Early action admit rate sees uptick in 2019 class
Most applicants get a ‘maybe’ in first round of admissions season
On Dec. 13, 2014 at 3:16 p.m., or 12/13/14 15:16, the Office of Admissions released the application decisions of the students who applied under early action for the Class of 2019. Of the 6,519 who applied, 625 were admitted, 4,456 were deferred, and 1,327 were rejected, making for a 9.6 percent early action admission rate. That rate is one of the lowest in recent years, though it’s slightly higher than last year’s.
The admitted students hail from 49 states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico. According to the Office of Admissions, 49 percent are women, 29 percent identify as underrepresented minority students, and 16 percent would be the first from their families to attend college, a 3 percent increase from last year’s early action round.
Peer institutions also saw competitive early admission rounds. Stanford and Harvard experienced decreases in their single-choice admission rates with 10.1 percent and 16.5 percent, respectively. Early acceptance rates at Yale, with 16 percent, and Princeton, 19.9 percent, were slightly higher from last year’s. Both schools also had reduced applicant pools.”
Unlike many of these institutions, MIT’s early admission program does not penalize students who apply early to other schools. Additionally, MIT does not utilize the Common Application, a system that recently faced multiple crashes and caused much anxiety among applicants.
According to an MIT announcement, almost one-third of those offered admission to the Class of 2019 “have won national or international academic distinctions.”
This year, MIT Admissions introduced a new optional research portfolio as a supplement to the application. This allows applicants to present research conducted at a high level or through an internship and accompanies the other optional art, music, and maker supplements.
In an email to The Tech, Dean of Admissions Stuart Schmill ’86 said he expects the number of freshmen admitted annually to remain relatively stable in the future, keeping total undergraduate enrollment at approximately 4,500.
Of the early action applicants, 111 were not considered because they failed to submit a complete application or withdrew from the process altogether.
The 625 admits to the Class of 2019 will have until the spring to accept their offer of admission, after they join the regular admits in this year’s anticipated Campus Preview Weekend.