The start of a new year brings opportunities for introspection, resolutions, and fresh perspectives. Whether cleaning out the closet, redecorating a room, or checking flights to an up-and-coming tourist destination, the possibilities for reinventing oneself this January abound.
But if you’re a high school student looking forward to the transition to college, you have more to worry about than Instagram trends.
Just like every other industry, the college admissions landscape evolves based on seasonal trends, and savvy students must be aware of these rapid changes in order to put their best foot forward in the admissions process. The end of the year is an optimal time to take an inventory of the latest developments in college admissions, as the early admissions round shines some light on what to expect in the coming spring when Regular Decision results are released.
Whether you are a freshman dreaming of receiving an Ivy League acceptance or a senior finalizing your regular decision applications, here’s what you need to know about what’s in—and out—in college admissions in 2025.
What’s In
1. Early Admission
Early admissions pathways (whether Early Decision or Early Action) have become some of the most popular and strategic ways to improve one’s odds of acceptance to their dream school. Brown’s acceptance rate for the Class of 2029 rose to 17.9%, compared with a mere 3.8% for Regular Decision for the Class of 2028. Likewise, UPenn announced that nearly half of their incoming freshman class was accepted during the early round. The admissions boost from early applications is so decisive that the admissions path has recently come under scrutiny for potentially favoring some students (particularly wealthy applicants) over others. In the coming year, expect to see not only the continued popularity of early admissions, but also sustained inquiries into its impact on colleges’ campus demographics.
2. Video Introductions
Given sharp increases in applications at top schools over the last five years, many institutions have been unable to offer interviews to all applicants. In light of this, some top schools such as Brown and UChicago have implemented optional video interviews as a means of getting to know students in a more personalized capacity. While it has yet to gain widespread use, nor is it a required component of applications at top schools, the video interview will likely become more popular as top schools seek creative ways to evaluate thousands of applicants holistically.
3. Hyperspecialization
If you dream of attending a top school, it is not enough to be the captain of the mock trial team, president of your class, an intern at a local startup, or founder of a student organization—the most competitive colleges expect you to do all of these things to showcase your hook. Elite institutions are seeking to build well-rounded classes made up of students who have pursued their core interests at the highest level throughout their high school career. Admissions committees want to see that you have already engaged with your field in a meaningful way before even stepping on campus. Students should therefore aim to hone their passions and become junior specialists in their area of interest by the time they apply to college their senior year.
4. Applying to Second-Tier Schools
For many students, the Ivy League sheen has worn off, leading to a new batch of colleges becoming increasingly desirable—and competitive. For instance, in 2013, NYU’s acceptance rate was 35%. That number dropped to 8% in 2024. Likewise, the applicant pool at Rice University has more than doubled over the last ten years, from 15,408 in 2013 to 32,473 in the 2023–24 cycle. As these second-tier schools rise in both popularity and prestige, many parents and students underestimate the difficulty of earning admission—in the coming admissions cycles, students should expect to put as much effort into their Vanderbilt application as they do their application to Columbia.
5. AP and IB Classes
Over the last decade, GPAs across the country have seen steady inflation—a study found that the proportion of high school students with A averages rose to 47 percent in the Class of 2016—up from 38.9 percent in the Class of 1998, particularly in higher-income schools. Grade inflation has been on the rise dramatically since the pandemic. This means that your 4.0 GPA means little to top colleges if it does not also correlate to rigorous coursework. AP and IB classes can therefore boost your admissions profile by demonstrating your preparedness for collegiate academics. AP and IB classes may benefit you in additional ways as well—Yale, for instance, announced that they would accept AP and IB test scores to fulfill their testing requirement. As more top schools reevaluate their testing policies, this substitution may become more widely adopted in the coming years.
What’s Out
1. Test-Optional Policies
The Covid-19 pandemic led to a widespread adoption of test-optional policies that lingered at many schools in the years since—but that has begun to change. In February, Dartmouth became the first Ivy League school to reinstate their standardized test policy, followed quickly by Brown, Yale, and Harvard. Cornell, too, will require students to report their test scores again in the fall of 2026. Students and parents should expect that additional schools—including both Princeton and UPenn, as well as other second-tier schools where test-optional policies remain in place—will continue to roll back their test-optional policies and re-emphasize the importance of standardized testing in their admissions considerations.
2. Posting Acceptance Videos on Tik Tok
At the start of 2025, the fate of Tik Tok remains in the balance, as the Supreme Court weighs the possibility of banning the app over national security concerns. Since the app was launched in the U.S. in 2017, it has been a popular and entertaining platform for chronicling the everyday lives of its users—including the anticipation and elation of the college admissions process. Every application season, thousands of students post their real-time reactions to their admissions decisions, a rite of passage and glimpse into the emotional highs and lows of the admissions season. An impending ban on the app could mean that this was the last admissions cycle to be chronicled on Tik Tok.
3. Record-Low Acceptance Rates
While single-digit acceptance rates have long signaled the desirability and rigor of institutions, they are now viewed as signifiers of the exclusivity and elitism of the college admissions process at top schools. As calls for equity and transparency in college admissions grow, Ivy League and other top schools are distancing themselves from their reputations for selectivity, in part, by withholding their admissions rates. During this year’s early admissions cycle, Harvard, Princeton, and Cornell withheld their admissions data, and are not expected to release any until the conclusion of the admissions season. Brown and Yale both published their admissions data, while Dartmouth and Penn only released information concerning the numbers of early applications each received. Students should expect this trend to continue into the Regular Decision round—and the coming admissions cycles as well.
4. Liberal Arts Colleges
The years following the Covid-19 pandemic have mounted challenges for liberal arts colleges across the country, leading many to close their doors or merge with other institutions. In 2024, roughly one college closed or merged per week, leaving many students scrambling to find an educational alternative. In 2025, students who want a traditional, liberal arts feel are turning to more established schools or honors colleges within larger institutions, rather than hedging their bets at smaller, less stable liberal arts colleges.
5. Legacy Admissions
The Supreme Court’s ruling on affirmative action has brought renewed scrutiny to legacy admissions policies—in a 2022 Pew Research survey, 75% of surveyed adults believe that legacy status should not be considered in the admissions process, a number that has steadily increased in recent years. Last year, the Department of Education launched an investigation into Harvard’s use of legacy and donor preferences, and a bipartisan bill in Congress called for the end of the practice. While the Ivy League has indicated that they will not forego legacy considerations without a fight, a significant number of other top colleges have repealed their legacy policies, including Amherst, Johns Hopkins, and Wesleyan (as a rare exception, MIT has never considered legacy status). The new year will likely bring continued fervor to debates over legacy, and potentially more institutional reevaluation of legacy policies.
As you prepare to navigate the evolving landscape of college admissions in 2025, expert guidance can help you stay on top of current trends in the admissions landscape, as well as what top schools are looking for now. If you’re ready to take your admissions profile to the next level in 2025, schedule your free consult today to learn more about how a Command Education Senior Mentor can help you chart your path to your dream school!
