Ivy League Admit Rates Increase For Class Of 2029 While Applications Generally Fall
The overall acceptance rates of many Ivy League universities widened for the Class of 2029 while application numbers generally declined. This reverses a trend of these selective schools receiving record-high numbers of applications, partnered with decreasing chances of getting admitted.
Yale University accepted 4.59% of applicants, according to the student-run Yale Daily News newspaper, an uptick from the record-low 3.7% for the Class of 2028. Application numbers fell as well. The university received 50,227 applicants to become freshmen this fall, down from the 57,465 who applied in the last application cycle.
Columbia College and the School of Engineering and Applied Science admitted 4.29% of applicants for the Class of 2029, according to the student-run Columbia Spectator newspaper. This is larger than the 3.86% admit rate for the Class of 2028. The number of applicants also declined with 59,616 students applying this admissions cycle, compared with 60,248 the year before.
Brown University accepted 5.65% of students applying to become freshmen this fall, according to the student-run Brown Daily Herald newspaper. This compares with a 5.4% admit rate for the Class of 2028. In addition, the university received 42,765 applications, a significant drop from last year's 48,904.
Dartmouth announced an admission rate of 6%, higher than the record-low 5.3% for the Class of 2028. In addition, the college received 28,230 applicants, lower than the record-high 31,657 the school got the year before.
Cornell University announced that a total of 5,824 students had been accepted to the Class of 2029, which is 13.3% more than last year's 5,139 accepted students, according to the student-run Cornell Daily Sun newspaper. However, the school did not release the total number of applicants.
Harvard University did not share Class of 2029 acceptance information, according to the student-run Harvard Crimson newspaper. The University of Pennsylvania disclosed it had received 72,000 applications, according to The Daily Pennsylvanian, up from last year's 65,000, but withheld more specific data. Information from Princeton University, at the time of writing, was similarly limited.
These shifts highlight the evolving landscape of post-pandemic college admissions, shaped by the return of standardized testing, a projected decline in the youth population, and changing institutional priorities. Additionally, as concerns over the cost of a college degree grow, students are placing greater emphasis on gaining employability skills and securing a job after graduation when selecting schools.
Other schools also recently disclosed their acceptance data, indicating mixed trends. According to the student-run Daily Trojan newspaper, USC expects an admit rate of around 10% for the Class of 2029, an increase from a record-low 9.2% for the previous class. The university's admit rates had remained in the mid-teens for the graduating classes of 2020 through 2026, before falling into the single digits for the first time with the Class of 2027, according to the newspaper.
Meanwhile, MIT accepted 1,324 students out of an application pool of 29,282 students, or 4.52%. For the Class of 2028, the school accepted 4.55% of students from a total 28,232 applications.
In contrast, Amherst College received a record-high 15,818 applications and accepted 7% of the total, a significantly lower rate than the 9% for the Class of 2028. The school also said that 25% of accepted students identify as the first in their family to attend a four-year college, which is also a record-high number.
Early decision acceptance rates had risen at both Brown University and Williams College, two of the nation's top-ranked institutions, as application numbers declined. These shifts had suggested that the intense competition of recent years was starting to ease.
For the Class of 2029, Brown accepted 18% of its early decision applicants, the highest rate in six years. Williams saw its early decision acceptance rate climb to 26.6%, up from a record-low 23.3% the previous year — the first increase since 2020.
While applications to selective universities overall may be decreasing, it's possible interest in lower ranked schools that are less expensive could be rising as students seek value rather than prestige.
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