By Braden Felts

College admissions.

These simple-sounding words strike chaos and disorder into the hearts and minds of high school students across the United States. The college admission process has evolved dramatically over the past two decades. Recent developments, such as the COVID-19 pandemic and a U.S. Supreme Court ruling, have further fundamentally changed how universities operate regarding admissions.

With online applications, applying to college has never been easier; however, getting admitted into universities has become significantly more complicated. The current year’s obstacles to college admissions stemmed from several sources that posed significant challenges for all students applying for admission in fall 2024, from a surge of applications to important changes in legislation and financial aid.

First, the number of college applications has skyrocketed. Twenty years ago, the University of Virginia received 17,000 applications for first-year students. In 2020, UVA received 40,000 applications, and this year, UVA received almost 60,000 applications. Despite an increase of 20,000 applications in just four years, UVA’s target class size has remained relatively unchanged. Other state flagships, such as the University of North Carolina—Chapel Hill and the University of Georgia, also received a record-high number of early action and early decision applications.

One of the reasons for this influx of applicants is the widespread use of the Common Application, or the Common App. Since the year it was developed, the Common App has effectively streamlined the application process for college-bound students, giving them access to over 1,000 schools. Rather than a separate application and essay for each school, students complete one application and a universal Common App essay to submit to all schools of the applicant’s choosing. There are some exceptions, however; the University of California system, for example, is exempt from the Common App portal. Students can also submit additional materials as required by each college through the Common App portal.

According to college consulting company Crimson Education, 836,679 students from the class of 2024 nationwide applied to 834 universities through the Common App in the fall of 2023, representing a 41% increase in the number of applicants and a 65% increase in the total number of applications since the 2019-2020 school year.

Some of the increase in applications has been attributed to the performance of college athletic teams. Schools renowned for their college football programs, typically in the southeastern U.S., have reported increased applications for admission due to the Flutie Effect. This term was originally coined in 1984 when Boston College noted a sizable increase in applications the year after Doug Flutie, their star quarterback, threw a famous game-winning pass known as the Miracle in Miami. Since then, it has been widely believed that athletic success can raise a school’s national profile and garner more applications. For example, studies have shown that colleges that appear in the NCAA Division I March Madness Basketball games also receive the benefits of an increase in college applications the following year due to the Flutie Effect. Collegiate Senior Sam Hurst (’24) was deciding between attending the University of South Carolina and the University of Colorado-Boulder. Although he ended up committing to South Carolina, Hurst said that the recent achievements of Colorado’s football team under Coach Deion Sanders played “a significant role in my college decision and made C.U. Boulder a lot more enticing than before” because of the national attention the football program has received.

The University of Tennessee – Knoxville. Photo credit: Jpellegen via Flickr.

Some schools have been particularly affected by the surge of student applications. For example, in a single year, the University of Tennessee – Knoxville saw a 40% increase in applications, primarily from out-of-state students.  In 2022, UT-K accepted 67% of its out-of-state (OOS) students, but in 2023, without the infrastructure to increase its class size, the OOS acceptance rate number dropped to only 33%. Students who relied on past admission data to determine which schools would be a “likely safety,” “possible match,“ or “reach“ institution have been unable to predict their chances of admission.  

As a result of the rising number of applications, many colleges rely on deferrals to weed out applications, resulting in students having to wait much longer for decisions. This creates a cycle, with students submitting applications to more schools, leading to more deferrals and students feeling more uncertain, thus applying to more schools. Because students are applying to more universities, many are also becoming more strategic in where they apply. For example, competitive students may elect to forgo applications to prestigious Ivy League universities in favor of applying to elite state universities that offer early-decision admission. This year, Harvard saw a 20% decline in early applications compared to the 2020-2021 application season. 

In early decision (E.D.), a student applies to one first-choice university. If admitted, the student is required to enroll at that college and must withdraw applications to all other universities. Early action (E.A.) is when a student applies early and receives their admission decision in advance of students who apply during the regular decision cycle. Collegiate Senior Alice Oakey (’24) will be attending the University of Virginia next fall after being accepted early decision in December. Oakey said she applied for an E.D. at UVA partially because UVA is her favorite school and due to the “unpredictability in the admission process“ this year. 

Delays with the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) have added further pandemonium to college admissions this year. The FAFSA is a form used by students to apply for financial assistance for college. Technical errors have caused delays in processing FAFSA applications this year, which has prevented colleges from issuing financial aid awards on time. 

The 2007-2008 FAFSA Form. Photo credit: The Bent Tree via Flickr.

The New York Times’ Erica Green and Zach Montague reported that the “revamped FAFSA system,“ featuring only 40 questions as opposed to the original 100, saw many technical malfunctions after its launch in December 2023, already two months behind schedule. While the revamped system was created to help a greater number of low-income students, the malfunctions in the system operations have caused more significant problems than the Department of Education (DOE) anticipated. Students are now applying for financial aid almost three months later than normal, and some observers are worried this will cause a drop in the enrollment of low-income students. In a recent New York Times interview, Andrea, a Mexican immigrant living in Colorado, said that FAFSA is “deeper than a form. It’s our lives.“ For these students, it is imperative that the DOE fix the programming of the new FAFSA form. Unable to ascertain how much each college will actually cost, millions of students have been in the dark about their college decisions. As of April 30, the DOE officially fixed the FAFSA form, but many still fear this fix will be too late. As a result of the FAFSA delays, many colleges had to postpone their traditional May 1 enrollment dates, perpetuating the uncertainty. These new enrollment dates vary from university to university, making it difficult for prospective students to gauge how to handle their situation.

