apply to the College and do not have to declare a concentration until the end of sophomore year.
"We've tried to publicize the existence of the school," Miller said. "I'm hoping we'll see an uptick in engineering interests" among applicants.
http://www.browndailyherald.com/web-update-after-record-setting-year-early-acceptance-rate-steady-at-20-percent-1.2428014
Princeton Sets Applications Record for Class of 2015
Princeton University for the seventh consecutive year has set a record for students applying for admission, receiving 27,115 applications for the class of 2015. Over the past seven years, the University's applicant pool has increased 98 percent.
The number of applicants for the class of 2015 represents a 3.3 percent increase over last year's record of 26,247 completed applications for the class of 2014, which had an applicant pool that was 19.5 percent larger than for the class of 2013.
"The depth of the applicant pool is impressive, and, as in previous years, we will have extremely difficult decisions to make in the coming weeks because of the quality of this year's applicants," Dean of Admission Janet Rapelye said. "With the increase in applications, it's clear that the University's academic excellence, students' unrivaled access to world-class faculty members and our generous financial aid policy continue to have tremendous appeal to prospective students."
The number of applicants indicating their intent to apply for financial aid through the University's no-loan financial aid program remains high. Seventy-four percent of applicants indicated to the Office of Admission their intent to apply for aid.
In 2001, Princeton became the first institution to offer a comprehensive no-loan financial aid program to all students on financial aid -- replacing loans with grants that don't have to be repaid -- giving students an opportunity to graduate debt-free. The admission process is need-blind for both domestic and international students.
"The University's financial aid program is truly committed to meeting the full need of students qualifying for aid, and students from all income backgrounds are understanding our message of affordability and accessibility," Rapelye said. "As a result, our aid program is allowing us to enroll growing numbers of students from low- and middle-income backgrounds."
While the cost of tuition for the incoming class of 2015 will be determined at the end of this month, the average aid package for a current freshman in the class of 2014 is $38,350, which more than covers the cost of this year's tuition. For a current freshman whose family's income is $60,000 or less a year, the average aid grant of $48,600 covers full tuition, room and board.
In addition to financial aid initiatives, Rapelye said enhanced recruiting efforts and the ease of applying online likely contributed to the continued rise in applications.
"We have continued our outreach efforts to prospective students and schools across the country and the world," Rapelye said. Reflecting Princeton's increased recruiting initiatives in recent years, the current freshman class includes students from 49 states and 47 countries.
For the first year, almost all of the students applied online using the Common Application with the Princeton supplement, with just 1 percent of applicants choosing to submit a paper version. More guidance counselors and high school teachers also used the Internet to submit required application materials and recommendations for students than in past years.
Of those applying for the class of 2015, the number of applicants was evenly balanced between men and women.
This was the second year that students could participate in Score Choice, a program offered by the College Board that provides students the option of submitting to universities their three best SAT scores, rather than a history of all test scores. It also was the second year that students needed to submit only two SAT subject tests rather than three. The Office of Admission made the change because the SAT writing section previously introduced by the College Board helps admission officers evaluate students. The change also recognizes research indicating that many students only take two subject tests, which allows the University to accept applications from a wider pool of students.
Applicants will be notified of admission decisions at the end of March. The University intends to enroll 1,300 freshmen in fall 2011 as part of its continued gradual expansion of the student body. Princeton began increasing the size of the entering class in 2005 to achieve an estimated 11 percent increase of undergraduate students, with the goal of enrolling a "steady state" of 5,200 students by the 2012-13 academic year.
http://www.princeton.edu/main/news/archive/S29/53/88I91/index.xml?section=topstories
The number of applicants for the class of 2015 represents a 3.3 percent increase over last year's record of 26,247 completed applications for the class of 2014, which had an applicant pool that was 19.5 percent larger than for the class of 2013.
"The depth of the applicant pool is impressive, and, as in previous years, we will have extremely difficult decisions to make in the coming weeks because of the quality of this year's applicants," Dean of Admission Janet Rapelye said. "With the increase in applications, it's clear that the University's academic excellence, students' unrivaled access to world-class faculty members and our generous financial aid policy continue to have tremendous appeal to prospective students."
The number of applicants indicating their intent to apply for financial aid through the University's no-loan financial aid program remains high. Seventy-four percent of applicants indicated to the Office of Admission their intent to apply for aid.
In 2001, Princeton became the first institution to offer a comprehensive no-loan financial aid program to all students on financial aid -- replacing loans with grants that don't have to be repaid -- giving students an opportunity to graduate debt-free. The admission process is need-blind for both domestic and international students.
"The University's financial aid program is truly committed to meeting the full need of students qualifying for aid, and students from all income backgrounds are understanding our message of affordability and accessibility," Rapelye said. "As a result, our aid program is allowing us to enroll growing numbers of students from low- and middle-income backgrounds."
While the cost of tuition for the incoming class of 2015 will be determined at the end of this month, the average aid package for a current freshman in the class of 2014 is $38,350, which more than covers the cost of this year's tuition. For a current freshman whose family's income is $60,000 or less a year, the average aid grant of $48,600 covers full tuition, room and board.
In addition to financial aid initiatives, Rapelye said enhanced recruiting efforts and the ease of applying online likely contributed to the continued rise in applications.
"We have continued our outreach efforts to prospective students and schools across the country and the world," Rapelye said. Reflecting Princeton's increased recruiting initiatives in recent years, the current freshman class includes students from 49 states and 47 countries.
For the first year, almost all of the students applied online using the Common Application with the Princeton supplement, with just 1 percent of applicants choosing to submit a paper version. More guidance counselors and high school teachers also used the Internet to submit required application materials and recommendations for students than in past years.
Of those applying for the class of 2015, the number of applicants was evenly balanced between men and women.
This was the second year that students could participate in Score Choice, a program offered by the College Board that provides students the option of submitting to universities their three best SAT scores, rather than a history of all test scores. It also was the second year that students needed to submit only two SAT subject tests rather than three. The Office of Admission made the change because the SAT writing section previously introduced by the College Board helps admission officers evaluate students. The change also recognizes research indicating that many students only take two subject tests, which allows the University to accept applications from a wider pool of students.
Applicants will be notified of admission decisions at the end of March. The University intends to enroll 1,300 freshmen in fall 2011 as part of its continued gradual expansion of the student body. Princeton began increasing the size of the entering class in 2005 to achieve an estimated 11 percent increase of undergraduate students, with the goal of enrolling a "steady state" of 5,200 students by the 2012-13 academic year.
http://www.princeton.edu/main/news/archive/S29/53/88I91/index.xml?section=topstories
Saturday, January 15, 2011
Meaning of admissions stats questioned
The annual frenzy over admissions at elite universities centers on numbers — applications received, students accepted, matriculation rate — but these statistics may not be an accurate measure of a school, especially if you ask the experts at Yale and high schools across the country.
