Admissions Blog

Tulane reduces number of students accepted Early Decision II

Posted on February 1, 2024 by Craig Meister

Tulane’s Gibson Hall

Tulane will release Early Decision II (EDII) notifications to first-year applicants on Monday, February 5, at 5:00 p.m. Eastern Standard Time, and just as during Tulane’s Early Decision I (EDI) round, Tulane has reduced the number of EDII acceptances to provide more opportunities for students – particularly those from first generation or low/middle income backgrounds – who did not feel comfortable making a binding commitment to Tulane. Tulane has also intentionally left more space in its entering class to admit students who were deferred in its Early Action round or who applied Regular Decision.

According to Tulane’s admissions office, those accepted EDII had an average core unweighted GPA of 3.62 and an average standardized test score – for those who submitted a score at all – of 1450 on the SAT and 32 on the ACT. First generation students and students from Louisiana also make up a larger percentage of the accepted student cohort than they did last year, while international numbers held steady.

Tulane also prioritized avoided waitlisting students EDII applicants who were deferred in the Early Action round as to not leave them in limbo for a second time. For the most part, students who applied Early Action and converted to EDII will be accepted, denied, or offered a nonbinding spot in Tulane’s Spring Scholars through which students start their Tulane experience in Rome, London, Barcelona, Paris, or Tokyo. Spring Scholars have until May 1st to enroll, so they have plenty of time to consider their options.

55,000 applied to Purdue Early Action; 97% of those admitted submitted test scores

Posted on January 10, 2024 by Craig Meister

Cary Quadrangle at Purdue University with an animated Boilermaker on the roof.

Purdue University will release its Early Action (EA) decisions to first-year applicants through each EA applicant’s Purdue Application Portal starting at 5:00 p.m. Eastern Time on Friday, January 12. This includes decisions for its long-standing campus in West Lafayette, Indiana and its new campus in Indianapolis, Indiana’s state capital.

After several years of record-breaking enrollment, Purdue saw another uptick in applications received by November 1, 2023. Purdue received more than 55,000 applications by its November 1 Early Action deadline, which represents an increase of 3,000 applicants from the 2022-2023 admissions cycle.

With Purdue’s “test expected” approach to first-year admission, 44,000 Early Action applicants applied with a test score, and 97.2% of the students offered admission through Early Action submitted test scores.

The middle 50% SAT scores for accepted students for Fall 2023 who submitted SAT scores was 1210 – 1450 while the middle 50% of ACT scores for accepted students for Fall 2023 who submitted test scores was 27 – 34, though there was great variation between schools and majors. For instance, Purdue’s competitive Computer Science major had an acceptance rate of just 29.5% for Fall 2023 and the middle 50% of test scores of accepted Computer Science students was 1490 – 1560 on the SAT and 33 – 35 on the ACT. Yet, Purdue’s College of Education had a 74.5% acceptance rate and the middle 50% of test scores of accepted College of Education students was 1070 – 1260 on the SAT and 23.5 – 29 on the ACT. More Class of 2027 admissions data can be found on Purdue’s website.

Students who have not yet applied to Purdue but who want a chance to become part of Purdue’s Class of 2028 have until Purdue’s Regular Decision deadline of January 15 to apply.

As part of Purdue’s effort to avoid over-enrolling students, Purdue is also relying more heavily on deferred decisions for the 2023-2024 admissions cycle; therefore, EA applicants should not be surprised to get a deferral on January 12. Defer is not a deny decision but a method of allowing Purdue to assess space and availability before making a final decision through its Regular Decision review process. Deferred applicants are encouraged to complete a Letter of Continued Interest form in their Purdue Application Portal.

—

If you – or someone you know – has been deferred from Purdue, in the video below I share expert tips on how to craft the most compelling Letter of Continued Interest possible to increase your chances of getting in Regular Decision. Good luck!

More Applying, Fewer Getting Accepted to Tulane Early Decision

Posted on December 4, 2023 by Craig Meister

Tulane University in New Orleans, Louisiana will release its Early Decision I (EDI) decisions tomorrow, December 5, 2023, at 5:00 p.m. U.S. Eastern Time.

Those about to receive decisions – and those who follow this type of thing – should know that Tulane experienced a 20 percent increase in Early Decision applicants this admissions cycle while reducing the number of Early Decision I acceptances for the second year in a row in order to provide more opportunities for students unable or unwilling to make a binding commitment to Tulane, “particularly those from first generation or low/middle income backgrounds,” according to Tulane’s admissions office.

