Yale College admits 2,169 applicants from record applicant pool
Yale’s Office of Undergraduate Admissions has completed its review of first-year applications and offered admission to 2,169 of the 46,905 students who applied for the Class of 2025. The newly admitted applicants will be joined by an additional 336 students who were admitted during the 2019-2020 admissions cycle but opted to postpone their matriculation for one year.
Yale College received a record number of applications — an increase of 33% over the previous year (35,220).
Last week President Peter Salovey and Provost Scott Strobel shared their optimism that Yale will have a full residential program for undergraduates with faculty conducting classes primarily in person this upcoming fall semester, if public health conditions permit.
“The young people we met through the application process have experienced an unbelievable amount of change, disruption, and hardship this past year,” said Jeremiah Quinlan, dean of undergraduate admissions and financial aid. “But their resilience, leadership, service to their families and others, and commitment to their academic pursuits have been truly remarkable. Our newest students will bring an extraordinary range of experiences and identities, insights and ambitions, talents and intelligences to Yale.”
Quinlan explained that — despite the increase in applications and disruptions associated with the pandemic — the admissions office retained all the elements of its thoughtful whole-person review process when selecting applicants for the Class of 2025. To preserve the same careful and contextual approach to evaluating applications, officers devoted more hours to reading, and members of the Admissions Committee, unable to gather at the admissions office on Hillhouse Avenue, instead held their deliberations virtually. Applicants also conducted virtual interviews with volunteer members of the Alumni Schools Committee and Yale seniors employed by the admissions office.
Students admitted to the Class of 2025 represent all 50 states, Washington D.C., Puerto Rico, Guam, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and 72 countries. They will arrive as graduates of more than 1,600 secondary schools and their intended majors include 79 of Yale’s undergraduate academic programs.
Last summer, approximately 20% of students admitted to the Class of 2024 opted to take a gap year. Typically, only 3% to 4% of students take this option, but the increase did not force the admissions office to extend fewer offers to students graduating high school in 2021. “I am very grateful to the university leaders who approved our plan to offer admission to the same number of students this cycle as in a typical year,” said Quinlan.
In December, Yale offered admission to 837 applicants through the Early Action program and 72 applicants through the QuestBridge National College Match program. QuestBridge is a national non-profit organization that connects high-achieving students from lower-income backgrounds with selective colleges and universities. Those 72 students qualify for Yale’s most generous financial aid award, which includes a “zero parent share,” hospitalization insurance coverage, a $2,000 grant to help with one-time expenses in the first year, and a student share expectation of only $3,700 — an amount equal to Yale’s estimate for out-of-pocket costs like books, laundry, and other personal expenses.
Under policies announced in fall 2019, all U.S. students in families with less than $75,000 in annual income and typical assets qualify for one of these awards. Yale is one of only a handful of U.S. institutions with a “need-blind” admissions policy for all applicants, regardless of citizenship or immigration status, while also meeting the full demonstrated financial need of every student without requiring loans. In the last eight years, the percentage of students in the first-year class receiving Federal Pell Grants, which are awarded to low-income students, has increased from 12% to over 20%.
Despite the disruptions associated with the pandemic, Yale has maintained all of its extraordinary need-based aid policies. This year Yale waived the “student share” portion of financial aid awards for those students enrolling remotely and adjusted the cost of attendance to provide additional aid to account for technology costs for remote learners.
The Yale campus is closed to visitors this spring, but admitted students (affectionately known as “prefrosh”) and their families will have dozens of opportunities to connect during the Bulldog Days of April — a new collection of virtual welcome events.
Ashleigh Corvi, the admissions office’s director of recruitment, said she’s eager to repeat the success of last year’s inaugural program and expand this year’s program with new events. “There is no true substitute for visiting campus, but the spirit and warmth of the Yale community come through loud and clear in every virtual event we host,” Corvi said.
She also expressed her gratitude to the faculty, administrators, and student group leaders who will host special events for prefrosh, as well as the countless Yale College students who will answer questions and share their experiences through candid conversations. “Yale’s greatest asset is its people, and I’m endlessly impressed by the enthusiasm and generosity our community members extend to our admitted students and their families each spring.”
Throughout the month of April, prefrosh will be able to chat in a new Admitted Students Network, attend online master classes offered by Yale faculty, watch live-streamed video panels featuring facets of campus life, and explore virtual content from student organizations.
Students will have until May 3 to reply to Yale’s offer of admission.