While early decision applications for the Class of 2006 continue to trickle in, preliminary numbers show little change compared to recent years.
The Office of Admissions delayed the application deadline, usually at the start of the month, to Nov. 16 this year due to the Sept. 11 attacks and anthrax related delays plaguing the U.S. Postal Service.
The total number of applications received presently stands at 1,102, down slightly from last year's figure of 1,135 but above the Class of 2004's 1,091 applicants.
The geographic breakdown of early applicants shows slight increases for all regions except a marginal decline in the South and, interestingly, a more substantial 36-student drop among New England students.
"There had been a lot of speculation that students would stay closer to home for college but that seems not to be the case for bright and ambitious students," Dean of Admissions Karl Furstenberg told The Dartmouth, referring to post Sept. 11 concerns.
Over twice as many Native American and multi-racial applicants sent in early applications this year, though numbers for African American and Latino students fell by seven students each. Furstenberg reported that regular decision minority applicants are also slightly ahead of figures available this time last year.
The SAT math mean for early applicants rose seven points to 696, while the average verbal score of 674 remains close to last year's figure of 673.
The pools of applicants from public and parochial high schools dropped by 30 and 11 students, respectively, while private schools' numbers were up slightly.
Furstenberg estimated that Dartmouth will admit between 350 and 370 students from the early applicant pool. These numbers represent a slight drop from last year, on account of the College's goal of creating a freshmen class smaller than the Class of 2005's 1,134 students.
The University of Pennsylvania saw early decision applications increase by 7.1 percent to 3053 students. This spike marks the fifth consecutive year in which applications to the Philadelphia university have risen.
"Conventional wisdom would suggest that students would back away from applying early, but these numbers are encouraging," Penn Dean of Admissions Lee Stetson told The Daily Pennsylvanian.
Applications to Columbia University rose 6.5 percent, but the university's undergraduate School of Engineering and Applied Science met with an 8.3 percent decrease. Columbia's rise in applications this year fell short of the respective 14.9 and 12.6 percent increases in 1999 and 2000.