The vast majority of EDI applicants will receive one of three decisions: an acceptance, a denial, or a nonbinding offer to join Tulane’s cohort of Spring Scholars. Spring Scholars do not have to tell Tulane of their decision until May 1, 2024.

Meanwhile, Tulane also received 30 percent more Early Action applications this year than it did last year. Early Action applicants will get their admissions decisions by January 10, 2024 at the latest.

University of Florida Shares 2022-2023 Admissions Statistics

Posted on April 21, 2023 by admissions.blog 1 Comment

Gainesville, Florida is home to University of Florida.

University of Florida (UF) received nearly 67,000 applications during the 2022-2023 admissions cycle, which represents a slight increase over last year.

According to Charles Murphy, UF’s Director of Admissions, offers of admissions were made to approximately 15,600 students to start on campus in the Summer B or Fall term. Admitted students had the following middle 50% ranges on the still-required SAT or ACT:

GPA: 4.4 – 4.6 (UF’s weighted recalculation)
SAT: 1340 – 1490
ACT: 30 – 34

UF is one of just a handful of major American research universities that are still currently requiring submission of the SAT or ACT as part of the undergraduate admissions process.

In addition, approximately 2,800 students received an offer to UF’s Pathway to Campus Enrollment (PaCE), 650 for Innovation Academy (IA), and 1,100 for a state college partnership program.

UF is located in Gainesville, Florida, a vibrant college town that offers a wide range of cultural and recreational activities. The city is surrounded by numerous state parks and springs.

University of Florida is consistently ranked among the top public universities in the United States. It offers over 100 undergraduate majors across a wide range of disciplines, and it’s a major research institution; undergraduates have the opportunity to work alongside faculty members on research projects. The university is home to more than 150 research centers and institutes, and it consistently ranks in the top in the nation for total research funding.

In addition, UF offers over 1,000 student organizations and clubs, including sports teams, music ensembles, theater groups, and academic organizations. This provides ample opportunities for students to get involved and pursue their passions outside the classroom.

Regular Decision at Emory University becomes more selective

Posted on March 30, 2023 by admissions.blog Leave a Comment

Emory University’s campus.

Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia, has become more selective to get into when applying Regular Decision.

While approximately 78%, of admission offers at Emory are made Regular Decision and roughly 22% of offers are extended to Early Decision applicants, that doesn’t mean an applicant’s statistical odds of getting into Emory Regular Decision are better than getting in Early Decision. The university, which accepts first-year applicants into two colleges – Emory College and Oxford College, has shared that in 2023 Emory College’s Regular Decision acceptance rate was 8.4% and Oxford College’s Regular Decision acceptance rate was 15.1% whereas Emory’s overall Early Decision I acceptance rate earlier in the 2022-2023 admissions cycle was roughly 37%. Last year (2022), Emory accepted 9% of students who applied Regular Decision.

2023-2024 Regular Decision (RD) Applicant Pool

	Emory College	Oxford College
RD Applicants	29,330	18,612
RD Admits	2,463	2,815
Offered Spot on Wait List	5,663 (plus additional 199 placed on wait list from ED II)	2,991 (plus additional 37 placed on wait list from ED II)

Regular Decision Admitted Class Composition

	Emory College RD Class	Oxford College RD Class
Mean Recalculated GPA	3.92	3.90
25-75th Percentile Max Testing (of students who opted to share their SAT or ACT scores with us)	1470-1560	1470-1550
% Admitted Without SAT/ACT	36%	33%
# of States Represented	50 plus DC, PR, VI, Mariana Islands, and Guam	49 plus DC, PR, and Guam
# of Non-US Citizenships	71	58

Of course, final acceptance rates are contingent on what action occurs on Emory’s waitlist.

Interestingly, only roughly one third of those accepted to both Emory College and Oxford College Regular Decision did not submit ACT or SAT scores. These numbers were a bit lower than numbers released earlier this cycle when 38% of the admitted Emory College Early Decision class and 41% of the Early Decision class admitted to Oxford College applied without an ACT or SAT score.

