Ivy League lowest acceptance rates for Class of 2021
By Bonnie K. Goodman , BA MLIS
It is Ivy League acceptance day. Thursday afternoon, March 30, 2017, at 5 p.m. the Ivy League universities sent out acceptances as thousands of anxious high school seniors found out if they would join the scholarly elite. Late Thursday afternoon Brown University, Columbia University, Cornell University, Dartmouth College, Harvard University, The University of Pennsylvania, Princeton University and Yale University released their acceptance data for the Class of 2021 continuing the trend towards lower acceptance rates for nearly all schools, except Yale.
The following is the Ivy League Class of 2021 acceptance data:
Brown University: Brown University had a “record-low” 8.3 acceptance rate, admitting 2,027 applicants for their new freshmen class with just a 6.5 acceptance rate for regular decision. This year Brown saw a record 32,724 applications. Brown also waited listed 1,000 high school seniors. Last year, Brown had a 9% acceptance rate for the Class of 2020, with 2,919 students accepted out of 32,390 applicants. In December as part of early decision admission, Brown accepted 695 applicants out of 3,170 applications for an acceptance rate of 21.9 percent.
Columbia University: Columbia College also had a lower acceptance rate, representing just 5.8 percent of their applicant pool. Columbia admitted just 2,185 from a record 37,389 applicants. Last year, Columbia had a 6.04% acceptance rate for the Class of 2020, with 2,193 students accepted out of 36,292 applicants.
Cornell University: Cornell University admitted 5,889 students from a record number of 47,038 applicants. An additional 5,713 students were placed on a wait list. Last year, Cornell had a 13.96% acceptance rate for the Class of 2020, with 6,277 students accepted out of 44,966 applicants. In December, Cornell accepted approximately 1,350 applicants out of 5,384 early applications for an acceptance rate of 25.6 percent.
Dartmouth College: Dartmouth College accepted 2,092 students into the Class of 2021out of 20,034 applications with an acceptance rate 10.4 percent, the second largest in the Ivy League. Last year, Dartmouth had a 10.52% acceptance rate for the Class of 2020, with 2,176 students accepted out of 20,675 applicants. In December as part of the early decision program, Dartmouth accepted 555 applicants out of 1,999 applications for an acceptance rate of 27.8 percent.
Harvard University: Harvard College admitted 2,056 students out of a record of 39,506 applicants, to have a 5.2 percent acceptance rate. The acceptance rate is almost the same as last year when 5.22 percent or 2,037 students were admitted out a historic high amount of 39,044 applications. For the regular admission cycle, Harvard accepted 1,118 students. In December as part of their early action program, Harvard accepted 938 applicants out of 6,473 applications for an acceptance rate of 14.5 percent.
Princeton University: Princeton University invited just 6.1 percent of applicants to join the University, 1,890 students out of a “record” 31,056 applicants. Princeton has a “target class size” of 1,308 freshmen. Last year, Princeton had a 6.46% acceptance rate for the Class of 2020, with 1,894 students accepted out of 29,303 applicants. In December, Princeton accepted 770 applicants out of 5,003 applications for an acceptance rate of 15.4 percent as part of the “single-choice early action” program. Additionally, Princeton placed 1,168 students on their waitlist.
The University of Pennsylvania: UPenn accepted 3,699 students from 40,413 applicants for “a record-low 9.15 percent acceptance rate.” Last year, UPenn had a 9.4% acceptance rate for the Class of 2020, with 3,661students accepted out of 38,918 applicants. In December, UPenn sent notifications to 1,364 students that they were accepted as part of the early decision program with a 24 percent acceptance rate. The University believes they will have a targeted 2,445 students enrolling in the fall.
Yale University: Yale University accepted 2,272 students out of “record” 32,900 applicants, making a 6.9 percent acceptance rate. Last year, Yale had a 6.27% acceptance rate for the Class of 2020, with 1,972 students accepted out of a record 31,455 applicants. In December, as part of early admission, Yale accepted 871 applicants out of 5,086 applications for an acceptance rate of 17.1 percent. Additionally, 1,181 students were placed on the wait list.
Bonnie K. Goodman BA, MLIS (McGill University), is a journalist, librarian, historian & editor. She is a former Features Editor at the History News Network & reporter at Examiner.com where she covered politics, universities, religion and news. She has a dozen years experience in education & political journalism.
