There are hundreds of students that apply to top universities in the US. Who wouldn’t love to pursue their higher studies at one of the Ivy League colleges? However, with the global pandemic, many fear that their plans of going abroad would get hampered.

On the contrary, top universities such as Brown, Yale, and Penn have sent out acceptance notices on a much smaller scale as compared to the usual numbers. How is that contrary? The reason for this smaller number is not the pandemic but the record number of applications received during the pandemic! Given the challenges that the pandemic has caused, Ivy League colleges and other reputed institutes have eliminated their requirements for standardized admission tests. This move has encouraged more students to apply to these universities. Also, applicants are now competing for fewer spots since many students who deferred admission last year are eager to join this year.

Let us take a look at the numbers:

Harvard has accepted a total of 1,968 students for admission to the class of 2025. This is 3.4% of the total number of students who had applied. At Brown University, 2,537 students have been accepted from a total of 46,568 applications. This intake has witnessed a massive 27% increase as compared to the last year’s intake. Yale offered admission to 2,169 students out of the 46,905 applicants. As per the Common App, an organisation that gives applications for almost 900 US universities, the country has seen a 22% increase in the total number of applications at private institutes.

Major changes in the admission process

Many reputed universities in the US have eliminated the need for applicants to take SATs or any other admission tests in light of the pandemic. This development has attracted many students, leading to an overall increase in the number of applications during the pandemic.

Why are top universities receiving more applications?

There were no college visits, fairs, or in-person interactions between the college faculty and students with the lockdown restrictions in place. Popular universities do not need to do much to attract students. However, lesser-known universities heavily rely on college fairs and testing agencies for recruitment purposes. The pandemic obviously affected this, which is why the lesser-known universities have not been able to get the same number of applications during the pandemic as the reputed ones.

So, if you wish to pursue your education in the US but are worried about the pandemic creating hurdles in your way, don’t be! Universities are actively accepting applications and have also eased their admission processes. If you are thinking about the finances, we, at Avanse, have got you covered. Get an unsecured loan with complete financing along with flexible repayment options. Feel free to get in touch!