Are College Acceptance Rates Hurting Higher Education?

The number of students applying to college seems to rise every year, and 2016 is no exception. Colleges and universities across the US are seeing an increase in number of applicants yet again, and many are reporting record numbers. Princeton’s acceptance rate for the newly admitted Class of 2020 was a startling 6.46%, working out to 1,894 students accepted out of nearly 30,000 applicants. Harvard accepted only 5.22% of almost 30,000 students as well. Yale and Cornell also reported record numbers of both applicants and acceptance rates. But how important are these numbers to the applicants themselves?

It’s important to keep in mind just what acceptance rates represent, and what other facts and figures there are to take into consideration. Total number of applicants plays a role, and it’s a number that is often overlooked. An acceptance rate of 6% is meaningful, but a school that only accepts 600 students is going to be that much harder to get into.

Test scores, GPA, total tuition cost, enrollment numbers, and plenty more figures are also important to consider. For high schoolers applying to college, keep in mind that acceptance rates aren’t everything. With over 3,500 colleges and universities in the US alone, there are always options. Other high quality, top tier schools have higher acceptance rates, yet are still considered to be some of the most competitive in the country (for example: University of Michigan - 26.2%, UCLA - 17.3%, Notre Dame - 21.2%).

As the number of applicants rises and the acceptance rates fall, will students become less likely to apply? If the standard of admission is so high, should students continue to apply to schools that are considered “reach” targets? According to Yale’s recently reported statistics on the Class of 2020, of the almost 30,000 students that applied, almost 12,300 had GPAs of 4.0 or higher. That sheer number of highly qualified students is high, which begs the question: should students themselves be more selective? Will colleges continue to push for more applicants to lower their acceptance rates?

If you’re looking to find out how to beat the odds and get accepted to your dream school, search our database to find students who got in. You’ll see their test scores and GPA, application essays, and advice questions about the college application process, all of which can help you get into college.

Sources: NJ.com, The Crimson, Peterson’s, Huffington Post.