After months of criticism of Harvard that included the resignation under fire of its president, student applications for the university's next freshman class have dropped to a four-year low. Figures released Thursday show the school received 54,008 undergraduate applications for the class of 2028, the Wall Street Journal reports, down from almost 57,000 applications the year before. Included in the 5% overall drop is a 17% decline in applications from students for early admission. In the face of less competition, per the Harvard Crimson, the acceptance rate reached 3.59%, the highest in four years.
The dean of admissions expressed enthusiasm about the students who did apply. "We think they're the greatest," William Fitzsimmons said. "We really want to see them come here." Admissions offices are busier at Harvard's closest competitors. Yale—with 57,000—and the University of Pennsylvania said they set records, as did Dartmouth. Columbia also reported an increase. Brown was the only other Ivy League university to post a decline, about 2,000 to 49,000. Harvard wasn't the only school that's faced criticism, and there's evidence of a general decline over the past decade in confidence in higher education, per the Journal.
But Harvard has become emblematic of tension on campuses over the Israel-Hamas war, for one issue, per the Hill. It began when student groups signed a letter blaming Israel after it was attacked by Hamas on Oct. 7. President Claudine Gay later stepped down after waffling when testifying before a congressional committee about acting against harassment. In June, the Supreme Court ruled against colleges' use of race-based admissions policies in a case that involved Harvard. (More Harvard stories.)
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