Dean of Undergraduate Admissions Jeffrey Brenzel and four college counselors said these statistics are not the most important indicators of whether a school is competitive or popular among those it admits. Many colleges manipulate these numbers, Brenzel said, using strategies like encouraging large numbers of unqualified students to apply in order to raise application counts and lower admissions rates, or refusing admission to students they believe will not matriculate to up their yield. Despite Brenzel’s skepticism of admissions figures, high schoolers interviewed said they use them to gauge schools when applying.
Because Yale is already so selective, Brenzel said, the University’s admissions office has not pursued a strategy of soliciting more applications merely to inflate Yale’s statistics.
“We have … been able to exercise ethical restraint in conducting outreach to students of all backgrounds who are very unlikely to be offered admission here, while at the same time being very aggressive in our targeted outreach efforts,” he said. “I have been particularly happy with the increases we are seeing in applications from the most competitive minority students, low-income students, science students and international students.”
But in the eyes of students, the numbers still matter. Eight out of 10 undergraduates interviewed said they thought admissions statistics like number of applications received, admissions rate and yield reflected the quality of a college, but four college counselors interviewed agreed with Brenzel that this is not necessarily the case.
Beth Slattery from the Harvard-Westlake School in North Hollywood, Calif., and Martha Lyman from Deerfield Academy in Deerfield, Mass., said admission metrics are unreliable indicators for a number of other reasons as well.
Lyman said a lot of the additional applications to American colleges may be coming in from abroad — driving up application counts, but not necessarily increasing the selectivity of the school for applicants from the United States. If an institution has decided that it is only going to admit 10 percent of foreign students, she said, the increase in applications does not indicate a more difficult admissions process for American applicants.
Some experts believe students are simply applying to more schools each year, Slattery said, driving down matriculation rates no matter how competitive the school.
“It’s not more kids, it’s more applications,” Slattery said. “We have the same number of kids putting in more applications to more schools, as opposed to more great kids in the pool.”
Lyman and Slattery both have experience working in college admissions offices — Lyman was a member of the admissions committee at Harvard for 10 years, while Slattery was associate director of admissions at the University of Southern California.
Both said colleges and universities across the nation are feeling pressure to raise applicant count and yield.
“Administrations are always going to think that an increase [in application numbers] is a good thing,” Slattery said. “In turn, this is good for the admissions office, because the administration is happy with them.”
She said she hopes hyper-selective colleges like Yale do not feel the need to increase their application counts, because doing so would only mean turning down more students.
Lyman said she thinks even top schools like those in the Ivy League probably feel pressure to raise their application counts to compete with each other. But Brenzel said he has not felt the need to drive Yale’s application numbers up.
“I am not under that pressure here at Yale, largely because our applicant pool is already so strong and Yale is so well-known and regarded,” he said. “We are [already] forced to turn away thousands more heavily qualified students than we can admit.”
But high school seniors and Yale undergraduates said admissions numbers are one of the tools available to them for judging Yale and its peers.
Senem Çilingiroglu ’13 said Yale needs to keeps its selectivity high to maintain its prestige.
“If you don’t tell people that you’re not admitting 90 percent of your applicants, how can you remain an elite school?” she said. “These numbers make Yale seem more exclusive and more attractive.”
Amina Edwards, a senior at the Winsor School in Boston, Mass., who was accepted early to Yale, said Yale’s low admission rate made her nervous about her chances of getting in, but also enhanced her interest in the University. She said Yale’s selectivity confirmed for her that Yale was a school she wanted to attend.
Three out of the four college counselors interviewed also said students were more likely to apply to schools with higher application counts, lower admission rates and higher yields.
“There is a strange psychology that the harder it is to get into a school, the better it must be,” said Jane Horn, director of college counseling at Kent Denver School in Engelwood, Colo.
King and Sarah Swong, a senior at the Horace Mann School in the Bronx who was accepted early to Yale, said admissions metrics affect public perception of colleges indirectly, because they influence the rankings schools receive in U.S. News and World Report.
According to the U.S. News and World Report website, however, “student selectivity” only accounts for 15 percent of their annual rankings, and the acceptance rate (ratio of students admitted to applicants) makes up only 10 percent of the “student selectivity” category.
http://www.yaledailynews.com/news/2011/jan/14/meaning-of-admissions-stats-questioned/
Dean of Undergraduate Admissions Jeffrey Brenzel and four college counselors said these statistics are not the most important indicators of whether a school is competitive or popular among those it admits. Many colleges manipulate these numbers, Brenzel said, using strategies like encouraging large numbers of unqualified students to apply in order to raise application counts and lower admissions rates, or refusing admission to students they believe will not matriculate to up their yield. Despite Brenzel’s skepticism of admissions figures, high schoolers interviewed said they use them to gauge schools when applying.
Because Yale is already so selective, Brenzel said, the University’s admissions office has not pursued a strategy of soliciting more applications merely to inflate Yale’s statistics.
“We have … been able to exercise ethical restraint in conducting outreach to students of all backgrounds who are very unlikely to be offered admission here, while at the same time being very aggressive in our targeted outreach efforts,” he said. “I have been particularly happy with the increases we are seeing in applications from the most competitive minority students, low-income students, science students and international students.”
But in the eyes of students, the numbers still matter. Eight out of 10 undergraduates interviewed said they thought admissions statistics like number of applications received, admissions rate and yield reflected the quality of a college, but four college counselors interviewed agreed with Brenzel that this is not necessarily the case.
Beth Slattery from the Harvard-Westlake School in North Hollywood, Calif., and Martha Lyman from Deerfield Academy in Deerfield, Mass., said admission metrics are unreliable indicators for a number of other reasons as well.
Lyman said a lot of the additional applications to American colleges may be coming in from abroad — driving up application counts, but not necessarily increasing the selectivity of the school for applicants from the United States. If an institution has decided that it is only going to admit 10 percent of foreign students, she said, the increase in applications does not indicate a more difficult admissions process for American applicants.
Some experts believe students are simply applying to more schools each year, Slattery said, driving down matriculation rates no matter how competitive the school.
“It’s not more kids, it’s more applications,” Slattery said. “We have the same number of kids putting in more applications to more schools, as opposed to more great kids in the pool.”
Lyman and Slattery both have experience working in college admissions offices — Lyman was a member of the admissions committee at Harvard for 10 years, while Slattery was associate director of admissions at the University of Southern California.
Both said colleges and universities across the nation are feeling pressure to raise applicant count and yield.
“Administrations are always going to think that an increase [in application numbers] is a good thing,” Slattery said. “In turn, this is good for the admissions office, because the administration is happy with them.”
She said she hopes hyper-selective colleges like Yale do not feel the need to increase their application counts, because doing so would only mean turning down more students.
Lyman said she thinks even top schools like those in the Ivy League probably feel pressure to raise their application counts to compete with each other. But Brenzel said he has not felt the need to drive Yale’s application numbers up.
