Yale admits 735 early action applicants, including highly qualified, low-income students

Yale College has accepted 735 of the 4,750 early action applicants for the class of 2018. Another 2,735 applications were deferred for reconsideration in the spring, and 1,225 were denied.
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This year's annual freshman holiday dinner at Commons. (Photo by Philipp Arndt '16)

Yale College has accepted 735 of the 4,750 early action applicants for the class of 2018. Another 2,735 applications were deferred for reconsideration in the spring, and 1,225 were denied.

Yale’s early applicant pool grew by 5.5% compared to last year, and has increased 10% over the past two years. “An extraordinarily accomplished group of students sought entry to Yale from every part of the country and the world,” said Jeremiah Quinlan, dean of undergraduate admissions. ”Across every dimension, we saw increased strength and diversity in this year’s applicant pool.”

By committing to an admissions policy that does not consider a student’s ability to pay, and by meeting the full financial need of all admitted students (with no loans required), Yale ensures that it is accessible to the most talented students from around the world, regardless of their family’s income.

In keeping with a commitment to attracting students from all economic backgrounds, Yale also offered admission on Monday to 24 students through the QuestBridge National College Match. QuestBridge is a nonprofit organization that has demonstrated an extraordinary capability for identifying high-achieving, low-income students, said Quinlan. Yale has been a partner with QuestBridge since 2007 and hosts one of three national QuestBridge Conferences each summer.

In the past few years Yale has admitted between 20 and 25 students through the National College Match each fall, and significantly more (between 70 and 90) in the regular decision application process. Since becoming a QuestBridge partner six years ago, Yale has offered admission to nearly 500 Quest Scholars; there are currently more than 190 Quest Scholars enrolled in Yale College.

“Overall, we saw an increased number of highly talented first-generation and low-income students in our early applicant pool and in the group of students we admitted,” said Quinlan. Similarly, 60% of QuestBridge finalists participating in the National College Match ranked Yale as one of their top-ranked choices. “We admitted only those students we felt certain we would admit had they applied through the regular decision process,” said Quinlan. “The Early Action applicants and Quest Scholars we deferred for reconsideration in the coming months are good candidates whose chances of admission will be similar to those of our regular decision applicants.”

Yale expects to make another 1,300 to 1,400 offers in the spring, aiming for a freshman class of about 1,360 for enrollment in the fall of 2014. “We like to reserve a good number of our spaces for those students who apply via the regular decision process,” said Quinlan. “We want to see the full applicant pool before admitting the majority of the class.” 

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Media Contact

Karen N. Peart: karen.peart@yale.edu, 203-980-2222