For Regular Decision at Emory College, nearly 22% of domestic admits would be the first generation in their family to graduate from college. The most represented high school states in the admitted RD class are Georgia, California, New York, Texas, and Florida respectively and the most represented high school countries in the admitted RD class are India, Canada, the United Kingdom, Brazil, and Singapore respectively. Approximately 9% of the Emory College RD admitted class are from rural or small town communities across the United States.

For Regular Decision at Oxford College, approximately 16% of domestic admits would be the first generation in their family to graduate from college. The most represented high school states in the admitted RD class, in order, are California, Georgia, New York, Texas, and Florida. The most represented high school countries in the admitted RD class, in order, are India, Canada, Brazil, the United Kingdom and China. Finally, as was the case with Emory College, approximately 9% of the Oxford College RD admitted class are from rural or small town communities across the United States.

Ultimately, the university is aiming to enroll 1,420 students at Emory College and 525 students (up from 450 last year) at Oxford College this fall.

Emory will remain test-optional for first-year and transfer applicants during the 2023-2024 admissions cycle.

Brown’s Regular Decision Acceptance Rate Now 3.8%

Posted on March 29, 2023 by Craig Meister Leave a Comment

Brown University in Providence, Rhode Island.

Brown University’s Regular Decision admission decisions will be posted on Thursday, March 30 at 7:00 p.m. US Eastern Time, and, as in previous years, most students will not be thrilled by the decision they receive.

According to Logan Powell, Brown’s Dean of Admission, Brown received 51,302 applications for the Class of 2027, which represents a 1% increase over last year and makes the Class of 2027 applicant pool the largest in the university’s history. Brown will make 1,730 Regular Decision offers of admission to the incoming Class of 2027 in addition to the 879 Early Decision admission offers made in December. The overall acceptance rate for the 2022-2023 admissions cycle was 5%, the Regular Decision acceptance rate was 3.8%, and the Early Decision acceptance rate was 13%.

A total of 18% of accepted students represent the first generation in their family to attend college, and this year’s admitted students come from 90 countries, all 50 American states, the District of Columbia, Guam, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands. The top countries represented outside the United States are China, Canada, the United Kingdom, India, and South Korea.

Of the 4,192 applicants to the Program in Liberal Medical Education (PLME), 74 students were admitted with a 2% acceptance rate. Of the 916 applicants to the Brown-RISD Dual Degree Program, 20 students were admitted, also with a 2% acceptance rate.

If spaces in Brown’s entering class are available after the May 1 reply by date, Brown will make additional admission offers to students on its waitlist; yet, all spaces in the Program in Liberal Medical Education have been filled. The number of students admitted from the waitlist will depend on how many students accept Brown’s admission offers by May 1. In recent years, the number of waitlist spaces available in Brown’s incoming class has ranged from 15 to 120. Waitlist activity will conclude by mid-summer, and more information on the waitlist is available here.

Meanwhile, Brown will host two admitted student programs on campus for the Class of 2027. A Day on College Hill (ADOCH) will take place on April 14 and 21 for students who are able to visit Providence in person. Brown will also continue to support its admitted students with a variety of virtual programming that provides opportunities to explore, learn, ask questions and connect to Brown’s campus while showcasing Brown’s vibrant community.

NYU First Year Applications Spike 13%

Posted on March 27, 2023 by Craig Meister Leave a Comment

With its rapidly rising application numbers and rapidly dropping acceptance rate, New York University (NYU) is starting to live up to the classic lyric from the Frank Sinatra standard, “New York, New York:” “If I can make it there, I’ll make it anywhere.”

NYU’s notable application growth from first year applicants has led to the private New York City-based university receiving a startling 98,000 Regular Decision applications during the 2022-2023 admissions cycle. All in all, NYU received nearly 120,000 applications for its Class of 2027, which represents an increase of 13% from last year. In fact, NYU saw increases across all of its campuses and all of its schools in New York. NYU also has major campuses in Abu Dhabi and Shanghai.

The increased number of applications, combined with consistently growing yield rates over the past few years, has made for an incredibly competitive admission cycle that will lead to an overall acceptance rate “a number of percentage points lower than last year” according to Jonathan B. Williams, NYU’s Associate Vice President for Undergraduate Admissions.

Last year, (the 2021-2022 admissions cycle), NYU received 105,000 first year applications and had an overall acceptance rate of 12.2%. This means once it’s finalized, NYU’s overall acceptance rate will now be in or quite close to the single digits. As recently as the 2016-2017 admissions cycle, NYU was accepting over 20% of all applicants; that cycle NYU only received 67,000 applications.

