Class of 2028 Early Decision Trends
Although there has been some variability, more students are applying Early Decision or Restrictive Early Action to highly selective colleges resulting in even lower admission rates. Here is a summary of early admissions statistics for the Class of 2028.
Ivy League Universities
Brown University
Admitted 898 students Early Decision out of 6,244 applicants for a 14% admission rate.
19% of admitted ED students are the first in their families to attend college and 12% are international students.
Brown stated it is focusing on outreach to rural, low income, and first generation students as part of the admissions process.
The ED pool was the second largest in Brown history but down slightly from 2022. Read release here.
Dartmouth
Admitted 606 Early Decision students out of 3,550 applicants for a historically low 17% admission rate.
The ED pool increased by 18% over 2022, setting another record number of ED applications.
For future applicants, it is important to note that 75% of students admitted in the ED round submitted standardized test scores and 24% were ranked either first or second in their high school class (for high schools that rank). Read press release here.
Harvard
Admitted 692 students single-choice early action out of 7,921 (down from 9,553 applicants last year) for an 8.74% admission rate (up from last year’s 7.56% admission rate)
22% of early admits came from New England, 17% were international students and 15.5% were first generation college students.
Harvard continues to defer large numbers of early applicants with 83% deferred (and only 7% denied). Read press release here.
Yale
Admitted 709 students under its Single Choice Early Action plan out of 7,856 applicants for an acceptance rate of 9% (its lowest since instituting SCEA).
Yale deferred 20% of early applicants to the regular decision round and denied 70% showing Yale’s continuing trend of rejecting a higher percentage of early applicants. Read press release here.
Columbia, Cornell, Penn, and Princeton do not release ED admission statistics.
Other Notable Early Decision Results
Duke
Duke admitted 806 students ED out of 6,240 for a new record low 12.9% acceptance rate. Duke’s ED applicant pool increased 28% for the Class of 2028. Read news release here.
Emory
Admitted 865 students out of 2,704 applicants, for a 37% admit rate. 705 were admitted to Emory College (as opposed to Oxford).
While Emory remains test-optional, only 39% of admitted students to Emory College did not submit test scores. Read article here.
MIT
Admitted 661 students out of 12,563 for a 5.3% admit rate.
MIT deferred 8,052. MIT’s incoming class size is approximately 1,130 (meaning there are less than 500 places left for students applying in the regular round). Read article here.
UVA
UVA received 4,465 total ED applications (2,573 in state and 1,893 from out-of-state applicants) and admitted 1,133 students (782 in state and 581 out-of-state). The acceptance rate for out-of-state was 18.5% (30% for instate). Read the blog here.
Boston University
Admitted over 1,300 applicants out of approximately 3,832 for a 34% admit rate.
ED applicants increased by about 5% from last year.
35% of admitted students submitted standardized test scores. Read article here.
As students research and visit colleges, they should consider whether they have a college that is their first choice and think about whether applying Early Decision makes sense.
If you would like help in your college admissions process, please visit Excelsior Admissions Consulting Excelsior Admissions Consulting to find out more information, or click here to schedule a free 30-minute consultation.
