Cornell’s admitted class of 2025 – a class that applied to college during an unprecedented year interrupted by pandemic-related closures and quarantines – is an impressive one and its composition has set new levels of diversity for the university.
“This has been a year like no other,” said Shawn Felton, executive director of undergraduate admissions for Cornell. “The lives of our applicants – and their experiences as high-school students – have changed. As a result, the way we reviewed applications also changed. It was especially important to be flexible this year; understanding and empathy have been key considerations for us.”
Cornell admitted 5,836 students to the Class of 2025, including early decision admission candidates.
The university continues to attract a diverse and inclusive student body. The proportion of admitted students who self-identify as underrepresented minorities increased to 34.2% from 33.7% last year, and 59.3% self-identify as students of color. That number has increased steadily over the past five years, enrollment officials said, from 52.5% in 2017 and 57.2% last year.
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| College | Number of EA/ED Applicants | Number of Accepted Students | Acceptance Rate (%) – Class of 2025 | Acceptance Rate (%) – Class of 2024 | Acceptance Rate (%) – Class of 2023 | Acceptance Rate (%) – Class of 2022 | Acceptance Rate (%) – Class of 2021 |
|---|
| Brown | 5,540 | 885 | 15.9 | 17.5 | 18.2 | 21 | 22 |
| Columbia | 6,435 | 650 | ~10 | ||||
| Cornell | 23.8 | 22.6 | 24.4 | 25.8 | |||
| Dartmouth | 2,664 | 566 | 21 | 26.4 | 23.2 | 24.9 | |
| Duke | 5,036 | 840 | 16.7 | 20.6 | 18 | 21.4 | 24.5 |
| Harvard | 10,086 | 747 | 7.4 | 13.9 | 13.4 | 14.5 | 14.5 |
| Penn | 7,962 | 1,194 | 15 | 19.7 | 18 | 18.5 | 22 |
| Princeton | NA | NA | NA | 13.9 | 14.7 | 15.4 | |
| Yale | 7,939 | 837 | 10.5 | 13.78 | 13.2 | 14.7 | 17.1 |

Selected from a total of 5,540 applicants, the Class of 2025’s first members reflects Brown University’s ongoing commitment to making a Brown education more accessible to students from every socioeconomic background.
Applications through the program, intended for prospective students who have expressed a commitment to attend Brown if accepted, increased 22% compared to the Class of 2024. The essay writing service assumes that It is the fourth consecutive year that early decision applications have increased
Harvard College’s early action acceptance rate decreased to 7.4% as the number of total applicants hit a record high, marking the most competitive early admissions cycle in Harvard history.
Harvard invited 747 of 10,086 early applicants to join the Class of 2025 Thursday at 7 p.m. Last year, the College accepted 895 of 6,424 applicants. The number of applicants increased by 57% from last year, while the College admitted 148 fewer students.
Duke accepted the lowest percentage of Early Decision applicants in its history to the Class of 2025.
There were 5,036 Early Decision applicants this year. Of that number, Duke admitted 840 high school seniors for a 16.7% acceptance rate.
The University of Pennsylvania received 7,962 applications under the first-choice Early Decision Program for the entering class of 2025. From this group of highly talented and compelling students from around the globe, 1,194 students were offered admission, approximately 50% of the expected enrolling class in the fall of 2021.
54% of the admitted students are female, 50% of the admitted students are U.S. Citizens/Permanent Residents self-identifying as a person of color, and 12% are first-generation college students. 22% of the admitted students had a parent or grandparent attend Penn in prior generations. 13% are estimated to qualify for a Federal Pell Grant.
Admitted students have pursued a most demanding secondary school curriculum in a range of educational settings. The University of Pennsylvania adopted a test-optional policy with regard to standardized tests for the 2020-2021 application cycle. 24% of the Early Decision admitted students did not include testing as part of their application. For the admitted students including testing in their application, the middle 50% testing ranges are 1470-1560 on the SAT and 34-35 on the ACT.
Yale has offered admission to 837 applicants for the class of 2025 through its early action program, the Office of Undergraduate Admissions announced on Dec. 16. According to the office, 50% of students who applied through early action were deferred for reconsideration in the spring, 38% were denied admission, and 1% were withdrawn or incomplete.