In the summer of 2023, the United States Supreme Court officially ended affirmative action in college admissions. In Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard, the Supreme Court overturned affirmative action, removing race and ethnicity as factors in college applications. The 6-2 majority held that affirmative action programs “lack sufficiently focused and measurable objectives warranting the use of race.“ Proponents of affirmative action argued the need to balance historical inequalities in marginalized groups to ensure a diverse and inclusive community. In response to the Supreme Court’s opinion, many colleges and universities have amended essay questions to ask students to highlight areas of diversity of identity, experience, or perspective.

Legacy admissions have also been under public scrutiny. Legacy admissions refers to a boost in a prospective student’s odds of admission to a college when the applicant is related to an alumnus, usually a parent or a grandparent. An M.I.T. study has shown that legacy preference can benefit an institution by requiring less financial aid, being more likely to accept an offer of enrollment, making more and more significant donations, and building a more substantial “intergenerational community“ created through legacy admissions. 

Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin in 2022. Photo credit: Gage Skidmore via Flickr.

On March 15, Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin signed a bi-partisan bill to officially ban Virginia public universities from giving preferential treatment to applicants based on their connections to alumni and donors. Virginia State Senator Schuyler VanValkenburg (D-16th) stated, “It’s kind of an indefensible policy, especially in light of affirmative action being declared unconstitutional by the Supreme Court. There are many ways you can measure merit, but we know that legacy admissions are really not about merit at all.”

Virginia US Senator Tim Kaine (D) and U.S. Senator Todd Young (R-IN) want the legacy ban to become a “national movement.“ They have introduced the federal Merit-Based Educational Reforms and Institutional Transparency Act to make consideration of a college applicant’s legacy and donor status illegal at accredited United States colleges and universities. Soon, legacy admission may be a thing of the past in all 50 states.

When colleges and universities examine a student’s application, they review the student holistically. They look at student activities, academic records, demonstrated interest, and test scores. However, during the COVID-19 pandemic, many colleges adopted a test-optional approach to accommodate students who could not take the SAT or ACT. As COVID-19 restrictions become a distant memory, colleges are reviewing their test-optional policies and making more permanent decisions about the future of testing in their admissions. Not all colleges are reaching the same conclusion.

Some universities have opted for a test-blind policy, where test scores are not considered at all in the admission decisions for students. The California Institute of Technology has extended the test-blind policy they adopted during the coronavirus pandemic because they believe there are “stronger indicators“ to represent academic success outside of test scores. Other schools, particularly those in the University of California (UC) system, have eliminated the standardized testing requirements for the foreseeable future to make admission decisions based on other factors, such as a student’s academic performance, course rigor, extracurricular activities, and admission essays.

On the other hand, M.I.T. and Georgetown brought back testing requirements as soon as it was safe after the coronavirus epidemic because they saw a “noticeable gap in the performance“ between students who submitted their test scores and those who did not the previous year. M.I.T. found that even when controlling for socioeconomic and demographic data, testing was a reliable predictor of college performance. The University of Texas at Austin has also announced that they will require standardized tests beginning with the applications for fall 2025. Despite arguments about test access, U.T. found that 90% of their applicants had taken either the SAT or ACT, although only 42% of students submitted their test scores in 2023. U.T. President Jay Hartzell noted, “We looked at our students and found that in many ways [the students who did not submit scores] were not faring as well.“ According to the university, of the 9,217 first-year students enrolled last fall, students who submitted a test score with their college application had an average GPA of .86 grade points higher in their first year of college than those who did not submit scores.

Collegiate School’s College Counseling Office. Photo credit: Braden Felts.

Some universities have yet to make a permanent decision regarding the submission of standardized test scores in 2025 and beyond, and they remain test-optional, at least for the time being. Columbia University is one college that has recently adopted a permanent test-optional policy, leaving flexibility to future student applicants. Nevertheless, inconsistent test policies have added another layer to an already confusing admission season.

Fortunately, one’s fate only partially relies on one’s test scores. According to Brian Leipheimer, Collegiate’s Director of College Counseling, essays also play a significant role in whether a student gets admitted into a university. Essays are the best way for colleges to get to know the student, and Leipheimer emphasized the impact an exceptional essay has on the status of a student’s admission. He noted, “the differentiator for all students is how the student conveys their personal story through their essays.“ His recommendation for students when writing their admissions essays is to veer away from the cookie-cutter five-paragraph essay many students learned in high school. The best way to stand out among thousands of other students is to write a genuinely introspective and personal essay.

In a year Leipheimer referred to as “bananas,“ he offered some advice for Collegiate students. He strongly emphasized the importance of a college’s fit instead of its traditional name recognition or prestige. Even when a college does not track “demonstrated interest,“ prospective students should show engagement with the school by making campus visits, following social media, and submitting optional application materials. From Leipheimer’s perspective, the best thing Collegiate students can do is go to a school that they love. He also recommends that all students maintain resilience because, at some point, every student will face hardships. The college admission process has become more uncertain and complex for everyone involved. Adjusting to these changes requires patience and flexibility.