College admissions is a tough game. Even the most proactive, organized, and prepared students need help with their applications, essays, and financial aid forms. Add the complexities of applying to colleges from another country, and the process can become downright unbearable. The process of counseling international students can be particularly difficult because they lack context, particularly when it comes to Ivy League schools or other highly selective institutions. So, let’s look at a few “snapshots” from the most recent early application cycle:
Duke: The results are in for the Early Decision pool of the Duke Class of 2021. In all, 861 students earned admission in the Early Decision round at Duke this year to be members of the Class of 2021. These 861 students hailed from an Early Decision record applicant pool of 3, 516 applicants. By other peoples’ mathematics, that marks an Early Decision admission rate of 24.5%.
Georgetown: Georgetown University received 7, 822 applications from students seeking Early Action admission to the Jesuit institution as members of the Class of 2021. 11.9% of the 7, 822 Georgetown Early Action applicants received offers of admission. It marked the lowest Early Action admission rate in the university’s storied history. The Early action pool was significantly larger than last year, for the Class of 2020. Indeed, applications to Georgetown this Early cycle rose by 11%.
Harvard: The Early Action numbers are in for the Harvard Class of 2021. This year, applications rose by a margin of 5% — 6, 473 students ended up applying Early to the university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Of those 6, 473 applicants, 938 earned offers of admission.
As reported by “The Harvard Gazette, ” “The demographics for the Class of 2021 early action group are similar to last year’s group. Slightly more women (48.0 vs. 47.4 percent) make up the new class thus far, and more African-American students were admitted (12.6 percent vs. 9.5 percent last year). In addition, 21.7 percent of admitted students identify as Asian-American (compared with 24.1 percent last year), 8.8 percent as Latinos (vs. 9.5 percent), and 1.1 percent as Native American and Native Hawaiian (vs. 1.6 percent).
Georgia Tech: The Yellow Jackets received 15, 700 applicants in the early pool and they are only trying to create a class of 2, 800 students. GIT’s Computer Science Department received 5, 500 applications alone – for a class of 300 students!
I share this information with international students to help give context to the admission results that just came out. And, to warn students preparing to start the application process. Please recognized how difficult it will be to be admitted to any top university in the United States. And, most importantly, develop a college list that is realistic.