“I am not under that pressure here at Yale, largely because our applicant pool is already so strong and Yale is so well-known and regarded,” he said. “We are [already] forced to turn away thousands more heavily qualified students than we can admit.”
But high school seniors and Yale undergraduates said admissions numbers are one of the tools available to them for judging Yale and its peers.
Senem Çilingiroglu ’13 said Yale needs to keeps its selectivity high to maintain its prestige.
“If you don’t tell people that you’re not admitting 90 percent of your applicants, how can you remain an elite school?” she said. “These numbers make Yale seem more exclusive and more attractive.”
Amina Edwards, a senior at the Winsor School in Boston, Mass., who was accepted early to Yale, said Yale’s low admission rate made her nervous about her chances of getting in, but also enhanced her interest in the University. She said Yale’s selectivity confirmed for her that Yale was a school she wanted to attend.
Three out of the four college counselors interviewed also said students were more likely to apply to schools with higher application counts, lower admission rates and higher yields.
“There is a strange psychology that the harder it is to get into a school, the better it must be,” said Jane Horn, director of college counseling at Kent Denver School in Engelwood, Colo.
King and Sarah Swong, a senior at the Horace Mann School in the Bronx who was accepted early to Yale, said admissions metrics affect public perception of colleges indirectly, because they influence the rankings schools receive in U.S. News and World Report.
According to the U.S. News and World Report website, however, “student selectivity” only accounts for 15 percent of their annual rankings, and the acceptance rate (ratio of students admitted to applicants) makes up only 10 percent of the “student selectivity” category.
http://www.yaledailynews.com/news/2011/jan/14/meaning-of-admissions-stats-questioned/
Friday, January 14, 2011
Dartmouth College, University of Chicago Get Record Undergrad Applications for Class of 2015
Dartmouth College and the University of Chicago reported all-time highs in undergraduate applications for admission, joining at least four other U.S. colleges in setting records.
Dartmouth’s total for the next academic year rose 16 percent to more than 21,700, from 18,778 a year earlier, Maria Laskaris, dean of admissions and financial aid, said today in a statement. Chicago’s total increased 12 percent to 21,669, from 19,374 a year earlier, according to a separate announcement.
More students are seeking to win spots in Dartmouth’s freshman class because of the university’s financial-aid program, Laskaris said. The cost to attend Dartmouth, in Hanover, New Hampshire, for the current academic year is $52,275, consisting of tuition, fees, room and board.
“Special financial-aid initiatives for students from families with incomes below $75,000, including free tuition and no loans, ensure that a Dartmouth education is truly accessible to all students, regardless of their families’ ability to pay,” Laskaris said in the statement.
Last year, Dartmouth admitted 12 percent of applicants. Even with low admission rates, students are applying to more of the most-selective colleges because the teenagers feel they have nothing to lose, said Bob Sweeney, a college counselor at Mamaroneck High School in Mamaroneck, New York. The Common Application, a form that can be submitted to multiple schools, makes the process easier.
Losing Sight
“The students see themselves in the context of their own school as being successful, and strong students will at least say ‘I’m going to try,’” Sweeney, a counselor for 24 years, said today in a telephone interview. “They don’t want to go through life wondering. They lose sight of the fact of just how competitive it is.”
About 6,100 undergraduate and graduate students attend Dartmouth, a member of the Ivy League of eight universities in the northeastern U.S.
Dartmouth, founded in 1769, counts among its alumni U.S. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner, former U.S. Treasury Secretary Henry M. Paulson Jr., and Jeffrey Immelt, chairman and chief executive officer of Fairfield, Connecticut-based General Electric Co.
Undergraduate applications to the University of Chicago surged 43 percent last year, after the college conducted a marketing campaign, increasing mailings that emphasized arts opportunities and access to scientific research. This year’s growth also is attributed to a new focus on having alumni promote the school, said James Nondorf, vice president and dean of college admissions and financial aid.
Love for Institution
“Our admissions efforts are fueled by current students and alumni who are steeped in the university’s traditions and genuinely love the institution,” Nondorf said in the university’s statement.
About 15,000 students, including 5,100 undergraduates, attend the university, located on the city of Chicago’s south side.
Alumni of the institution, founded in 1890, include the novelist Philip Roth and Jon Corzine, former governor of New Jersey and now chairman and chief executive officer of New York- based MF Global Holdings Ltd. President Barack Obama taught constitutional law at the university.
The University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia, a member of the Ivy League, had an all-time high of 30,800 applications, the university said on Jan. 6. Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois; Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Cambridge; and Duke University in Durham, North Carolina, also announced record numbers of undergraduate applications, according to statements this month.
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-01-11/university-of-chicago-gets-21-669-undergraduate-applications.html
Dartmouth’s total for the next academic year rose 16 percent to more than 21,700, from 18,778 a year earlier, Maria Laskaris, dean of admissions and financial aid, said today in a statement. Chicago’s total increased 12 percent to 21,669, from 19,374 a year earlier, according to a separate announcement.
More students are seeking to win spots in Dartmouth’s freshman class because of the university’s financial-aid program, Laskaris said. The cost to attend Dartmouth, in Hanover, New Hampshire, for the current academic year is $52,275, consisting of tuition, fees, room and board.
“Special financial-aid initiatives for students from families with incomes below $75,000, including free tuition and no loans, ensure that a Dartmouth education is truly accessible to all students, regardless of their families’ ability to pay,” Laskaris said in the statement.
Last year, Dartmouth admitted 12 percent of applicants. Even with low admission rates, students are applying to more of the most-selective colleges because the teenagers feel they have nothing to lose, said Bob Sweeney, a college counselor at Mamaroneck High School in Mamaroneck, New York. The Common Application, a form that can be submitted to multiple schools, makes the process easier.
Losing Sight
“The students see themselves in the context of their own school as being successful, and strong students will at least say ‘I’m going to try,’” Sweeney, a counselor for 24 years, said today in a telephone interview. “They don’t want to go through life wondering. They lose sight of the fact of just how competitive it is.”
About 6,100 undergraduate and graduate students attend Dartmouth, a member of the Ivy League of eight universities in the northeastern U.S.
Dartmouth, founded in 1769, counts among its alumni U.S. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner, former U.S. Treasury Secretary Henry M. Paulson Jr., and Jeffrey Immelt, chairman and chief executive officer of Fairfield, Connecticut-based General Electric Co.
Undergraduate applications to the University of Chicago surged 43 percent last year, after the college conducted a marketing campaign, increasing mailings that emphasized arts opportunities and access to scientific research. This year’s growth also is attributed to a new focus on having alumni promote the school, said James Nondorf, vice president and dean of college admissions and financial aid.
Love for Institution
“Our admissions efforts are fueled by current students and alumni who are steeped in the university’s traditions and genuinely love the institution,” Nondorf said in the university’s statement.
About 15,000 students, including 5,100 undergraduates, attend the university, located on the city of Chicago’s south side.
