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The Boston College Class of 2019 reflects several positive trends for the University in areas such as academic excellence, diversity, and outreach to prospective students.
According to the Office of Undergraduate Admission, the expected 2,280-strong freshman class – whose members are receiving a welcome to BC at the ongoing summer orientation sessions – was chosen from a pool of almost 29,500 applications that represented a 27 percent increase over last year.
This follows a significant decline in applications over the past two years in the wake of the University’s decision to add a supplementary essay to its application.
The acceptance rate of 29 percent for the Class of 2019 affirms BC’s status as one of the nation’s most selective colleges, noted Director of Undergraduate Admission John L. Mahoney. Meanwhile, the composite middle 50 percent of SAT scores for the Class of 2019 is 1950-2150, which is comparable to recent years.
All of which means, said Mahoney, that BC has been able to rework its application process to identify students with genuine interest in the University, while retaining a high academic standard.
“The quality of the Class of 2019 is nearly identical to recent freshman classes in terms of standardized test scores,” he explained. “However, our addition of a supplementary essay to our application two years ago continues to attract students who are more serious about Boston College and resonate with its mission and values.”
The uptick in applications for the Class of 2019 was driven by a near doubling of the University’s early-action pool, Mahoney added, a circumstance benefiting both student and institution.
“Early action is attractive to top students because they can be admitted to colleges without being bound to enroll,” he said. “This allows them to consider multiple options for college. Early action is also good for Boston College in that it affords us more time to communicate and interact with the highest quality applicants in our pool – the ones we most want to enroll.”
BC’s most competitive undergraduate program is the Carroll School of Management, where only 21 percent of applicants were admitted, said Mahoney. Enrollments are higher this year in the Lynch School of Education and Connell School of Nursing, although the Morrissey College of Arts and Sciences remains the largest undergraduate school at BC.
This year’s freshman class includes students from 45 states and 39 foreign countries – the percentage of international students among incoming freshmen rose from 6.7 to 8 percent; 26 percent of the Class of 2019 are from AHANA backgrounds.
For all the influence of rankings, social media and other such factors, Mahoney said, the Admission staff plays a critical role in helping prospective students consider Boston College as their destination – and their efforts aid the University in building a diverse, academically distinctive student body.
“Staff members this year visited over 1,000 high schools across the country as well as in Europe, Latin America, China, Japan and Korea,” he noted. “We also welcomed close to 60,000 visitors to the campus for information sessions and tours, a powerful signal of Boston College’s attractiveness to prospective students.”