Dartmouth saw an unprecedented number of applicants this year, as 11,700 applications found their way to McNutt Hall by the Jan. 1 deadline.
"It was a record year by huge margins," Dean of Admissions Karl Furstenberg said. "It will be the largest applicant pool in Dartmouth history, and we're up more than anyone else in the Ivy League."
The pool of 11,700 applicants is up 15 percent over last year's figure of 10,200, a far larger percentage increase than any other school in the Ivy League. Harvard also saw a record number of applicants, with 20,918, but experienced only a 6.7 percent increase over last year's number.
While the increase in applications is good news for Dartmouth, it will do little to reassure student applicants.
"Overall the admit rate will be well below 20 percent for the first time ever," Furstenberg said. "It's going to be a lot tougher to get into Dartmouth this year."
Furstenberg expects the admittance rate to drop to 18 percent, down from 21 percent from last year.
The constitution of this year's applicant pool was also unique. Nearly two-thirds of this year's applicants are from public schools, up from 60 percent the last two years.
While the male-to-female ratio remained the same as last year -- 53 percent male to 47 percent female -- the numbers of international students and students of color increased drastically. International student applications were at "an all-time high," up 17 percent from last year, Furstenberg said.
Likewise, Dartmouth received "record levels" of applications from students of color -- 11 percentage point more than last year, Furstenberg said. African-American student applications were up 15 percent, Asian-American students climbed 16 percent, Latino students gained 10 percent and Native Americans rose 12 percent from last year.
This year's SAT averages were the highest in history for any class of applicants. The averages for the entire pool of applicants were 678 on the verbal section and 699 for the math section.
"In comparison to other comparable schools, we've done really well," Furstenberg said. "Our numbers are high, our diversity is high and all in all we have a terrific class of applicants."
Furstenberg credited the sizeable increase to various efforts on behalf of the admissions department in recruiting students.
Most notably, according to Furstenberg, the admissions department has increased internet and email advertising, putting an increased emphasis on encouraging students to apply online. Additionally, the number of students visiting the campus in recent years has been going up as well.
"We've worked hard to be welcoming on campus," said Furstenberg, "and we've seen a lot more visitors."