Alumni of the institution, founded in 1890, include the novelist Philip Roth and Jon Corzine, former governor of New Jersey and now chairman and chief executive officer of New York- based MF Global Holdings Ltd. President Barack Obama taught constitutional law at the university.
The University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia, a member of the Ivy League, had an all-time high of 30,800 applications, the university said on Jan. 6. Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois; Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Cambridge; and Duke University in Durham, North Carolina, also announced record numbers of undergraduate applications, according to statements this month.
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-01-11/university-of-chicago-gets-21-669-undergraduate-applications.html
Harvard Admission Sought by Record Number of Students for class of 2015
Applications for undergraduate admissions to Harvard University and Columbia University rose to all-time highs, making it harder than ever before to get into the colleges.
Harvard, in Cambridge, Massachusetts, received almost 35,000 applications for the next academic year, a 15 percent increase from 30,489 for the current year, William Fitzsimmons, dean of undergraduate admissions and financial aid, said today in a statement. Applications to Columbia, in New York, rose 32 percent to a 34,587, from 26,179 a year earlier, according to a statement today.
Harvard admitted 6.9 percent of applicants last year, and Columbia 9 percent. The most-selective colleges are setting application records because students are seeking a chance at “the luxury brands of higher education,” said David Hawkins, director of public policy and research at the National Association for College Admission Counseling in Arlington, Virginia.
“If you want to be seen in a Mercedes, you have to go buy one,” Hawkins said in an interview. “If you want to be seen as a Harvard student, you pay the application fee and take your chance. As more students are performing better academically in high school, they are taking their shots.” Harvard is the richest university in the U.S., with an endowment of $27.4 billion last June 30. It is a member of the Ivy League, a group of eight universities in the northeast U.S.
Applications Surged 7 Percent at Stanford for the Class of 2015
Applications for the fall freshman class set a record as approximately 34,200 high school students applied for admission to Stanford.
The number of applicants for the Class of 2015 represents a 7 percent increase over last year, when more than 32,000 students applied for admission.
Stanford will notify students who applied under the regular admission program of its decision by the end of March.
The number of applicants includes those who applied through Stanford's regular and restrictive early action programs.
In mid-December, Stanford sent acceptance letters to 754 early applicants to the Class of 2015. The number of students seeking admission under the restrictive early action program – 5,929 applicants – also was the highest in the university's history.
Students admitted under both programs have until May 1 to reply.
http://news.stanford.edu/news/2011/january/record-undergrad-applicants-011311.html
The number of applicants for the Class of 2015 represents a 7 percent increase over last year, when more than 32,000 students applied for admission.
Stanford will notify students who applied under the regular admission program of its decision by the end of March.
The number of applicants includes those who applied through Stanford's regular and restrictive early action programs.
In mid-December, Stanford sent acceptance letters to 754 early applicants to the Class of 2015. The number of students seeking admission under the restrictive early action program – 5,929 applicants – also was the highest in the university's history.
Students admitted under both programs have until May 1 to reply.
http://news.stanford.edu/news/2011/january/record-undergrad-applicants-011311.html
Wednesday, January 12, 2011
Memo To Brown, Cornell And MIT Grads: You're Not Good Enough
Think your Brown, Cornell or MIT degree carries weight in the professional world? Think again.
According to a forthcoming paper written by Northwestern assistant professor Lauren Rivera, recruiters at top law firms, consulting agencies and investment banks are interested only in students who attended Harvard, Yale, Princeton, Stanford and the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania. Columbia grads might make the cut, but some recruiters told Rivera that they consider the school to be "second-tier" or "just okay," the Chronicle of Higher Education reports.
And MIT grads don't stand a chance. According to the Chronicle, one eminent consultant told Rivera:
The Chronicle acknowledges that some firms might be forced to take on these tactics due to the high volume of applications they receive, and assuming that admissions officers have done the legwork in selecting promising individuals may be a defensible stance for recruiters. But the practice leaves most outsiders uncomfortable, and led the Chronicle to question its ethics efficacy and Business Insider to recommend that graduates start their own companies.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/01/11/for-top-employers-brown-c_n_807566.html
According to a forthcoming paper written by Northwestern assistant professor Lauren Rivera, recruiters at top law firms, consulting agencies and investment banks are interested only in students who attended Harvard, Yale, Princeton, Stanford and the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania. Columbia grads might make the cut, but some recruiters told Rivera that they consider the school to be "second-tier" or "just okay," the Chronicle of Higher Education reports.
And MIT grads don't stand a chance. According to the Chronicle, one eminent consultant told Rivera:
You will find it when you go to like career fairs or something and you know someone will show up and say, you know, "Hey, I didn't go to HBS [Harvard Business School] but, you know, I am an engineer at M.I.T. and I heard about this fair and I wanted to come meet you in New York." God bless him for the effort but, you know, it's just not going to work.Rivera found that while recruiters don't particularly care about the quality of applicants' academic records, they do care about extracurricular activities -- but only as long as the applicant graduated from one of the select five schools. And from there, headhunters attempt to filter out "tool[s]" and "bookworm[s]" by targeting those with stellar recreational resumes (crew looks good, ping pong does not).
The Chronicle acknowledges that some firms might be forced to take on these tactics due to the high volume of applications they receive, and assuming that admissions officers have done the legwork in selecting promising individuals may be a defensible stance for recruiters. But the practice leaves most outsiders uncomfortable, and led the Chronicle to question its ethics efficacy and Business Insider to recommend that graduates start their own companies.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/01/11/for-top-employers-brown-c_n_807566.html
Saturday, January 8, 2011
MIT Admitted 772 Early Action Applicants and Received over 17800 Applications Overall for Class of 2015
This year was our biggest Early Action cycle ever. We received just over 6400 applications during Early Action, and we admitted 772 students - both record highs. And while it is impossible to know at this time exactly how many complete applications we will receive during Regular Action, we expect the final total (Early + Regular) to exceed 17,800!
http://www.mitadmissions.org/topics/apply/the_selection_process_application_reading_committee_and_decisions/admissions_bulletin_ra_news_ea.shtml
http://www.mitadmissions.org/topics/apply/the_selection_process_application_reading_committee_and_decisions/admissions_bulletin_ra_news_ea.shtml
Friday, January 7, 2011
Andrew Luck staying at Stanford
Stanford quarterback Andrew Luck, the odds-on favorite to be the No. 1 pick in this spring's NFL draft, announced Thursday he will stay in school and play his redshirt junior season.
"I am committed to earning my degree in architectural design from Stanford University and am on track to accomplish this at the completion of the spring quarter of 2012," Luck said in a statement.
The school announced Luck wouldn't be made available for comment.
His father, former NFL quarterback Oliver Luck, said: "This is a win-win for him. He gets to spend another year at Stanford, be part of a team that will be highly ranked again next year, finish his degree and enjoy Palo Alto.
