Looking for actual data from the Fall 2023 incoming class
Thanks for your question, @CC_Sorin
I always knew that I wanted to attend a school that was academically rigorous, had a tight-knit community and was also close to home (I am from New Jersey, about 1 hour and 30 minutes away). It was also important to me that the university I would attend had a supportive environment that didnât feel overwhelmingly competitive. When I visited Lehigh in October of my senior year, I participated in an in-person interview at the admissions office. I felt like Lehigh checked all the boxes for me after that â It was the perfect balance of students who work hard and receive the âquintessentialâ college experience I had in mind, but it also had a great up-and-coming college town with so many opportunities to be social and meet new people.
I applied early to Lehigh about 24 hours after my interview and my tour! The students here all had such pride for their school, which made me really excited and ultimately able to picture myself here (and which I now can confirm is true).
My advice for students who decide to apply early would be to really try to imagine walking to class, going to the dining hall and meeting new friends at the particular school. If only one university comes to your mind when you think about being a first-year student, then itâs a good sign that you are choosing the right place for you. For me, that was Lehigh. I knew I had to select Early Decision to maximize my opportunity because no other college gave me that same comfortable and excited feeling â academically, geographically and socially.
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Love your specificity, @Pepper328 
I can direct you search our Common Data Set (most colleges will have this data publicly available if you want to compare).
For the Class of 2026
Early Decision - 1,303 applications; 860 admitted; admit rate of 66%
Regular Decision- 13,860 applications; 4,747 admitted; Admit rate of 34%
That year, we had a total admit rate of just under 37%, including Early Decision.
This year, while the numbers arenât yet published, we had a 21% increase in applications for a total of 18,415 applications and an overall admit rate of 28%.
Generally, the admit rates donât vary widely by college, and it depends on the pool for that year. Since becoming test-optional, students are very self-selecting in who submits scores for consideration.
ED is the ultimate show of interestâwe take that commitment seriously, hence the higher admit rate!
Hi, @Opakapaka !
This is a good question, and speaks to our holistic admissions review! We will consider the quantitative (grades, testing, coursework) and qualitative parts of your application, and how one might affect another. We want to admit students who are academically prepared, so the academics are a large component of the review. A sport (or any other activity done with or outside of school) is something weâll review, but we canât make an assumption about whether your grades would have been stronger with one sport vs twoâŠwe have to simply take what weâre presented with and use that.
Thank you - very helpful!
AP exam scores are generally not the biggest piece we consider in the processâwe are more focused on the grades received in that class and not just the exam result. Hope this answers the question, @midwestkid2
Iâd like to pose another question: Given Lehigh is a very strong research University, how are professors measured with regards to effectiveness in teaching undergraduate students? What are some of the measured outcomes in addition to potential research opportunities for the undergrads. Thanks.
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It is nice to have that confirmation re: AP scores. Will you have a chance to comment on the comp sci question above by chance?
Thanks for sharing, @AliLehigh! Congrats on your achievement and loved reading your story!
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Great question! We do NOT read âby majorâ at Lehigh so applicants to computer science are not considered differently, or admitted at a different rate than any other major we offer! We do read âby collegeâ- and did you know that we actually offer computer science as a major in our College of Arts and Sciences, Rossin College of Engineering AND as a part of the Computer Science and Business program? I hope one (or more!) of these are interesting to your daughter, @midwestkid2 !
Did see that. Very interesting. Thanks!
Hi, @hebegebe -
We arenât looking for any one thing in a studentâs application. I like to say itâs not WHAT you do, but THAT you do. We have no preference on how a student spends their time, we simply want to know what they are involved in! A student who works part time and does a seasonal sport is no better than a student who doesnât work, doesnât play any sports, or who plays a year-round (or multiple!) sports. We just like to see that youâre involved in something!
Correct, @CC_Sorin
We have every intention of keeping all of our timelines, and notifying students of their financial aid packagesâwhich are always estimations in the ED roundsâ along with their admissions results this cycle.
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I think we have reached the end of this exclusive AMA. @SarahB-Lehigh, @AliLehigh, thank you for joining and answering our questions! Itâs been a great pleasure.
That makes good sense, thank you. Where would be an appropriate place to explain the lower grades?
Thanks, @Pepper328 -I canât really speak to how professores are measured on the teaching part of their jobs, Lehigh offers undergraduate students a wide variety of research opportunitiesâboth faculty- and student-ledâbeginning as early as the first year. About 20% of Lehigh students conduct research, and all students in all majors are welcome to. We also have more unique research opportunities through our Office of Creative Inquiry, like our Summer Mountaintop Experience.
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Thank you, @SarahB-Lehigh ! If I may follow up on your reply to my question: Letâs assume grades, course rigor, test scores, etc., are unchanged (neither up nor down; all very strong) after dropping 1 of 2 varsity sports. The only thing that changes is that my sonâs application includes 1 sport as an EC, not 2. Is 1 sport (holding everything else constant) half as valuable as 2 sports to an admissions officer? Or is it just as valuable as (or only marginally less so than) 2 sports? My son loves athletics, but playing 2 sports is a grind (as you know, 5 practices + 2-3 games every week for virtually the entire academic year, with no Thanksgiving or Spring Break); my son wouldnât continue or drop 1 of his sports solely because it will or wonât impact his college admissions⊠but it would be helpful (as one of several considerations) to know to what degree it may matter. Hope this makes sense?
If you are applying RD should you wait until January to submit? My daughters semester grades donât come until Feb 2. Is there a benefit to getting an RD app in early?