According to Yale Daily News, Yale saw a 6 percent increase in the number of early action applications for the class of 2027 compared to that of last year. The acceptance rate for the class of 2026 early action was 10.9 percent out of approximately 7,300 applications. Totaling 7,777 applications, this year’s number is the second largest in the university’s history behind the class of 2025’s 7,939 applications.
While the 6 percent growth was similar across all demographics, among underrepresented racial or ethnic groups, first-generation, and international students showed an increase larger than 6 percent. The Dean of Undergraduate Admissions and Financial Aid, Jeremiah Quinlan, wrote that Yale is “much more interested in the strength and diversity of the applicant pool” than the number itself. He states: “I am pleased that…students from underrepresented backgrounds are now more likely to apply to Yale early than in the past.”
The increase in applicant diversity in the early action pool has been largely attributed to the optional testing policy and virtual outreach programs. Mark Dunn, the Senior Associate Director for Outreach & Recruitment, stated that Yale admissions officers visited more than 500 high schools in person this fall. In addition to more than three dozen virtual events, over 100 tours a month have been offered, welcoming more than 31,000 campus visitors this year alone.
And before the regular admissions deadline, Yale also plans to launch the ambassadors program, through which current Yale undergraduates visit high schools near their homes during November and winter breaks. This semester, 270 students have been hired to talk to high school students from their hometowns about their Yale experience.
Another important factor in diversifying the applicant pool was the fact that Yale’s 2022 early admissions program followed a test-optional policy, which continued since its first suspension of standardized testing requirements in the summer of 2020. The school will make a decision regarding its long-term plan for testing requirements by the winter of 2023, as reported by Yale Daily News.
