College Bound ISSUES & TRENDS FOR THE COLLEGE ADMISSIONS ADVISOR Vol. 30, No. 8
April 2016
:KR :LOO %H ,Q WKH &ODVV RI " AS CB went to press this month, colleges and universities were sending out acceptance (and rejection) letters to thousands of students. Here are the early returns for this Spring. CB will have more admit news next month.
CLASS OF 2020 ADMITS
%DUQDUG¡V 1LQH :D\V RI .QRZLQJ Barnard C. in New York fielded 7,071 applications for the Class of 2020, and admitted 16 percent, the lowest rate in school history, down from last year’s 19.5 percent. The new female students will be the first to explore Barnard’s new general education requirements, “Nine Ways of Knowing.â€? Connecticut Still Considering Applicants. The U. of Connecticut though was still considering applicants “on a space available basis‌ until the Storrs Fall 2016 class of 3,800 students is full,â€? Nathan Fuerst, director of admissions, told dailycampus.com. “Most universities accept late applications,â€? he noted. At the same time, Fuerst added, “Counseling students and families who do not receive an affirmative decision is a standard part of the role that our staff plays. At this time of year, we have numerous support staff and professional staff directed at fielding phone calls and walk-ins who wish to visit about their admission decisions.â€? Duke Accepts 10.4 percent. Duke U. received 28,600 Regular Decision applicants, and offered admission to 2,501 of them or 8.7 percent. Duke’s Early Decision acceptance rate was 23.5 percent. The Early Decision applicants accounted for 48 percent of the Class of 2020. An additional 49 students who applied early and were deferred were also
admitted, down from 69 last year. Duke’s overall acceptance rate was 10.4 percent. “We only have 1,705 places in the class, and we didn’t have room for many of the compelling candidates,� explained Christoph Guttentag, dean of admissions. Johns Hopkins Admits From 54 Nations. Johns Hopkins U. admitted 2,539 students through Regular Decision who will join 559 students already admitted Early Decision. Nearly 37 percent of those admitted through Regular Decision are members of underrepresented minorities. The prospective “Blue Jays� hail from 49 states, Washington DC, and 54 nations. Maine Starts Wait List. The U. of Maine used aggressive marketing and tuition incentives to attract 14,205 applications to fill its 2,150 freshman seats this fall, 17 percent more apps than last year. As a result, for the first time in recent history, Maine has begun a wait list. 0,7 $QQRXQFHV ZLWK 6WDU :DUV The Massachusetts Institute of Technology admitted 1,485 students to its Class of 2020. That is but 7.8 percent of the 19,020 applications it received this year, down from 8 percent last year. Early Action admits numbered 656 of the total. Another 437 were wait listed. In the past five years, MIT has admitted between zero and 65 from that list, Stu Schmill, dean of admissions, told The Tech. One third of the newly-admitted students have already won national or international academic distinction, while “many are athletes, artists or makers,� said MIT News. They hail continued on page 2
´*DOOLPDXIU\¾ LQ College Admissions After 40 years counseling generations of students and families on how to find their best match of boarding school, private high school, college or graduate program, Frank C. Leana reflects on changes in the college application process with interest and concern. WE CONTINUE to read that students are applying to sought-after colleges in record numbers. Colleges parade their high numbers of applicants, low numbers of admits and high yields. When this combination of numbers emerges, alumni, trustees and presidents, along with other constituencies, take pride in their institutions becoming more and more selective. But aren’t we in the midst of all this hoopla forgetting one very important population, that of parents and applicants? It is heartbreaking to see super-qualified students deferred, wait listed or denied because of sheer numbers and the important but restrictive variables of constructing a diverse freshman class to include athletes, scholars, legacies and special talents. 7KH &KDOOHQJH IRU &RXQVHORUV For counselors, the challenge becomes how to guide families with the appropriate blend of hope and reasonability to stretch for the best, most appropriate school in the midst of all this admission frenzy. ‡ +RZ GR ZH SURWHFW RXUVHOYHV E\ QRW being overly ambitious for our students yet continued on page 3
INSIDE ‡ 6WDWH RI $SSOLFDWLRQV ‡ (QUROOPHQWV 7UHQGV %RRNV ‡ ,QWHUQDWLRQDO $IIDLUV ‡ &XUULFXOXP &DSVXOHV DQG 1HZV You Can Use
COLLEGE BOUND’s Publisher/Editor: R. Craig Sautter, DePaul University; Chief Operating Officer: Sally Reed; Associate Editor: Emma Schwartz; Editorial Assistant: Reed Lubin; Board of Advisors: Lisa Burnham, Edina High School, Minnesota; Claire D. Friedlander, Bedford (N.Y.) Central School District; Howard Greene and Matthew Greene, authors and educational advisors; Frank C. Leana, Ph.D., educational counselor; Mary Ann Willis, Bayside Academy (Daphne, Ala.). www.collegeboundnews.com