Welcome, Class of 2012!

This week marked admissions decisions announcements for colleges across the country, and, unsurprisingly, admission to Harvard College continued to be an impressive feat. Following a record high number of applications last December, acceptances plummeted—a slim 7.1 percent of applicants were offered spots in next year’s freshman class. This turn of events effectively vindicates the Harvard Admissions Office, which took heat last year with its announcement that it would eliminate the Early Action admissions program.

Critics of the change opposed it because they believed eliminating Early Action would repel the most competitive applicants, who crave admissions decisions earlier in the school year, to our peer institutions. But given the overwhelmingly positive results of this admissions batch, those fears should be assuaged.

Most importantly, according to the Admissions Office, this class of acceptances is likely to be more socioeconomically and geographically diverse than previous classes—which was the intended effect of eliminating Early Action. For instance, a record 11 percent of students are of African American descent, while 9.7 percent are Latino, 1.3 percent are Native American, and 18.5 percent are Asian-American. This diversity is unquestionably a good thing—especially given that this is increased diversity that does not come at the cost of quality of applicants.

Additionally, Harvard’s recent increase in financial aid to students of low- and middle-income backgrounds has demonstrably made Harvard’s tuition costs more accessible to Harvard families. In the admissions game, the increased perception of financial feasibility is paramount in encouraging students to apply, and the lengthened recruitment period certainly made publicizing this to students quite successful.

Another change in this year’s admissions game is that 110 fewer students have been accepted. Considering yield rates in the past, this means that the Harvard Class of 2012 may be smaller than previous classes, but given the current space concerns rocking the campus, a smaller freshman class will likely alleviate some of the recent housing burdens.

In short, although the finalized data pertaining to the Class of 2012 will not be available until after May 1, when seniors have to give Harvard an answer, it seems as though this has been a highly successful year for the Admissions Office. We laud the College for taking these progressive steps which will pay off in making this a simultaneously more competitive and diverse institution.