The admissions office received a record 7,939 applications in the early action round — an increase of 38% over last year, said Jeremiah Quinlan, dean of undergraduate admissions and financial aid.
MIT received 15,036 early applications this year. This is an unprecedented increase of approximately 62% from last year’s early action period.
As of December 19, 719 applicants have been accepted to the Class of 2025; thus making the admission rate 5%. 10,656 high school students have been deferred and 3,101 students have been rejected this year.
A record number of students made the decision that Johns Hopkins is their first choice college, with an 11% increase in early applicants from last year.
520 talented high school students from across the globe who applied for early admission to Johns Hopkins University were offered admission last week, making them the first members of the undergraduate Class of 2025.
The remainder of the Class of 2025 will be selected from the Early Decision II and Regular Decision applicant pool. Early Decision II and Regular Decision applications are due by 11:59 p.m. EST on January 4. Early Decision II decisions will be released on Feb 12 and regular admissions decisions will be announced in mid-March.
769 students received news of their Early Decision admission to Emory University’s undergraduate Class of 2025. Out of 1,975 Early Decision I applicants, these students emerged ready to make their mark, learn from one another, and shape a more sustainable, equitable world.
Emory’s Early Decision I applications increased 8% over last year and 43% from five years ago. Along with this increase in volume, the academic strength and diversity of the applicant pool continue to grow, indicating that top students from around the world are choosing to apply to Emory. Students who apply to any university in Early Decision commit to enrolling if admitted with adequate financial aid.

The University of Virginia has welcomed the first members of the Class of 2025, sending acceptances on Friday evening to 968 students who applied in the school’s binding early decision application cycle.
This year’s early decision acceptees have filled 25.8% of the incoming class. UVA aims to enroll 3,750 undergraduates this year. Non-binding, early action decisions go out in mid-February, and students who applied as part of the regular decision cycle will be notified by April 1.
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| College | Number of Early Applicants | Admitted | Admission Rate (%) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Boston College | 1950 | 800 | 41 |
| Georgetown University | 8,700 | 957 | 11 |
| Georgia Tech | 6,132 | 2,330 | 38 |
| Rice University | 2,635 | 421 | 16 |
| Williams College | 715 | 235 | 33 |
| Providence | 7,000 | 3,800 | 54 |
| School Name | # of Applicants for Class of 2025 | # Accepted into Class of 2025 | Acceptance Rate for Class of 2025 | Acceptance Rate for Class of 2024 |
| Brown University | 46,568 | 2,537 | 5.4% | 6.9% |
| Columbia University | 60,551 | 2,218 | 3.7% | 6.1% |
| Cornell University | ~67,000 | 5,863 | ~9.0% | 10.7% |
| Dartmouth College | 28,357 | 1,749 | 6.2% | 8.8% |
| Harvard University | 57,435 | 1,968 | 3.4% | 4.9% |
| Penn | 56,333 | 3,404 | 5.7% | 8.1% |
| Princeton University | 37,601 | 1,498 | 4.0% | 5.6% |
| Yale | 46,905 | 2,169 | 4.6% | 6.5% |
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| School Name | #of Applicants for Class of 2025 | # of Accepted into Class of 2025 | Acceptance Rate for Class of 2025 | Acceptance Rate for Class of 2024 |
| Amherst College | ~14,000 | ~1,120 | 8.0% | 11.8% |
| Duke University | 49,555 | 2,855 | 5.8% | 7.7% |
| Middlebury College | 11,908 | 1,871 | 15.7% | 24% |
| MIT | 33,240 | 1,340 | 4.0% | 7.3% |
| Rice University | 29,523 | 2,749 | 9.3% | 10.0% |
| Tufts University | ~31,000 | ~3,410 | 11.0% | 16.3% |
| University of Notre Dame | 23,639 | 3,446 | 14.6% | 16.5% |
| University of Southern California | 70,971 | 8,804 | 12.4% | 16.0% |
| Vanderbilt University | 47,174 | 3,162 | 6.7% | 10.4% |
| Williams College | ~1,000 | ~12,500 | ~8.0% | ~12.0% |
Highly-Selective Colleges & Universities Facts & Trends:
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