"Facts are stubborn things; and whatever may be our wishes, our inclinations, or the dictates of our passions, they cannot alter the state of facts and evidence."   John Adams, December, 1770


Changes at Sewanee
The University of the South, popularly known as Sewanee, announced that applicants may substitute a graded paper and interview for the SAT/ACT. They are in the process of developing a rigorous evaluative interview. The interview will be administered by admissions representatives or trained Sewanee alumni.


Record-Breaking Year for Smith College Applications
NORTHAMPTON, Mass. – While stock figures on Wall Street are down, an important number on Smith College’s main street is up. This year, Smith received the largest number of applications in its history.
A record 4,009 young women applied for a spot in the Smith Class of 2013, an increase of 6 percent over last year. The boost was foreshadowed by an uptick in campus visits from prospective students during recent months.


Princeton sets applications record for fifth year in a row
Cass Cliatt - Posted January 22, 2009; 08:50 a.m.
Princeton University for the fifth consecutive year has set a record for students applying for admission, receiving 21,869 applications for the class of 2013. Over the past six years, the University has experienced a 60 percent increase in applications.
The number of applicants for the class of 2013 represents a 2 percent increase over last year's record of 21,370 completed applications for the class of 2012, which had an applicant pool 6 percent larger than for the class of 2011. Applicants for that class were up 8 percent over the applicants for the class of 2010, whose applicant numbers represented a 6 percent increase over those for freshmen for the 2009 class.


UC regents ease admission rules to expand applicant pool
The controversial policy requires student hopefuls to take fewer tests. The change takes effect for those seeking admission in fall 2012.
Larry Gordon - February 6, 2009
Reporting from San Francisco -- A much-debated plan by the University of California to expand its freshman applicant pool and reduce the tests required for admission won final approval Thursday from the Board of Regents.
The new rules, among other changes, mean that applicants will no longer be required to submit scores from two SAT subject exams but as before, must take the main SAT or ACT test, as well as 15 UC-approved college prep courses in high school and keep a minimum 3.0 grade-point average. The policy shift will take effect for current high school freshmen who seek UC admission for fall 2012.


News from Lynchburg College
Lynchburg College just announced that they will offer a Doctorate of Physical Therapy program beginning in fall of 2010. Nationally there are only 210 accredited physical therapy programs and LC expects its new program to be fully accredited by the first graduating class of 2013.


Dartmouth reports 9 percent increase in admissions applications
Dartmouth College Office of Public Affairs • Press Release
With applications for its Class of 2013 now tallied, Dartmouth has experienced yet another record-breaking year, with 18,007 applications, a nearly 9 percent increase from last year’s record 16,538, according to Dean of Admissions and Financial Aid Maria Laskaris. Early decision applications were also up 9 percent over last year.
Dartmouth has already accepted 401 students into the Class of 2013 through the early decision admissions program, and expects to admit about 1,800 students through the regular decision program. Approximately 1,095 of those admitted are expected to matriculate in Sept. 2009.


UCLA considering more than 55,000 applicants for 2009 freshman class
By Claudia Luther | 1/23/2009 10:00:00 AM
An academically outstanding and diverse group of more than 55,000 freshman applicants is now under consideration for fall 2009 admission to UCLA, university admissions officials announced.
Decisions on freshman admissions will be available online by the end of March, and admitted students will make their decisions on enrollment by May 1.
UCLA traditionally receives more applications from potential freshmen than any college in the nation. This year, preliminary figures indicate that the number of applications is slightly higher than it was last year — 55,636 for 2009, compared with 55,437 for 2008.
All indications are that this year's fall freshman class at UCLA will be even stronger academically than last year's, which was superior. The average fully weighted grade-point average for freshman applicants increased to 3.89 from last year's 3.87. Nearly half of all applicants — 25,381, or 45 percent — have GPAs of 4.0 or higher.