Regular Decision applicants will receive one of several different decisions on Tuesday, March 28, 2023 depending on the options selected on their applications:

Admitted Students
In the vast majority of cases, students who are admitted receive an offer of admission to their first-choice campus and school. Students not admitted to their first choice are then considered for admission to an alternate choice school or campus. Students will receive only one decision from NYU, and no students are admitted to any campus, program, or major that they did not explicitly indicate interest in on their application.

Waitlisted Students
With such an incredibly competitive applicant pool, NYU’s Undergraduate Admissions team needed to make difficult decisions about students who presented very competitive applications. Students offered a place on NYU’s waitlist will be required to confirm that they wish to continue to be considered for admission should space become available. Typically, NYU does not review its waitlist until after May 1.

Waitlisted students may be admitted to begin in Fall 2023 or admitted to programs with Spring 2024 start options, specifically: Liberal Studies Core and select majors within the School of Professional Studies, Tandon School of Engineering, and the Steinhardt School of Culture, Education and Human Development.

According to Williams, NYU’s waitlist comprises less than 15% of its applicant pool, and it is not ranked. Waitlisted applicants should not send any additional information beyond what is requested on the waitlist response form.

Denied Students
While rejection is hard, at least it may be a bit easier knowing that nine out of ten NYU applicants are meeting the same fate. Hopefully such applicants had some safety options on their college lists.

Boston University’s Overall Acceptance Rate Drops to 10.7%

Posted on March 24, 2023 by Craig Meister 1 Comment

Boston University (BU) will be notifying Regular Decisions applicants tomorrow, Saturday, March 25, 2023.

According to Kelly A. Walter, BU’s Associate Vice President for Enrollment & Dean of Admissions, “It has been the single most challenging admissions cycle of my career given that we received 80,492 applications for just 3,100 seats in our first-year class…we had to make some extraordinarily difficult decisions about who was admitted to the class.”

BU’s overall acceptance rate during the 2022-2023 admissions cycle fell to just 10.7%. Last year, BU got a similar number of applicants but accepted roughly 14% of them.

Walter added that, “since we have been significantly overenrolled for each of the past two years, it was absolutely critical for us to plan for yet another increase in yield. As a result, we had no choice but to significantly decrease the number of students to whom we offered admission.”

BU’s Early Decision acceptance rate was roughly 25% this cycle.

Northwestern Releases Regular Decisions, Class of 2027 Statistics

Posted on March 24, 2023 by Craig Meister

Northwestern University, located in Evanston, Illinois, finalized is Regular Decision selection process and notified applicants of their decisions today, Friday, March 24.

Overall, Northwestern reviewed over 52,000 first-year applications from over 10,000 high schools around the world for a class that will ultimately only include roughly 2,100 students, according to Liz Kinsley, Northwestern’s Associate Dean & Director, Undergraduate Admission. Last year Northwestern reviewed 51,554 applications.

Northwestern previously admitted about half of its incoming Class of 2027 through Early Decision, and the university’s overall admit rate will stay roughly 7%. Northwestern’s Fall 2022 ED applicant pool grew by 3.5% to just over 5,200 applicants. This means that Northwestern’s Early Decision acceptance rate now hovers around 20%. In addition to growth in volume, Northwestern saw growth in the number of secondary schools represented in its ED pool of applicants: the number of schools represented by ED applicants was up 22% overall with a 25% increase in U.S. public schools represented.

Students admitted Regular Decision have until May 1 to accept their offer. Official steps toward enrolling in the Class of 2027 are outlined on Northwestern’s Admitted Student Website and will also be mailed with an admit packet.

For applicants offered a place on Northwestern’s waitlist, the deadline to accept a waitlist offer is May 1. Students who accept a waitlist spot before April 15 will be asked to reconfirm their interest in the waitlist on that date; the university will reach out via email with reconfirmation steps. Northwestern’s waitlist is unranked, and waitlisted students are welcome to write the admissions office if they’re still particularly interested in Northwestern. Additional materials should be uploaded via the applicant portal or emailed.

In other news, high school students in the Class of 2024 should know that Northwestern has confirmed that it will remain test-optional for the 2023–2024 admissions cycle.

Northwestern University’s campus in Evanston, Illinois, USA.