Applications Up at Top Universities

Many top universities have seen their application totals increase in numbers that range from moderate to dramatic, a jump some counselors have attributed to anxious high school students submitting more college applications.

Harvard received over 30,000 applications for the Class of 2014, a record high that exceeds last year’s total by about five percent.

Dean of Admissions and Financial Aid William R. Fitzsimmons ’67 credited Harvard’s increase in applications to the University’s generous financial aid, the continuing effects of the elimination of early admissions, and the appeal of the new School of Engineering and Applied Sciences.

Many of Harvard’s peer institutions have seen increases as well.

Some saw similar gains—four percent at Dartmouth and five percent at Stanford. Others had more significant jumps—42 percent at the University of Chicago, 20 percent at Brown, 19 percent at Princeton, and 17 percent at the University of Pennsylvania.

Despite this trend, Yale University received slightly fewer applications this year—about 25,800 students have applied for Yale’s Class of 2014, compared to 26,000 last year.

University of Chicago News Director Jeremy Manier said that their targeted mailings to prospective students may have contributed to the increase in applications, from 13,564 for the Class of 2013 to 19,306 this year.

For example, students who expressed interest in the arts received a letter about artistic opportunities at the university, and students who attend Jewish day schools were sent a letter from the school’s Hillel.

Susan E. Dean, director of college counseling at Castilleja School in Palo Alto, Calif., attributed the higher application totals seen by top schools to the fact that high school seniors have been applying to more colleges.

According to Dean, this pattern is due to applicants’ financial concerns and students’ reactions to the increasing selectivity of top-tier universities.

“There’s this pernicious media hype, a frenetic pace,” Dean said. “The stories are out there that these schools are becoming more and more selective, so students panic and parents panic.”

She also noted that students who apply to many colleges may be shopping for the best financial aid offer.

Stuart Clutterbuck, a guidance counselor at Bergen County Academies in N.J., said that though he recommends applying to a maximum of ten schools, he did not discourage students who applied to as many as 18 this year.

“These days I’m not really holding the line that much on them, with the cost of school [being so high],” he said. “Apply to more schools, more safety schools that are more likely to give you merit scholarships.”

Yale Dean of Undergraduate Admissions Jeffrey Brenzel did not respond to The Crimson’s request for comment regarding why Yale did not see an increase in applications this year, but told the Yale Daily News that these numbers “could just be random.”

—Staff writer Julie M. Zauzmer can be reached at jzauzmer@college.harvard.edu.