Now that early January application deadlines have passed at many of the country's elite colleges and universities, we're starting to get a picture of how competitive this application cycle might be. The news won't be comforting for many applicants. A few universities have begun posting numbers:
- Harvard's applications broke the 30,000 mark, up about 5% over last year (see the press release)
- The University of Chicago saw an amazing 42% increase in applications (see the press release)
- Brown's applications are up about 20% (see the press release)
- Cal State University at East Bay saw a 35% increase in applications (see the press release)
The economic crisis still has college admissions in a state of imbalance as state universities and community colleges experience a surge in applicants, and many private colleges get fewer applicants. I'd advise prospective students, however, to ignore a college's sticker price and focus instead on the amount of aid that is awarded, graduation rates, time to graduation and employment opportunities after graduation. Sticker price actually says very little about a school's true cost, which is why The Princeton Review identified many $50,000 universities as "best values" (see the top 10 picks).
Comments
Hi Allen –
Couple thoughts on this.
First – your hypothesis that increasing applications at top colleges are being driven by students applying to more schools is backed up by a new report released by the Center for Public Education. There is some great data in the report, which can be found at: http://bit.ly/8CKZqg.
Second – the report reiterates that first and foremost Admissions offices value strong grades in rigorous courses. The data even goes so far as to suggest that moderately lower grades in ‘college prep’ level classes are better than straight A’s in easier classes. I would bet that may come as a surprise to some people.
Lastly – I’d remind your readers (and current high school students in particular) that the goal is to find the college or university that is right for you. As someone who fell for the allure of a ‘top-ranked’ school only to spend my college years looking for the right niche, I can’t emphasize enough the importance of finding a place that fits you: your interests, your personality, and your academic goals.
There is too much focus and emphasis on college rankings these days, and that kind of environment can have very negative consequences.
-Rich