<p>Admissions for the fall of '08:</p>
<p>HIGH RATE OF ADMISSIONS SELECTIVITY CONTINUES
St. Paul's School received a record number of applications for admission for the fall of 2008. Of the 1,182 students who applied, 250 - or 21 percent - were admitted, continuing the high rate of selectivity that has become the norm over the last several years.</p>
<p>Of those admitted, including 25 students offered admission from a strong waiting list, 59 percent have elected to enroll. In a year of unpredictable yields for many independent schools - a trend caused by the declining economy and increasingly generous financial aid offers from many institutions - St. Paul's continued to attract students of the highest caliber.</p>
<p>"In the uncertain financial climate of today, we are fortunate that we are in a very good position where we continue to attract and enroll high-achieving students who have many other options at our peer schools," said first-year Admissions Director Jada Hebra. "We have so many amazing kids coming and amazing students still on our waiting list."</p>
<p>Of the 148 new students expected in the fall, 77 are boys and 71 girls. The students hail from 24 states and 12 countries. Included in those numbers are 21 new students of color and 24 students with an alumni or sibling relationship with the School. In terms of geographic distribution, 22 of the new students come from Massachusetts with New Hampshire (16), New York (14), California (13), and New Jersey (9) also well-represented. </p>
<p>Eight of the new students hail from South Korea while seven come from Hong Kong and five are Canadian residents. The School will also welcome new students from Colombia, the Philippines, Switzerland, Thailand, the United Kingdom, China, France, Germany, and Japan.</p>
<p>Among the new students will be 97 new Third Formers, 46 new Fourth Formers, and five new Fifth Formers.</p>
<p>In a continued effort to open its doors to more families, the School announced in March that it would enhance a two-year-old financial aid policy providing free tuition to certain middle-income families. The new initiative provides an education at no cost for admitted students whose families earn $80,000 or less annually. That announcement built on the School's previous policy, announced in 2006, that provided free tuition to admitted students with family incomes under $65,000. </p>
<p>Thirty-five percent of new students will receive some form of tuition assistance during the 2008-09 academic year. Overall, 34 percent of St. Paul's students will receive financial aid next year.</p>
<p>Hebra said her office was cautious in its initial admissions decisions, admitting fewer students than usual to prevent over-enrollment. But the School took more than two dozen students off the waiting list between the March 10 decisions and the April 10 enrollment deadline. </p>
<p>"We went to the wait list early because we intentionally built a strong one," explained Hebra. "In this time of economic downturn, where yield is more uncertain than ever because of attractive financial aid offers from so many schools, St. Paul's still had a record number of applications and very low selectivity."</p>
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