This Week in Admissions News | Week 48

The world of college admissions is ever-changing and for students planning to apply to universities, it’s important to stay up-to-date on the latest developments. We’ve rounded up the latest news and given our take on what it means for future and current college students. Check back each week to see what’s new!

1. Top US universities begin releasing Early Acceptance Offers

It’s Early Action and Early Decision announcement season! Dartmouth just offered 530 spots out of 2,500 applicants, a record number and only a few short of last year's largest pool of 2,664 applicants; Johns Hopkins also announced that 520 students earned admissions in the early application, representing 36 U.S. states and 21 countries; Yale revealed the acceptance of 800 applicants for the incoming class of 2026 through its early action program. There are many more universities making announcements this week, so stay tuned on our blog page to stay up to date!

Crimson’s Take: Do you have ambitions to attend a top US or UK university? Crimson helps both early action/decision and regular round applicants get into world-class universities. Students who get help from Crimson are up to 6x more likely to gain admission to top US and UK universities. Discover what we can do to help you with your university application to top US and UK universities with our admissions support program!

2. Medical schools receive record applications and saw an increase in diversity

The Association of American Medical Colleges announced Wednesday that medical school applications soared by approximately 18% this 2021-22 academic year. A record 46,758 applications were submitted, with underrepresented minorities leading the historic increase. The number of Black students entering medical school this fall increased by 21 percent from last year, followed by increases of 8.3 percent among Asian students and 7.1 percent among students of Hispanic, Latino, or Spanish descent. “We are especially encouraged by the growth in applications and new enrollments by students in racial and ethnic groups that are underrepresented in medicine,” said Geoffrey Young, PhD, the AAMC’s senior director of transforming the health care workforce.

Crimson’s Take: There’s no denying that the pandemic has had lasting effects on the college admissions landscape, some of which may bring permanent changes to the way students apply for higher education. In part due to the pandemic's shedding light on issues of inequity and justice in the healthcare system, barriers are being broken down for underrepresented minorities to access the medical field. As an organization that believes the playing field should be leveled for everyone, we view this news as an important step towards increasing access and representation in higher education, helping students realize their potential.

3. Cornell University shuts down campus due to new COVID variant found

After finding an outbreak of COVID-19 among a number of students, Cornell has decided to shut down its Ithica, New York campus. The university suspects that a significant number of detected infections are caused by the Omicron variant and is proceeding accordingly until further testing confirms otherwise. Following last week’s news on schools mandating COVID-19 booster shots, Brown University has also announced that they will be requiring all students and faculty to get the booster shot in order to remain on campus. It is expected that more universities will adopt precautionary measures to combat the spread of the new variant.

Crimson’s Take: We are in favor of university precautionary mandates; ensuring the safety of students, staff, and faculty on campus is especially crucial with the new COVID variant, which is why it is excellent that so many universities in the US are prioritizing safety over everything else. We look forward to seeing more US universities taking action against the effects of the new variant.