Early decision causes drop in '01 class admission rate

By Jennifer Supernaw

As high school seniors begin to search their mailboxes for thick envelopes, Yale admissions officers say this year's crop of applicants had a harder time gaining acceptance than the Class of 2000.

Administrators at Ivy League schools and prominent private schools point to the growing popularity of early decision programs as the main factor behind high enrollment yields at the nation's top schools.

Last year's high yield led to a larger than expected freshman class at Yale, and the University intends to cut back on the number of students accepted this April in order to compensate. This year's acceptance rate is projected at 16 to 17 percent, down from 20 percent two years ago.

Margit Dahl, director of undergraduate admissions, said last year's high yield was mostly due to the recent shift to binding early decision policies at colleges throughout the country. "Last year we were playing a guessing game because of early admission. Many students who would have applied to Yale didn't because they were already accepted to other schools," Dahl said.

While the proportion of Yale's incoming classes accepted early has remained at about one-third in recent years, this percentage has been increasing steadily at other Ivies. For example, almost 43 percent of Brown's class of 2000 was accepted under early decision.

This trend has many high school guidance counselors worried that some seniors are rushing to make uninformed choices. According to Terry Giffen, director of college counseling at Choate Rosemary Hall, "Our students are all trying to work hard and fast, so some turn to guidebooks to decide which college to attend."

Giffen said students often think that applying early to prestigious schools will enhance their chances of being accepted. He attributed the early decision program's popularity to "self-imposed pressure driven by the national media. Some students fear that if they don't apply early they won't get into good colleges."

Yale's declining acceptance rate occurs along with a significant drop in the number of applications, despite being ranked the nation's top university. According to Dahl, "Virtually all our competitors registered some decline, so we're not concerned."

Dahl attributes this change to early decision policies as well. "More students seem to be applying to early programs, so the lower number of applications is probably a natural consequence."

Roland Adams, associate director of the office of public affairs at Dartmouth, said that although Dartmouth received the most applications in its history last year, applications were down six percent this year.

While total applicant pools may vary each year, the number of early applicants is expected to stabilize. "I think there will be a leveling off in the number of students who will be applying early," Giffen said. Back to News...