U. admits 4,970 students into Class of 1998

2,350 students expected to enroll Rutgers Preparatory School '93 Somerset, N.J. About 36 percent of applicants for admission to the Class of 1998 received acceptance letters in the mail in April, Admissions Dean Lee Stetson said. Of the 13,731 high school seniors who applied regular decision to the University this year, 4,970 were admitted. This number was down 262 from last year's 5,232 accepted students. While fewer students were accepted regular decision, the number of applicants broke a University record and was 11 percent higher than last year's 12,394 applicants. According to Stetson, the average SAT score of this year's admitted student is 1304 -- 614 in math and 690 in verbal -- up from last year's combined score of 1296. The accepted students also rank in the top three percent of their high school classes and have an average Achievement Test score of 648, up from last year's average of 645. "The quality of the class is an even greater source of satisfaction than the large number of applicants," Stetson said. Of the students admitted, 3,236 were admitted to the College, down from last year's 3,329, he said. Only 570 high school seniors of the 2,050 who applied to the Wharton School were admitted, Stetson added. The Engineering School of Applied Science experienced a slight decrease in admits with 1,028 students receiving acceptance letters, compared to 1,125 students last year. The Nursing School was the only school to experience an increase in admits, with 136 students accepted over last year's 123. "We let fewer students in to control the class size," Stetson said. "We are expecting a class in the neighborhood of a 47 percent yield [of the 4,970.]" Stetson added that he envisions a class size of around 2,350 students, down 110 from this year's entering freshman class, the largest in recent history. Stetson said the Admissions Office intends to pare back the size of the incoming classes a little each year. This year's admitted class experienced a "significant shift" in the proportion of men to women. Forty-eight percent of those admitted are women, compared to 44 percent last year. Consistent with the lower acceptance rate this year, the number of Asian Americans, Latinos and Mexican Americans admitted was also down from last year. But, the number of African Americans admitted is up to 387, from last year's 383. The number of Puerto Ricans is also up to 62 from 59 last year. Stetson said earlier in the semester that the number of applications received this year broke the record of 13,105 set in 1988. Following the University's lead, the College received an estimated 9,180 applications, also an all-time high. The number is 14 percent higher than last year's total of 8,075. And the number of Engineering and Nursing applicants also rose by 11 and nine percent, respectively. About 2,418 high school students applied to the Engineering School, and 240 students to the Nursing School. Wharton experienced a one percent drop from last year, decreasing from 1928 to 1902 applicants. While Stetson attributed this slight decrease to a stabilization in the interest level, Janice Bellace, vice dean of Wharton, offered another reason. Bellace said the 400 applications received for the new joint-degree International Relations program between Wharton and the College were all counted in the College's applicant pool. If those applications had been included in the Wharton applicant pool, the figures would have shown a 20 percent increase, she said. Stetson said, "As of May 11, we appear to be right on target with the 2,375 freshman expected. Given the higher standards of admitted students this year, the predicted decrease in the yield does not seem to be happening." "We are probably taking students away from the most selective schools in the country, including Harvard," he added.

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