As the first round of college applications go through admission offices across the country, schools with early action programs are reporting a significant increase in early submissions for this year. Many admissions officers and high school guidance counselors are attributing the increase to Harvard’s, Princeton’s, and the University of Virginia’s elimination of the early application program in September of last year.
According to a November 28 New York Times article, high-achieving high school students who would have applied early to Harvard, Princeton, or the University of Virginia are turning to other top-tier schools with non-binding programs such as Yale, Stanford, and Georgetown. The 8,000-10,000 students who would have applied early to Harvard, Princeton, or the University of Virginia had the trends of previous years continued are looking for other high-caliber schools with non-binding early action programs, attempting to secure a spot as they also apply regular decision to the non-early schools. Non-binding programs can assure students a place at a top school early in the admission process while they wait to apply to Harvard or Princeton in January.
Yale Reports
The Yale Daily News reported a 36% increase in early undergraduate applications, up to 4,820 for this year. Rumors have been flying around the Choate campus about the number of students who applied early action to Yale. Says Michael Wysolmerski ’08, “I’ve heard a lot of kids are applying to Yale early action. It seems like a ridiculous amount…especially a lot of day students.” Jeff Brenzel, the Dean of Undergraduate Admissions at Yale, told the Daily News that it is still too soon to know how many applicants will be accepted early or what effect the increase will have on this year’s yield. Last year, Yale accepted 19.7% of its early applicants and the yield, according to the Daily News, has hovered around 71% for the last three years. One Choate senior added, “I was going to apply early to Yale, but I heard a lot of people were applying there, which put pressure on the process that I didn’t feel before.” Dean Jacoby ’88, the Director of Choate’s College Counseling Office, declined to release the number of Choate seniors applying early to Yale or elsewhere.
Georgetown University has also proven a popular choice for early college applicants this year. The Georgetown Blue & Gray reported that undergraduate early applications increased by more than 30%, up to about 6,000 from 4,500 last year. Charles Deacon, the Head of Undergraduate Admissions at Georgetown, says the school is trying especially hard to motivate students accepted early to enroll, since he knows many students truly interested in Harvard and Princeton may have applied to Georgetown simply to get in somewhere early. This year, the school expects to accept about 18% of early applications, compared to 21% last year. If more schools follow Harvard and Princeton and drop early application programs, Georgetown may have to change its admissions schedule to adjust to the increase in early applications. But early applicants are generally the most “attractive academically,” says Deacon, and he calls the influx of early applications a “happy problem.”
The University of Chicago, which also offers non-binding early admission, experienced an increase in early applications as well. The Chicago Maroon reported a record number of 4,329 early applications compared to 3,031 last year—a 42% increase. According to the New York Times, however, Stanford received about the same number of early applications as last year. The Times also reported a 10% increase in early applications at MIT. Stuart Schmill, MIT’s interim director of admissions, said that the finally tally had not yet been determined, and that early applications had been increasing in the past few years anyway.
Choate’s peer school Phillips Andover Academy’s newspaper The Phillipian reported 161 students sending out 195 early applications. 27 students applied to Yale this year, up from 17 last year. Last year 26 Andover students applied early to Harvard and 8 applied early to Princeton. Director of Andover’s College Office John Anderson believes that the increase in early applications to Yale is a direct effect of Harvard and Princeton dropping their early programs.
Choate Comments on Numbers
As for Choate seniors applying early, Mr. Jacoby did comment: “Each class is different, so it is hard to read too much into what is happening this year and relating it to the changes in early policy at Harvard and Princeton. As an example, two years ago, there were twice as many early applications to Harvard as there were last year. The number naturally fluctuates based on the specific personalities and interests of the students that make up the class.” Says Jill Ruben ’08, “I’ve heard a lot of seniors want to have something they can fall back on as a safety net. An early acceptance removes a lot of stress.” She adds, “Top-tier schools like Georgetown, Yale.... a lot of kids who are applying there this year would have applied early to Harvard and Princeton and want to get in somewhere early.”
This idea of considering Yale or Georgetown a fallback strikes many students as strange. Emily MacLeod ’08 says, “Those schools are all really good. I feel there is almost a pressure to relieve the college process as soon as possible. Yale, Georgetown, UChicago….they are such top schools, kids are lucky who are able to have them as an option and not as a first choice.” Alex Manti ’08 adds, “I think it’s totally disgraceful to apply early action to increase your chances [of getting into a school] if it decreases the chances of someone who really wants to go there.” He adds that the increase in early applications at Yale and Georgetown “definitely has to do with Harvard and Princeton.”
A member of the Choate class of 2007 says, “Finally Yale is getting a taste of its own medicine. They have been able to string along applicants by deferring them, and now top students whose first choices are Harvard and Princeton have the power.” How they will use it, and how the schools involved will respond, only time will tell.
