class of 2011 ED admissions

sybbie719
Thu, 04 Jan 2007 10:29:03 +0000

Dartmouth admitted approximately 30 percent of its early decision applicants, filling one-third of the Class of 2011. Application numbers decreased by approximately 2 percent from 1,317 to 1,287 early applicants, a normal rate of fluctuation according to Dean of Admissions and Financial Karl Furstenberg. The number of students admitted decreased by less than one percent.

“I think that really reflects our thinking about the responsible use of early decision,” Furstenberg said regarding the slight drop in the admit rate. “We’ve said publicly in the course of the debate this fall that it’s reasonable for a college to take about a third of its class early, so we felt an obligation to really try to keep it to roughly a third.”

The students – 193 males and 189 females – were notified of their admission to the College on Dec. 7, 2006.

The geographic distribution of admitted students showed a strong variation from previous years with a large decrease in students from the Northeast. Ninety-one students were admitted from New England and 110 students were admitted from the Mid-Atlantic, down from 102 and 136 students, respectively, in 2005. The number of admitted students from the Midwest, South and far West increased.

“I think we’re off to a really good start on this class,” Furstenberg said. “The numbers are pretty consistent with the last couple years and since these years have been so selective and competitive, it’s good to be at the same place.”

Thirty admitted students live outside the United States and 23 are non-citizens, making up the largest number of international students ever to be admitted to the College during early decision.

Approximately 50 percent of those accepted attended public school, down from 59 percent in 2005. Of the 382 admitted applicants, 45 percent attended private school and 5 percent attended parochial.

Fifty-eight of the accepted students were legacies, a slight drop from the 60 legacies admitted early last year.

The academic profile of those accepted also remains strong and quite similar to previous years. Despite slight drops in SAT scores, the percentage of students ranking at the top of their classes increased slightly. Valedictorians made up 27 percent of the admits, salutatorians 10 percent and students in the top tenth of their class 90 percent.** Among accepted students the mean SAT verbal score was 702, the mean SAT math score 713 and the mean SAT writing score 701.**

Recruited athletes – of which there were 120 – comprised about 31 percent of the admitted group. According to Furstenberg, the majority of athletic recruitment in the Ivy League is accomplished through early admissions programs, a process he said is a “fairly efficient way” to enroll recruited athletes in the absence of athletic scholarships.

Despite slight fluctuations among groups, the total number of students of color admitted early remained similar to last year; 70 students of color were admitted early to the College this year, compared to 71 students in 2005.