The University mailed acceptance letters to 13.1 percent of applicants for the Class of 2002, Dean of Admission Fred Hargadon said Monday. Of the total 13,006 candidates who applied, the University offered admission to 1,698.
Last year, the University received 13,400 applications, admitting 12.9 percent of candidates. Hargadon said he attributes the reduction to a lower number of international applicants. This year 372 fewer international students applied to the University.
Despite the lower number of applications from non-citizens, the University admitted more than the 82 international students it accepted last year. "This year, in large part because of additional financial aid resources made available to such students, we were able to offer admission to 108 non-citizen students in 35 countries," Hargadon said in a memo released late Monday.
Hargadon said he admitted "about a half a dozen" international students from Latin America, an increase from past years. "That's an area where many schools just don't get a lot of them," Hargadon said.
Thirty-three percent of those admitted indicated a minority background, and 49 percent of the admits are female, Hargadon said, adding that the total numbers for each minority group have not yet been calculated.
'Toughest group'
"On sheer quantifiable measures, this was the toughest group to choose from in recent memory," Hargadon said. Fifty percent of the applicants had SAT scores over 1400 and 54 percent earned grade point averages of 3.8 or higher, he said.
"The last three weeks of the process, you just feel bad for those you don't admit," Hargadon said. "I look around this place and see how many people would give their right arm to come here," he added, sympathizing with those who were not admitted.
"Just by the luck of the draw, it's possible for a few of the really qualified students not to get into those really good schools," Hargadon said. "There are all these pressures to get into these 'name' schools. In a year or two, they'll forget they didn't get into Princeton, Harvard or Yale," he explained.
Because technology now allows quick messages, the admissions office receives notes from applicants "within an hour of when the envelope arrives," Hargadon said. Those applicants who receive rejection letters are particularly vocal, he added.
"For a lot of students who come here, this will be just one more award. For others, you're giving them such a big break," Hargadon said.
Pressure to admit
Pressure to admit does not only come from applicants and their parents, however. Hargadon said the housing department "stays on my back" to limit the number of students who matriculate.
In addition, academic departments will ask Hargadon for the list of admittees to know which excellent students will be joining their departments. "For instance, music wants to know who their top picks are," Hargadon said.
Athletic teams also hope to find a gold mine with each new class. Hargadon said he attended a University baseball game last week only to "bump into" a 6-foot-10-inch high-school senior from Texas who hopes to play baseball and basketball here. The student was admitted, Hargadon said.
According to Hargadon, "coaching" for standardized tests have made the decisions even more difficult. Therefore, scrutinizing applications has become more necessary.
Last year, Hargadon said he received the exact same essay from a prospective student from the West Coast and an applicant from the East Coast. Therefore, Hargadon said he has switched to a format of four short essays that he will probably change from year to year.
Hargadon said he and the admissions officers have worked hard to read the 13,006 applications. Each admissions officer uses a different color ink to make comments on applications. "If you have to write it down, you have to think a little more carefully," he said.
Rumor has it that Hargadon reads every application. "Not every one," he said, "but I get through a good number."
"This past weekend was the first weekend since Christmas I've been out of the office," Hargadon said, adding that he is looking forward to enjoying the spring weather.
Senior Writer Ian Shapira contributed to this article.
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