"It's not like the NFL is going anywhere, it's one of the best run leagues in the world. It will still be there when he graduates."
The Carolina Panthers own the No. 1 pick in the NFL draft and indicated earlier this week that they would be interested in drafting Luck if he decided to leave school.
Luck's father, who's also the athletic director at West Virginia, said the possibility of an NFL lockout or being selected by the Panthers did not influence his son's decision.
"Call him old school," Oliver Luck said. "He comes from a faction of people who believe you go to college to pursue your degree."
Luck consulted with the Colts' Peyton Manning and the Rams' Sam Bradford before making the decision, ESPN college football analyst Rodney Gilmore reported. Both quarterbacks made similar choices to stay in school.
Luck's decision to stay at Stanford comes as coach Jim Harbaugh is being wooed by NFL teams for a possible job. Harbaugh met Wednesday with officials with the San Francisco 49ers.
He met with Miami Dolphins owner Stephen Ross on Thursday in the Bay Area, two people with knowledge of the situation said. ESPN's Chris Mortensen reported late Thursday that the Dolphins will retain head coach Tony Sparano, according to sources.
New Denver Broncos chief football executive John Elway has said he hopes to interview Harbaugh for their job.
It's unclear whether Luck's decision to stay in school will impact Harbaugh's decision to leave for an NFL job this year. If Harbaugh does leave Stanford, the opportunity to coach Luck next season will likely make Stanford a plum assignment.
Luck was the runner-up this season to Auburn's Cam Newton for the Heisman Trophy and will now be one of the favorites for next year's award.
Luck was widely considered the top draft prospect after two spectacular years at Stanford. His decision will be a blow to the Panthers, who have the No. 1 pick in April's draft and are looking for a quarterback.
Luck capped this season by completing 18 of 23 passes for 287 yards and four touchdowns in the fifth-ranked Cardinal's 40-12 victory over No. 12 Virginia Tech in the Orange Bowl on Monday night.
That helped Stanford (12-1) extend its school record for wins in a season and has the Cardinal poised to finish in the top five of the AP poll for the first time since the unbeaten 1940 team finished No. 2.
Luck is a major reason why Stanford has gone from a one-win team in 2006 before Harbaugh arrived to one of the top teams in the country. He has led Stanford to a 20-5 record in his 25 career starts, missing only last season's Sun Bowl loss to Oklahoma with a broken right index finger.
One of Luck's teammates who won't be back is linebacker Thomas Keiser, who told the Cardinal he intends to forgo his final year of eligibility to enter the draft. He started all 13 games this season and finished with 38 tackles and nine sacks.
Luck has completed 64.4 percent of his passes for 5,913 yards, 45 touchdowns and 12 interceptions in his career. He has also rushed for 807 yards and five scores. That athleticism, along with his strong, accurate arm and on-field poise, has had NFL scouts salivating at his potential as a pro.
Harbaugh, a former star quarterback at Michigan and in the NFL, has called Luck the greatest player he has ever been around.
Luck set school records for TD passes (32), completion percentage (70.7 percent) and passing efficiency (170.2) this season. He is already being mentioned alongside John Elway, Jim Plunkett, John Brodie and Frankie Albert as one of Stanford's great quarterbacks.
http://sports.espn.go.com/ncf/news/story?id=5995754
"I am committed to earning my degree in architectural design from Stanford University and am on track to accomplish this at the completion of the spring quarter of 2012," Luck said in a statement.
The school announced Luck wouldn't be made available for comment.
His father, former NFL quarterback Oliver Luck, said: "This is a win-win for him. He gets to spend another year at Stanford, be part of a team that will be highly ranked again next year, finish his degree and enjoy Palo Alto.
"It's not like the NFL is going anywhere, it's one of the best run leagues in the world. It will still be there when he graduates."
The Carolina Panthers own the No. 1 pick in the NFL draft and indicated earlier this week that they would be interested in drafting Luck if he decided to leave school.
Luck's father, who's also the athletic director at West Virginia, said the possibility of an NFL lockout or being selected by the Panthers did not influence his son's decision.
"Call him old school," Oliver Luck said. "He comes from a faction of people who believe you go to college to pursue your degree."
Luck consulted with the Colts' Peyton Manning and the Rams' Sam Bradford before making the decision, ESPN college football analyst Rodney Gilmore reported. Both quarterbacks made similar choices to stay in school.
Luck's decision to stay at Stanford comes as coach Jim Harbaugh is being wooed by NFL teams for a possible job. Harbaugh met Wednesday with officials with the San Francisco 49ers.
He met with Miami Dolphins owner Stephen Ross on Thursday in the Bay Area, two people with knowledge of the situation said. ESPN's Chris Mortensen reported late Thursday that the Dolphins will retain head coach Tony Sparano, according to sources.
New Denver Broncos chief football executive John Elway has said he hopes to interview Harbaugh for their job.
It's unclear whether Luck's decision to stay in school will impact Harbaugh's decision to leave for an NFL job this year. If Harbaugh does leave Stanford, the opportunity to coach Luck next season will likely make Stanford a plum assignment.
Luck was the runner-up this season to Auburn's Cam Newton for the Heisman Trophy and will now be one of the favorites for next year's award.
Luck was widely considered the top draft prospect after two spectacular years at Stanford. His decision will be a blow to the Panthers, who have the No. 1 pick in April's draft and are looking for a quarterback.
Luck capped this season by completing 18 of 23 passes for 287 yards and four touchdowns in the fifth-ranked Cardinal's 40-12 victory over No. 12 Virginia Tech in the Orange Bowl on Monday night.
That helped Stanford (12-1) extend its school record for wins in a season and has the Cardinal poised to finish in the top five of the AP poll for the first time since the unbeaten 1940 team finished No. 2.
Luck is a major reason why Stanford has gone from a one-win team in 2006 before Harbaugh arrived to one of the top teams in the country. He has led Stanford to a 20-5 record in his 25 career starts, missing only last season's Sun Bowl loss to Oklahoma with a broken right index finger.
One of Luck's teammates who won't be back is linebacker Thomas Keiser, who told the Cardinal he intends to forgo his final year of eligibility to enter the draft. He started all 13 games this season and finished with 38 tackles and nine sacks.
Luck has completed 64.4 percent of his passes for 5,913 yards, 45 touchdowns and 12 interceptions in his career. He has also rushed for 807 yards and five scores. That athleticism, along with his strong, accurate arm and on-field poise, has had NFL scouts salivating at his potential as a pro.
Harbaugh, a former star quarterback at Michigan and in the NFL, has called Luck the greatest player he has ever been around.
Luck set school records for TD passes (32), completion percentage (70.7 percent) and passing efficiency (170.2) this season. He is already being mentioned alongside John Elway, Jim Plunkett, John Brodie and Frankie Albert as one of Stanford's great quarterbacks.
http://sports.espn.go.com/ncf/news/story?id=5995754
Total Applications Rise 14 Percent at Penn for Class of 2015
Competition for a place in Penn’s class of 2015 is on the rise.
