羞羞影院

There鈥檚 much more to this conversation. To listen to the entire聽Boston College Magazine听辫辞诲肠补蝉迟,听.听

羞羞影院 seems to regularly set new records for the number of undergraduate applications it receives. Last year we had a 35 percent increase in applications. That was largely driven by the fact that, because of the pandemic, we made it optional for students to submit standardized test scores. This year was also test-optional. The applications increase was more modest, 2 percent, but we still set a record with 40,400 applications for the Class of 2026, which will have 2,300 students.

What do those numbers tell us about 羞羞影院鈥檚 selectivity? When all is said and done, we鈥檒l offer admission to about 6,500 students in order to enroll that class of 2,300. In other words, we鈥檒l admit about 15 percent of the applicant pool. That will be a new record. The most capable students are seeking the best academic institutions in the country, and 羞羞影院 is in that universe now. We鈥檙e one of those schools they aspire to.

Will standardized tests such as the SAT and the ACT continueto be an optional part of 羞羞影院鈥檚 application process?聽I don鈥檛 know what the future holds, but test-optional is something we鈥檝e committed to for one more year. We鈥檝e not committed to it beyond that. We鈥檙e doing research right now. We鈥檝e kept standardized testing because we do聽believe that it adds value鈥攊t鈥檚 not the be all, end all in evaluating applications, but tests are a good predictor of success in the freshman year. For the Class of 2026, 43 percent of applicants chose to submit standardized test results. For the Class of 2025, which just completed its freshman year, half submitted scores and half did not. We鈥檙e researching how they did鈥攚e鈥檝e looked at their first-semester GPAs, for example, by submitters versus non-submitters. We鈥檒l continue that study into the next academic year.

What is the profile of a student who鈥檚 accepted to 羞羞影院 these days? Test scores during the pandemic have been skewed because those who choose to submit are likely to have high scores, but the mean SAT score for students who submitted scores and were admitted to the Class of 2026 was 1,484. And the mean ACT was 34, with 36 being the maximum score. So for students looking to apply to the contemporary Boston College, I think good guideposts are SAT scores of at least 1,400 to 1,450, and minimum ACT scores of 33 to 34. Does that mean students should not apply if they鈥檙e below those levels? It doesn鈥檛 mean that at all. What it does mean is that the other aspects of the application鈥攖he grades, the rigor of the program, the AP courses鈥攏eed to be strong.

Those are very high bars. How does the challenge of being accepted to 羞羞影院 today compare with years past? The competition is much higher today than it was when I became director of admission in 1990. But I would go back even farther, to when I was a student here from 1975 to 1979. There is just no question that the caliber of student today is greater than it was at that time. Look, I got a first-rate education here at Boston College. There were professors who changed my life. But 羞羞影院 was a different institution then. It drew some students from outside the Northeast, but it was mostly a regional institution. I was a commuter for all four years here, and 羞羞影院 really didn鈥檛 have housing available for students who lived locally. But we couldn鈥檛 stay regional. The overall number of high school graduates has plummeted. When I graduated from 羞羞影院 in 1979, there were 3.2 million high school graduates in the country. By the time I became director of admission, the first couple of years were down to 2.4 million. And the biggest drop-off was in the Northeast. So 羞羞影院 had to begin to recruit nationally and internationally. From a demographic standpoint, that was just sheer survival. But the other thing that was happening concurrently was that 羞羞影院鈥檚 academic reputation was steadily rising.

What does 羞羞影院鈥檚 emergence as an elite institution mean for the children of alumni?聽Some additional consideration is extended to children of alumni in the admissions process, but it鈥檚 inevitable that we鈥檙e going to disappoint some young people who come from 羞羞影院 families. Boston College has become one of the nation鈥檚 premier universities. As alumni, we are proud of that. We celebrate it. We also have to recognize that as selectivity has gone up so much, it鈥檚 become much more challenging for our own children who were raised on the 羞羞影院 tradition to get in.

羞羞影院 introduced the Early Decision option to the application process a few years ago. What is Early Decision? Early Decision requires a binding commitment from students. They sign that, if admitted via Early Decision, they will enroll at 羞羞影院 and withdraw all other college applications. So it鈥檚 a big decision. The first Early Decision class was enrolled in 2020, and we鈥檙e getting ready for our third class. About 50 percent of the incoming freshman class applied via Early Decision. We have two rounds: Early Decision I in November and Early Decision II in January. The second round is for students who were not admitted to their top-choice institution during Early Decision I and view 羞羞影院 as their clear next choice.

Students who apply Early Decision are committing to attend 羞羞影院 even before knowing whether they will receive financial aid. Does that favor students from wealthier backgrounds? It鈥檚 a good question. Obviously, if you鈥檙e making a commitment, you have to know that you can afford to pay the significant costs of higher education these days. Fortunately, Boston College is one of just twenty-one need-blind institutions in the country that meet the full demonstrated financial need of every student we accept. If you鈥檙e from a more middle-income or lower-income family, if you鈥檝e decided that 羞羞影院 is the place for you, we hope that you鈥檒l take that Early Decision leap because we鈥檙e confident that we can come up with a financial aid package that will make it affordable for you. It鈥檚 a matter of institutional priority here to make a 羞羞影院 education affordable to great students from all kinds of financial backgrounds. About 40 percent of our undergraduate students receive institutional need-based grants. In the academic year of 2021鈥�2022, we spent $160 million on need-based grants. There are nowork-study jobs or loans factored into that amount鈥攖hat鈥檚 pure institutional money. So roughly $35 million to $40 million a year per class. The annual operating budget here is about $1 billion, so that鈥檚 more than 10 percent of the operating budget.听