UNC-Chapel Hill offers admission to 4,885 first-year applicants
From UNCNEWS.UNC.EDU - Wednesday, January 14, 2009
"This afternoon the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill will offer admission to 4,885 students chosen from a record first-deadline pool of 13,692 applicants.
The students admitted include 3,476 North Carolinians – a record number, and 48 percent of the 7,175 who applied – and 1,409 students from around the nation and world. Of the record 6,517 out-of-state applicants – an increase of 25 percent compared to last year – just 22 percent will receive offers of admission. The average SAT Reasoning score (Critical Reading and Math combined) for admitted students is 1343, an increase of nine points over last year."


Application rates up at elite schools
By Janet Frankston Lorin from Bloomberg.com
"MIT’s applications rose 17 percent," said Stuart Schmill, dean of admissions.
"Stanford received 30,348 regular applications, up 20 percent from last year," said Shawn Abbott, director of admissions.
"Duke received 23,780 applications for this year, including 1,535 early-decision applications," said Christopher Guttentag, Duke’s dean of undergraduate admissions. "Overall, the school saw a 17 percent increase from last year, the largest rise in at least five decades," he said.


Harvard gets record 29,000 applicants for fall
CAMBRIDGE, Mass. (AP)
A record 29,000 people have applied for a spot in next fall's freshman class at Harvard University.
Harvard's admissions office said Wednesday that the applications this year beat the nearly 27,500 people who applied last year. Each student is vying for one of just 1,700 spots.
Admissions Dean William Fitzsimmons says Harvard's generous financial aid packages have encouraged so many students to apply. The financial aid program requires no contribution from families with annual incomes below $60,000 and about 10 percent of income from families that make up to $180,000.


Yale rejects Score Choice
From Inside Higher Education
Yale University announced Thursday that it will require applicants to report all SAT scores, as the College Board has required in recent years, not just selected scores, as the College Board is now allowing students to do.


Regents vote to shrink numbers
Terence Chea, The Associated Press, January 15, 2009 - 12:00AM
SAN FRANCISCO - The University of California’s governing board voted Wednesday to cut undergraduate enrollment and freeze pay for top administrators in response to the state’s budget crisis.
The Board of Regents approved the plan to reduce freshmen enrollment systemwide by 2,300 students in the next academic year despite concerns that it could hurt campus diversity and shut students out of the 10-campus system.


ED numbers up at Duke University
The Blue Devil Weekly reports that they received 1,539 early decision applications. This is an increase of 291 (or 23%) over last year and the second largest increase in the school’s history. They accepted 547, which is 75 more than they accepted last year, and represents the largest number of accepted ED offers in the last 10 years. These acceptances comprise 33% of the fall of 2009 class, which has an estimated 1,665 students.


Stanford's early applications surge
The Associated Press, Posted: 12/25/2008 01:24:57 PM PST
SAN FRANCISCO — Stanford University is reporting a record number of early applications from prospective freshman students. Stanford admissions officials say they saw a 18 percent spike over last year, the largest in the Palo Alto campus' history. Only 689 of Stanford's 5,363 applications were accepted, the smallest percentage ever.
Stanford is among several private colleges nationwide seeing a spike in early applications. At Yale, early decision applications were up 14 percent; Northwestern, 15 percent; Pomona, 20 percent; and Duke, 23 percent.


Yale early admit rate plunges to 13.4 percent
Raymond Carlson, Staff Reporter, Yale Daily News, 12/15/08
Yale admitted 13.4 percent of its early action applicants for the class of 2013, a sharp drop from last year’s 18.1 percent early admission rate, the University said Monday.
A total of 742 early applicants were granted admission from a record pool of 5,557, Dean of Undergraduate Admissions Jeff Brenzel told the News. The admissions office also sent rejection letters to more than twice as many early applicants as they did last year, denying 38.3 percent of applicants while deferring 47.6 percent to the regular decision round.

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Given the nature of the admissions process and the selectivity of many educational institutions, we cannot guarantee admission to any institution.