Penn saw a 14-percent increase in applications for the class of 2015 compared to last year, according to the Admissions Office, resulting in the highest number of applicants in University history.
The University received 30,800 regular-decision applications this year — a significant rise from the 26,800 for the class of 2014.
“We believe that one of the primary reasons for this significant increase is Penn’s no-loan financial aid policies, which enable students who quality for aid to graduate free of debt,” Dean of Admissions Eric Furda said.
The number of applications from residents of the southeastern United States and parts of the Midwest increased over 20 percent, according to Furda. He noted that California continues to be the top state for applicants, with a 15-percent increase in applicants this cycle.
This year, Penn will partner for the second time with The Posse Foundation, a nationwide college admittance and leadership training organization.
Eleven Posse Scholars from public schools in Miami Dade County, Fla. will matriculate at Penn this fall as a “posse”.
Penn has also selected its third class of QuestBridge National College Match Scholars to the University. Seventeen high-ability students from low socio-economic backgrounds will receive full, four-year scholarships to Penn.
Regular decision results will be released on Mar. 30.
http://www.dailypennsylvanian.com/article/total-applications-rise-14-percent
Penn saw a 14-percent increase in applications for the class of 2015 compared to last year, according to the Admissions Office, resulting in the highest number of applicants in University history.
The University received 30,800 regular-decision applications this year — a significant rise from the 26,800 for the class of 2014.
“We believe that one of the primary reasons for this significant increase is Penn’s no-loan financial aid policies, which enable students who quality for aid to graduate free of debt,” Dean of Admissions Eric Furda said.
The number of applications from residents of the southeastern United States and parts of the Midwest increased over 20 percent, according to Furda. He noted that California continues to be the top state for applicants, with a 15-percent increase in applicants this cycle.
This year, Penn will partner for the second time with The Posse Foundation, a nationwide college admittance and leadership training organization.
Eleven Posse Scholars from public schools in Miami Dade County, Fla. will matriculate at Penn this fall as a “posse”.
Penn has also selected its third class of QuestBridge National College Match Scholars to the University. Seventeen high-ability students from low socio-economic backgrounds will receive full, four-year scholarships to Penn.
Regular decision results will be released on Mar. 30.
http://www.dailypennsylvanian.com/article/total-applications-rise-14-percent
Record Number of Students Apply to Duke for Class of 2015
DURHAM, N.C. -- More than 29,500 high school seniors have submitted applications for admission to Duke University this year, eclipsing last year's record by 10 percent, or more than 2,700 applications.
This marks the fourth year in a row in which the number of applications has set a record. Last year, the school received 26,770 applications for admission, which at the time was a 12 percent increase over the previous record. The number of applicants to Duke has increased by 54 percent -- more than 9,000 applications -- in the last three years alone.
"We're gratified by the interest we're seeing nationwide and worldwide in Duke," Dean of Undergraduate Admissions Christoph Guttentag said. "We're also humbled; these are exceptional young women and men, and our challenge will be to understand which ones, individually and as a group, will represent the best match for Duke.
"We're also pleased that in spite of the economy, families are responding to our commitment to make Duke affordable. More than 60 percent of our applicants indicate that they will be applying for need-based financial aid."
Duke is one of a limited number of schools with a "need-blind" admissions policy, which means that all qualified U.S. citizens and legal permanent residents are accepted regardless of their ability to pay for college. Duke guarantees it will meet 100 percent of demonstrated financial need. In recent years, Duke has significantly enhanced its financial aid program to assist lower- and middle-income families by reducing expected family contributions and loans. (For more information about Duke's financial aid program, see http://dukefinancialaid.duke.edu/.)
The current number of high school seniors applying to be part of Duke's Class of 2015 is 29,526. Of that number, 24,307 have applied to the Trinity College of Arts & Sciences (a 10.8 percent increase over last year), while 5,219 have applied to the Pratt School of Engineering (a 7.7 percent increase). The final number of applicants is expected to increase slightly as applications submitted by mail are received.
California again provided the largest number of applicants, with New York second and North Carolina a close third. The greatest growth among applicants in recent years has been among students from the West Coast and from overseas.
The applicant pool is fairly evenly divided between males and females. Among students of color, the greatest increases were among Latino students and students of Asian descent. Admissions decisions will be made available to applicants online in early April.
In November, more than 2,200 students -- a 14 percent increase from the previous year -- applied to Duke through the Early Decision process and 645 students were admitted, both of which were also record numbers. The increased number of Early Decision acceptances means there will be fewer spots available for Regular Decision applicants -- those applying will be vying for about 1,060 spaces in the Class of 2014.
Guttentag expects the incoming class to have about 1,700 students.
"We already know this is going to be an exceptional class," Guttentag said. "Among the Early Decisions students who have committed Duke are a student who has run the Sunrise to Sunset trail marathon in Mongolia, the principal cellist of the National Youth Orchestra of Peru, a page in the U.S. House of Representatives, a decorated United States Marine who has served in Iraq and Afghanistan, the owner of a sheep-shearing business and co-founders of a social network group communications platform.
"We know that the students we enroll from our Regular Decision pool will be equally as talented and interesting."
http://www.dukenews.duke.edu/2011/01/regular_decision.html
This marks the fourth year in a row in which the number of applications has set a record. Last year, the school received 26,770 applications for admission, which at the time was a 12 percent increase over the previous record. The number of applicants to Duke has increased by 54 percent -- more than 9,000 applications -- in the last three years alone.
"We're gratified by the interest we're seeing nationwide and worldwide in Duke," Dean of Undergraduate Admissions Christoph Guttentag said. "We're also humbled; these are exceptional young women and men, and our challenge will be to understand which ones, individually and as a group, will represent the best match for Duke.
"We're also pleased that in spite of the economy, families are responding to our commitment to make Duke affordable. More than 60 percent of our applicants indicate that they will be applying for need-based financial aid."
Duke is one of a limited number of schools with a "need-blind" admissions policy, which means that all qualified U.S. citizens and legal permanent residents are accepted regardless of their ability to pay for college. Duke guarantees it will meet 100 percent of demonstrated financial need. In recent years, Duke has significantly enhanced its financial aid program to assist lower- and middle-income families by reducing expected family contributions and loans. (For more information about Duke's financial aid program, see http://dukefinancialaid.duke.edu/.)
The current number of high school seniors applying to be part of Duke's Class of 2015 is 29,526. Of that number, 24,307 have applied to the Trinity College of Arts & Sciences (a 10.8 percent increase over last year), while 5,219 have applied to the Pratt School of Engineering (a 7.7 percent increase). The final number of applicants is expected to increase slightly as applications submitted by mail are received.
California again provided the largest number of applicants, with New York second and North Carolina a close third. The greatest growth among applicants in recent years has been among students from the West Coast and from overseas.
