Early decision applications rise 7 percent

For the fifth consecutive year, Penn has received a record number of applications from early decision candidates.

The admissions office received 3,053 early decision applications for the Class of 2006, a 7.1 percent increase from last year's total of 2,851.

And in light of a potential decrease in interest in urban schools following the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, Penn officials are viewing the increase as especially positive.

"It's particularly encouraging given the challenging last two months that we've been dealing with," Dean of Admissions Lee Stetson said.

"Conventional wisdom would suggest that students would back away from applying early, but these numbers are encouraging," he added.

And the current numbers may still increase. Applications continue to trickle in as the postal service takes extra precautions in light of the recent anthrax outbreaks.

As a result, the University is not strictly adhering to its traditional Nov. 1 early deadline.

But Stetson said that despite delays, his office is working to ensure that applicants will still be notified by mid-December whether they have been admitted, deferred or denied.

The admissions office will start reviewing the applications on Nov. 28 and will work to have the decisions arrive in the applicants' mailboxes by Dec. 15.

"Once everything is here and arrived, we're going to treat it like any other class," Stetson said.

This year's numbers follow last year's growth of almost 11 percent. Early decision applications have been continuing to rebound since the number of applicants plunged in 1996 following a high-profile crime wave on campus.

Applicants vying for spots in the Class of 2006 are marked by their geographic diversity. Students from 48 states applied early to Penn this year; only South Dakota and New Mexico were not represented.

The number of international students applying early also increased to 321, up from 264 last year. Female applicants increased from 1,246 to 1,366.

But this year's number of minority applicants stayed constant at 1,051 -- the exact number from last year.

The number of legacies, students from families with Penn alumni, also increased to 465 this year, compared to the 420 that applied in 2000.

Stetson was unable to provide a breakdown of applicants to each of the four undergraduate schools, as joint degree applicants cannot be characterized by one school.

Stetson speculated that the increase in the number of applicants this year was due to a variety of factors.

"The combination of the continued interest in early programs across the country [and] students attempting to maximize their chances of admission by applying early and showing a commitment to Penn" have all contributed to this year's rise, he said, also noting Penn's rise in popularity as a factor.

Typically, a higher percentage of early decision applicants are admitted to Penn compared to those applying in the regular decision pool, and Stetson speculates that this year will be no different.

"If the pool is as strong as it's expected to be, we're going to try to maximize the applicants admitted," Stetson said. "We might have 45 to 50 percent of applicants admitted early."

Of last year's class, 44 percent was admitted early.

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