<p>Early Decision numbers down
Drew Thompson - MANAGING EDITOR</p>
<p>Early Decision applications this year total 490 applicants, a decrease of 12 percent from last years 559. Dick Nesbitt, director of admissions, said this years numbers are still relatively high, as his office usually expects anywhere between 375 and 475 Early Decision applications. </p>
<p>This years Early Decision class is comprised of 258 women and 232 men. It includes 34 Asian-Americans, 13 Hispanics, 10 African-Americans and two Native Americans. Nesbitt said the numbers for African-Americans and Hispanics decreased by one or two applicants, and the number for Asian-Americans applicants was healthy. The pool of 490 also includes 50 international students. </p>
<p>Because the office is in its early stages of reviewing applications, Nesbitt could not offer an additional breakdown of applicants beyond gender and race. As of late I have no sense of the pools strength, he said. </p>
<p>The College plans to admit 35 percent of the Class of 2009 through Early Decision, accounting to somewhere between 185 and 200 students. </p>
<p>Nesbitt was unsure how to explain the difference in Early Decision applications between this year and last. It does not help us that there is a big crater in the middle of campus, he said, referring to campus construction. I think prospective students take a leap of faith with the construction of the student center scheduled for the spring of 2006. </p>
<p>He said, however, that these building projects have not made it harder for Admissions officers to sell the College, as they impact current students more than prospectives. </p>
<p>For two years running, U.S. News and World Report has ranked Williams the number-one liberal arts institution. Nesbitt was skeptical to believe that this affected application numbers. I dont know if the number-one ranking was a factor, he said. It has the biggest impact with international students and is not as much a factor domestically. </p>
<p>Admissions has changed some of the logistics regarding Early Decision, including moving its deadline from Nov. 15 to Nov. 10 and eliminating the optional Williams-specific application, moving to accept only the Common Application. This change has made it easier for Admissions to process applications and was put in place because so many more students were using the Common Application than the Williams-specific one. </p>
<p>Because of these changes, the office is hoping to mail admissions decisions out a week earlier from its usual Dec. 15 mailing. PeopleSoft has made it significantly easier for the Admissions Office to process applications. The new system allows the office to directly download the information from the online file and print it out. Before, admissions employees had to print out the online application and then reenter the data. </p>
<p>Williams has always placed a premium on admitting a racially diverse class. In addition to its fall minority preview and recruiting weekends, it has relied on a Stanford University based recruiting system called Quest Bridge. Quest Bridge identifies low-income and high-ability students that may be eligible for admission to elite institutions. </p>
<p>Nesbitt compared the Colleges use of this service to its purchasing of names from the College Board. Quest Bridge puts students through an intensive application process that includes a 15-page application process, and then matches them with schools that might meet their interests. </p>
<p>Quest Bridge will encourage about 25 of its clients to apply to Williams. </p>
<p>Nesbitt expects that the 490 Early Decision application number may increase slightly if students from the Quest Bridge program choose to apply early. We have no idea how many will choose to apply Early Decision: three or all 25, he said. This is the first year the College is using Quest Bridge. Amherst and Bowdoin are also participating in this new service. </p>
<p>We will be in committee reviewing applications and making decisions from Dec. 2 for four straight days, Nesbitt said. We are looking forward to it. </p>
<p>Nesbitt said that it was too early to estimate the number of regular applications as they start trickling in around mid-December all the way up until the Jan. 1 deadline. However, Nesbitt expects to have 535 members of the Class of 2009. </p>
<p>Nesbitt was unaware of the Early Decision and Early Action numbers at peer institutions, like Amherst and Swarthmore. I have not spoken with peer institutions, he said. The NESCAC Dean of Admissions listserver has been quiet. I dont know why that has been. </p>
<p>Nesbitt was unsurprised to hear that Yales early application numbers were down, and he attributed its low numbers to its decision to change from an Early Decision to a single-choice Early Action policy. </p>
<p>Over the next year, the Advisory Group on Admission and Financial Aid will be reviewing the Colleges Early Decision policy and weighing it against the pros and cons of an Early Action policy. </p>
<p>If the College were to adopt an Early Action policy, Admissions would have to move up its application deadline to Nov. 1, the traditional Early Action deadline. Nesbitt also expected that it would see a low yield of admitted students, as Early Action is non-binding. Stanford, Yale and Harvard all saw 90 percent yields last year with their Early Action policies, but Nesbitt speculated that these institutions were relying on their big-name status, which Williams cannot necessarily do to the same extent. </p>
<p>He noted that the Colleges Early Decision process has been in place since the 1960s and that it has served it well. As long as the College keeps its Early Decision acceptance rate down to approximately one-third of each years class, he does not see a reason to change the current system. </p>
<p>Applications for regular admission are due to the Admissions Office on Jan. 1.</p>