More Highly Qualified Applicants

Not only did the total number of applicants go up again for 2015–16 — 6,414 students applied, a 6 percent increase from last year — but the students’ academic qualifications were also stronger.

One measure of academic quality is student test scores. The median SAT score of the students who will enroll in the fall went up 40 points from 1,380 to 1,420. It was “a colossal increase in one year,” says Greg Sneed, director of admission.

Another measure is class rank. Of those who plan to enroll this year, 80 percent are in the top 10 percent of their class, compared to 69 percent last year.

Sneed believes the higher number of highly qualified applicants suggests that Grinnell is ”well known and on the rise.”

Sneed says that many factors are likely in play, but he attributes the increased recognition in part to Grinnell’s new identity program, funded by a gift from Steve Holtze ’68 and Elizabeth Alexander Holtze ’68. The program went into effect this year and included a new website and publications from the Office of Admission.

“We’ve found different ways to reach out and connect,” Sneed says. One small example is the personalized Venn diagrams that each admitted student received to show them how they’d fit into the individualized approach to education at Grinnell.

The Office of Admission also increased its fly-in program this spring for admitted students who are underrepresented, low-income, and/or first-generation students. “Bringing students to campus who otherwise would not be able to make it allows us the chance to show them firsthand all of the benefits of a Grinnell education,” Sneed says.

Only about a quarter of the applicant pool was admitted — the lowest admission rate ever. Among that group, 29 percent have decided to attend Grinnell.

“Having more qualified applicants gives us more flexibility in the admission process,” Sneed says. “When we have a larger, broader, more diverse, more academically talented applicant pool, it gives us the flexibility to admit more students from different backgrounds, locations, and socioeconomic statuses.

“The value of diversity on a college campus is multifaceted,” Sneed says. “Part of the education students receive in college comes from the classroom. However, just as much learning occurs outside of the classroom in the residential environment. In both settings, learning for everyone is enhanced by being surrounded with others from different backgrounds who have different world views than you.”

Learning to get along with people from such varied backgrounds is a big plus not only while at Grinnell, but afterward too, when graduates find their way into the workforce.