Yale College admits 2,275 applicants from record applicant pool

Yale’s Office of Undergraduate Admissions has completed its review of first-year applications and offered admission to 2,275 of the 52,250 students who applied for the Class of 2027. The newly admitted applicants will be joined by an additional 54 students who were admitted during the 2021-22 admissions cycle but opted to postpone their matriculation for one year.

The cohort of admitted students includes 776 applicants who were notified of their admission in December though the Early Action program and 66 more who were admitted through the QuestBridge National College Match program. For more than 15 years, Yale has partnered with QuestBridge, a nonprofit organization that connects high-achieving students from lower-income backgrounds with selective colleges and universities. Since 2007, more than 2,000 QuestBridge finalists have been admitted to Yale College.

Students admitted to the Class of 2027 represent 50 states, the District of Columbia, four U.S. territories, and 78 countries. They will arrive at Yale as graduates of more than 1,500 secondary schools, and their intended majors include 82 of Yale’s undergraduate academic programs.

This year’s pool of applicants for first-year admission was the largest in the college’s history — nearly 5% larger than the previous year, said Jeremiah Quinlan, dean of undergraduate admissions and financial aid. Since 2020, the first-year applicant pool has grown by nearly 50%, a shift Quinlan attributed to Yale adopting a test-optional policy in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

“The strength and diversity of the applicant pool is much more important than the number of applications we receive,” said Quinlan. “I am pleased that Yale College continues to appeal to promising students from a wide range of backgrounds. I am also proud that the admissions office has been able to continue its thoughtful whole-person review process of each applicant, even as the volume of applications has increased.”

Mark Dunn, director of outreach and recruitment, said the admissions office is eager to engage with newly admitted students before the May 1 reply deadline. All admitted students will be invited to visit campus for Bulldog Days — a three-day program, being held April 24-26, that allows admitted students to explore campus, connect with faculty, and meet their future classmates. The admission office will also offer dozens of opportunities for admitted students to connect with Yale virtually.

“The Yale community does an extraordinary job opening its arms to admitted students every spring,” said Dunn. “I believe Yale’s greatest asset is its people, and my top priority in the month of April is connecting admitted students with the undergraduates, faculty, and staff who make Yale so special.”

Dunn expressed his gratitude for the student volunteers who will open their residential college suites to visiting admitted students and host special events, the faculty who will participate in the academic fair and lead master classes, and the countless staff who will help more than 1,200 admitted students get a taste of life at Yale during Bulldog Days. 

The admissions office makes a special effort to provide travel funding to students from lower-income families to enable them to visit campus before finalizing their college decision. Last year more than 500 admitted students received grants to travel to campus for Bulldog Days. 

For all admitted students, Yale College meets 100% of demonstrated financial need, regardless of citizenship or immigration status. New adjustments to Yale’s financial aid methodology will lower net costs for many middle-income families of admitted students, Quinlan said. The changes, which amount to $2.5 million in new annual investments, affect how financial need is calculated relative to families’ savings and home equity.

In 2021, the Office of Undergraduate Financial Aid announced several other enhancements to Yale College financial aid policies. Those changes reduced costs and increased the amount of a Yale Scholarship — Yale’s need-based grant aid — by $7,500 over four years for most undergraduates receiving financial aid.

Newly admitted students will have until May 1 to reply to their offer of admission.