The applicant pool is fairly evenly divided between males and females. Among students of color, the greatest increases were among Latino students and students of Asian descent. Admissions decisions will be made available to applicants online in early April.
In November, more than 2,200 students -- a 14 percent increase from the previous year -- applied to Duke through the Early Decision process and 645 students were admitted, both of which were also record numbers. The increased number of Early Decision acceptances means there will be fewer spots available for Regular Decision applicants -- those applying will be vying for about 1,060 spaces in the Class of 2014.
Guttentag expects the incoming class to have about 1,700 students.
"We already know this is going to be an exceptional class," Guttentag said. "Among the Early Decisions students who have committed Duke are a student who has run the Sunrise to Sunset trail marathon in Mongolia, the principal cellist of the National Youth Orchestra of Peru, a page in the U.S. House of Representatives, a decorated United States Marine who has served in Iraq and Afghanistan, the owner of a sheep-shearing business and co-founders of a social network group communications platform.
"We know that the students we enroll from our Regular Decision pool will be equally as talented and interesting."
http://www.dukenews.duke.edu/2011/01/regular_decision.html
Friday, December 24, 2010
Columbia Accepted 632 of All Early Decision Applications for Class of 2015
Undergraduate Admissions this year accepted a record-low 19.6 percent of all Early Decision applications, down from last year’s admissions rate of 21.2 percent.
The total number of applications received for early consideration increased 7.2 percent from last year. Of the record 3,229 students who applied for early admission to the Columbia Class of 2015, 632 students were accepted. In addition, 696 students will be deferred to the regular admissions process. 1,901 applicants—59 percent of the total applicant pool—were rejected.
Jessica Marinaccio, Dean of Undergraduate Admissions said in a statement:
http://spectrum.columbiaspectator.com/spectrum/columbia-announces-early-admission-statistics
The total number of applications received for early consideration increased 7.2 percent from last year. Of the record 3,229 students who applied for early admission to the Columbia Class of 2015, 632 students were accepted. In addition, 696 students will be deferred to the regular admissions process. 1,901 applicants—59 percent of the total applicant pool—were rejected.
Jessica Marinaccio, Dean of Undergraduate Admissions said in a statement:
“The largest number of Early Decision candidates in our history applied to Columbia College and Columbia Engineering this year, resulting in an 8% overall increase in applications. This is the first cohort who applied to Columbia using The Common Application and Columbia Supplement, and we were thrilled to provide even greater access to students from a variety of backgrounds. From towns of 600 people in the Midwest to large cities in the Middle East; from students who are the first in their families to go to college to students who will be the third generation in their families to attend Columbia; from students who grew up blocks from Columbia’s campus to students who have never been to New York City before – students are joining us from every corner of the world.”
http://spectrum.columbiaspectator.com/spectrum/columbia-announces-early-admission-statistics
Thursday, December 23, 2010
Geographic Distribution of Yale's Early Admits for Class of 2015
State, Number of admits
Alabama, 1
Alaska ,1
Arizona, 5
Arkansas, 2
California, 87
Colorado, 3
Connecticut ,46
Delaware, 1
District of Columbia, 8
Florida, 37
Georgia, 8
Hawaii, 6
Idaho, 2
Illinois, 48
Indiana ,7
Iowa, 1
Kansas, 7
Kentucky, 4
Louisiana ,2
Maine, 1
Maryland, 27
Massachusetts, 43
Michigan, 14
Minnesota, 9
Mississippi, 2
Missouri, 9
Montana, 2
New Hampshire, 4
New Jersey, 60
New Mexico, 1
New York, 107
North Carolina, 8
Ohio, 10
Oklahoma ,2
Oregon, 6
Pennsylvania, 28
Puerto Rico, 1
Rhode Island, 3
South Carolina, 6
Tennessee, 8
Texas, 33
Utah, 1
Vermont, 3
Virginia, 19
Washington, 13
West Virginia, 1
Wisconsin, 6
Australia, 1
Belgium, 1
Bosnia and Herzegovina, 1
Brazil, 2
Burma, 1
Canada, 7
China 4
Czech Republic, 1
Ethiopia, 1
France, 2
Georgia, 1
Germany, 1
Ghana, 1
Greece, 1
Hong Kong S.A.R., 4
India , 4
Israel , 1
Japan, 2
Jordan, 1
Kenya, 1
Korea, South, 2
Pakistan, 2
Peru, 1
Philippines, 1
Qatar, 1
Singapore, 6
South Africa, 2
Spain, 1
Thailand, 2
Turkey, 2
United Arab Emirates, 1
United Kingdom, 12
Venezuela, 1
Vietnam, 1
Zimbabwe, 1
Note: it seems that they admitted 778 instead of 761 for the early around. I may have miscounted some, but I double checked the major states. The difference could also indicate that 17 admits from last year will enroll this year.
Alabama, 1
Alaska ,1
Arizona, 5
Arkansas, 2
California, 87
Colorado, 3
Connecticut ,46
Delaware, 1
District of Columbia, 8
Florida, 37
Georgia, 8
Hawaii, 6
Idaho, 2
Illinois, 48
Indiana ,7
Iowa, 1
Kansas, 7
Kentucky, 4
Louisiana ,2
Maine, 1
Maryland, 27
Massachusetts, 43
Michigan, 14
Minnesota, 9
Mississippi, 2
Missouri, 9
Montana, 2
New Hampshire, 4
New Jersey, 60
New Mexico, 1
New York, 107
North Carolina, 8
Ohio, 10
Oklahoma ,2
Oregon, 6
Pennsylvania, 28
Puerto Rico, 1
Rhode Island, 3
South Carolina, 6
Tennessee, 8
Texas, 33
Utah, 1
Vermont, 3
Virginia, 19
Washington, 13
West Virginia, 1
Wisconsin, 6
Australia, 1
Belgium, 1
Bosnia and Herzegovina, 1
Brazil, 2
Burma, 1
Canada, 7
China 4
Czech Republic, 1
Ethiopia, 1
France, 2
Georgia, 1
Germany, 1
Ghana, 1
Greece, 1
Hong Kong S.A.R., 4
India , 4
Israel , 1
Japan, 2
Jordan, 1
Kenya, 1
Korea, South, 2
Pakistan, 2
Peru, 1
Philippines, 1
Qatar, 1
Singapore, 6
South Africa, 2
Spain, 1
Thailand, 2
Turkey, 2
United Arab Emirates, 1
United Kingdom, 12
Venezuela, 1
Vietnam, 1
Zimbabwe, 1
Note: it seems that they admitted 778 instead of 761 for the early around. I may have miscounted some, but I double checked the major states. The difference could also indicate that 17 admits from last year will enroll this year.
Tuesday, December 21, 2010
Brown Admitted 577 Early Decision Applicants for Class of 2015
Brown admitted 577 early decision applicants Dec. 13 to its class of 2015. The acceptance rate was just under 21 percent, with 2,796 applicants, according to the Office of Admission.
