Brown University: Class of 2025 Profile

From its largest applicant pool in history, Brown University admitted 2,537 students to the Class of 2025. Of the 46,568 students that applied, Brown admitted just 5.4% — down from 6.9% for the Class of 2024.

It’s safe to say that this year’s college admissions cycle will go down in history as the most competitive to date. After hundreds of US colleges made SAT and ACT scores optional to provide more leniency amid COVID-19 restrictions, many leading universities reported record-high application numbers, resulting in record-low acceptance rates. In a series of blogs over the coming weeks, we’ll be sharing information about the makeup of the Classes of 2025 admitted to top US universities to shed light on the demographics of the lucky few students who got accepted.

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Following suit with its seven other Ivy League counterparts, Brown University this year reported a 27% increase in applications, making the 2020/21 admissions cycle its most competitive ever. In an announcement celebrating the talented students accepted to the Class of 2025, Dean of Admissions Logan Powell said:

Brown was incredibly fortunate to select its incoming class from a vast and deep pool of extraordinary applicants. With prospective students bringing a diverse range of educational achievements, personal characteristics and talents, our process remained human-focused. We made individualized decisions about each student, we heard and read their stories, and we drew upon those stories to admit a Class of 2025 that is both academically superlative and contains an incredible array of perspectives.

Geographic Representation

Brown admitted students from all 50 US states, with the most represented states being California, New York, Massachusetts, New Jersey, and Texas, respectively.

Of the international students accepted to the Class of 2025, the most represented countries are (in order) China, India, United Kingdom, Canada, Turkey, and South Korea. Although the university has not yet released data on how many countries were represented in the most recent applicant pool, last year students from 69 countries joined the Class of 2024 — a figure that’s on par with the rest of the Ivy League.

Admitted students came from 1,703 high schools worldwide, with 58% of those being a public institution; and 95% of Brown’s Class of 2025 admits were in the top 10% of their high school class.

Socioeconomic Distribution

Of the more than 2,500 applicants, 69% intend to apply for financial aid. Mr. Powell noted in the university’s announcement that Brown’s ability to “meet the full demonstrated financial need” of incoming students was “a key factor” for many students in deciding to apply. There has reportedly been a notable increase in the percentage of students applying for financial aid since the university launched its Brown Promise initiative in the 2018-19 academic year.

Legacy and Ethnicity

Brown has yet to share detailed demographic information for the incoming class. However, in general terms, 55% of admitted students identify as people of color and 17% will be the first in their family to attend college.

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