I’m an international student this year who’s looking to apply to some SLAC schools, especially for my ED. I saw that most of these have intl acceptance rates of around 2-3%, but was wondering how that plays out in the ED rounds. The school that gives the most info it seems is Amherst, who took 19 intl students last year (and maybe 7 of them were athletes). This would mean that the majority of students who applied (over 400 out of around 700) were internationals. Is this really true for the ED pool, since this means that barely any domestic students applied early to Amherst and these other colleges? Or is the intl acceptance rate a bit higher in the ED round (like 19 accepted/300 instead)? I’m trying to decide if it’s worth it to ED to any of these schools or wait until RD.
The ED rate is a bit higher because Internationals applying in the ED round tend to be stellar applicants whom SLACs know could get admitted to a “more famous in their country” university so ED is win-win for all since it means you would commit to that college. However athletes do have an advantage in that round like for domestic applicants so you can’t trust stats much. Consider that you go from 2% to 4-5% so low odds. And of course the NPC needs to indicate it’s affordable for your family, either because you’re full pay or because it’s affordable (keeping in mind you’re not eligible for federal aid and the amount is only indicative.)
I believe there is an error in your math and / or assumptions, but I’m not fact checking you.
I will, however, share the reality. Internationals comprise about 12% of the undergrad population at Amherst. That percentage won’t significantly change. It is also one of the few universities that is need blind for internationals, so internationals are probably around 25% of applicants because it seems like every international needing aid applies to the same schools.
ED rates will generally be higher, but the pool will also contain heavily hooked applicants like recruited athletes and legacies. But even backing them out, ED is still a higher acceptance rate than RD. But a sub-10% acceptance rate is still very low.
If it’s your top choice, apply ED. Trying to analyze various school’s acceptance rates as a strategy is folly, since you have no idea how your application will be viewed. Good luck.
Poster is welcome to repost under their original account. Multiple accounts are a violation of ToS.