Academically, this year had "the strongest early decision applicant pool we've seen," said Dean of Admission Jim Miller '73.
This year's numbers are similar to last year's. Of the 2,847 students who applied early decision last year, 567 were admitted to the class of 2014, an acceptance rate of 20 percent.
Applicants have shown a slight increase in interest in the sciences over the past few years. The trend may reflect increased recruiting in the sciences and a recent increase in Brown's national recognition in the sciences, Miller said.
A combined 46 percent of students are primarily interested in the sciences, with 26 percent in the life and medical sciences and 20 percent in the physical sciences.
Thirty one percent are primarily interested in the social sciences, and 19 percent are interested in the humanities. Four percent of students are undecided, according to the Office of Admission.
Seventeen students were admitted to the Program in Liberal Medical Education, which grants students admission to Brown's Alpert Medical School pending the completion of undergraduate study at Brown.
Fifty four percent of those accepted are women, similar to last year, Miller said.
Of those admitted, 11 percent identify as Asian, nine percent as African American, seven percent as Latino and one percent as Native American. Half identify as white. Others identified as unknown or international.
International students accounted for 11 percent of those admitted and hail from 20 different countries. China, Canada, South Korea, the United Kingdom and India top the list.
Students were accepted from all but six states, the most common being New York, California, Massachusetts, New Jersey and Connecticut.
Twenty percent of those admitted are from New England, a slight decrease from last year, Miller said. Thirteen percent are from New York, and 17 percent are from the Mid-Atlantic. Nine percent are from the Midwest or Central areas of the country. Four percent hail from the Mountain or Pacific regions, and 13 percent are from California. Thirteen percent of students come from the South, an increase from last year, he said.
A majority of students — 57 percent — attended public schools. One third attended private schools, and 11 percent attended parochial schools. There are slightly more first-generation college students than last year, Miller said.
The acceptance rate for early decision applicants tends to be much higher than that for regular decision. The early decision applicant pool has a large number of recruited athletes, accounting for part of the discrepancy in admittance rates, Miller said.
"Last year's pool was the biggest early decision pool in our history," he said. The number of early decision applications last year jumped by about 20 percent from previous years. This year's was the second largest in the University's history.
The deadline for regular decision applicants is January 1, 2011.
In recent years, University officials have aimed to have incoming freshman classes with 1,485 students. The class of 2015 should be similar, Miller said. Last year, administrators said they planned to maintain the size of the incoming first-year class while increasing undergraduate enrollment, according to a campus-wide e-mail sent by President Ruth Simmons summarizing the Corporation meeting Feb. 27. The University is planning to accept more transfer students to make up the gap, she wrote in the e-mail.
For the first time, admission officials read all applications electronically. "The process went remarkably smoothly," Miller said.
Last year, due to the overwhelming number of applications, the Office of Admission had to temporarily store some applicants' files in Alumnae Hall. "Nobody's yearning for paper applications anymore," Miller said.
This year's admission cycle also marks the first with the new School of Engineering, which was approved by the Corporation in May. But Miller said the engineering school did not have much of an impact on admission.
Unlike many other engineering schools, Brown's does not have a separate admission process. Applicants apply to the College and do not have to declare a concentration until the end of sophomore year.
"We've tried to publicize the existence of the school," Miller said. "I'm hoping we'll see an uptick in engineering interests" among applicants.
http://www.browndailyherald.com/web-update-after-record-setting-year-early-acceptance-rate-steady-at-20-percent-1.2428014
Academically, this year had "the strongest early decision applicant pool we've seen," said Dean of Admission Jim Miller '73.
This year's numbers are similar to last year's. Of the 2,847 students who applied early decision last year, 567 were admitted to the class of 2014, an acceptance rate of 20 percent.
Applicants have shown a slight increase in interest in the sciences over the past few years. The trend may reflect increased recruiting in the sciences and a recent increase in Brown's national recognition in the sciences, Miller said.
A combined 46 percent of students are primarily interested in the sciences, with 26 percent in the life and medical sciences and 20 percent in the physical sciences.
Thirty one percent are primarily interested in the social sciences, and 19 percent are interested in the humanities. Four percent of students are undecided, according to the Office of Admission.
Seventeen students were admitted to the Program in Liberal Medical Education, which grants students admission to Brown's Alpert Medical School pending the completion of undergraduate study at Brown.
Fifty four percent of those accepted are women, similar to last year, Miller said.
Of those admitted, 11 percent identify as Asian, nine percent as African American, seven percent as Latino and one percent as Native American. Half identify as white. Others identified as unknown or international.
International students accounted for 11 percent of those admitted and hail from 20 different countries. China, Canada, South Korea, the United Kingdom and India top the list.
Students were accepted from all but six states, the most common being New York, California, Massachusetts, New Jersey and Connecticut.
Twenty percent of those admitted are from New England, a slight decrease from last year, Miller said. Thirteen percent are from New York, and 17 percent are from the Mid-Atlantic. Nine percent are from the Midwest or Central areas of the country. Four percent hail from the Mountain or Pacific regions, and 13 percent are from California. Thirteen percent of students come from the South, an increase from last year, he said.
A majority of students — 57 percent — attended public schools. One third attended private schools, and 11 percent attended parochial schools. There are slightly more first-generation college students than last year, Miller said.
The acceptance rate for early decision applicants tends to be much higher than that for regular decision. The early decision applicant pool has a large number of recruited athletes, accounting for part of the discrepancy in admittance rates, Miller said.
"Last year's pool was the biggest early decision pool in our history," he said. The number of early decision applications last year jumped by about 20 percent from previous years. This year's was the second largest in the University's history.
The deadline for regular decision applicants is January 1, 2011.
In recent years, University officials have aimed to have incoming freshman classes with 1,485 students. The class of 2015 should be similar, Miller said. Last year, administrators said they planned to maintain the size of the incoming first-year class while increasing undergraduate enrollment, according to a campus-wide e-mail sent by President Ruth Simmons summarizing the Corporation meeting Feb. 27. The University is planning to accept more transfer students to make up the gap, she wrote in the e-mail.
For the first time, admission officials read all applications electronically. "The process went remarkably smoothly," Miller said.
Last year, due to the overwhelming number of applications, the Office of Admission had to temporarily store some applicants' files in Alumnae Hall. "Nobody's yearning for paper applications anymore," Miller said.
This year's admission cycle also marks the first with the new School of Engineering, which was approved by the Corporation in May. But Miller said the engineering school did not have much of an impact on admission.
Unlike many other engineering schools, Brown's does not have a separate admission process. Applicants apply to the College and do not have to declare a concentration until the end of sophomore year.
"We've tried to publicize the existence of the school," Miller said. "I'm hoping we'll see an uptick in engineering interests" among applicants.
http://www.browndailyherald.com/web-update-after-record-setting-year-early-acceptance-rate-steady-at-20-percent-1.2428014
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)