Now that the January 1 admissions deadline has passed, Bowdoin's Class of 2013 is beginning to take shape.
A total of 5,929 students applied to the College this year, down from last year's 6,033 applicants. The 1.7 percent decrease reflects the poor state of the economy and its effect on a family's ability to pay for a liberal arts education, according to Interim Dean of Admissions Scott Meiklejohn.
The drop of 104 applications is not necessarily a final statistic, however. According to Meiklejohn, 17 completed applications were not added to the final tally until February last year.
Of the 15 peer schools Meiklejohn has been in contact with, he said most had seen applications decrease anywhere from 5 percent to 20 percent.
"In the same way we feel good about how the endowment has performed relative to other endowments, we feel okay that our decrease is a lot smaller than decreases we've heard about," said Meiklejohn.
At Colby, overall applications for the Class of 2013 have fallen by 7 percent, although first-round early decision applications rose 15 percent.
The total number of applications to Middlebury dropped 12 percent, from 7,641 to 6,771, although some applications are still being processed. Middlebury's decline may be attributed in part to its decision to impose an up-front application fee, a move that aims to reduce the number of students who withdraw their application. This may account for a 700 or 800 drop in applicants, according to Middlebury Dean of Admissions Robert Clagett.
Early decision cycles for Bowdoin's Class of 2013 have also been finalized. The College admitted 209 out of 693 applicants—roughly 30 percent—through Early Decision I and Early Decision II programs. Last year, the College received and accepted similar numbers of applicants, admitting 207 students from a pool of 690.
According to Meiklejohn, early and regular decision applications increased in two significant areas: students from Maine and students of color.
The College accepted 27 of 90 Maine students who applied early, six more than last year. Regular applications from Mainers increased 14 percent, from 430 last year to 500 this year.
Bowdoin admitted 40 students of color through early decision programs, up from last year's 32. Similarly, 1,091 students of color applied regular decision, a 5.2 percent increase from last year's 1,034.
Meiklejohn said he was particularly pleased with the growth of applications from students of color, one of the main goals of his office. He attributed the increase to "the strength of the relationships Bowdoin has built with schools and opportunity programs around the country."
Meiklejohn said that the "ripple effect" from Bowdoin's elimination of loans, a decision made last winter, may also have had a strong infuence on these groups.
Of all applicants, 64 percent, or 3,800 out of 5,929, intend to apply for financial aid. Last year, 57 percent of applicants, 3,495 out of 6,033, indicated the same intent. However, intention to apply does not necessarily translate to actual applicants, qualifying or not.
According to Meiklejohn, several more students who enrolled through early decision this year qualified for financial aid, although he was not able to give an exact number.
"This makes sense if you say that Maine and students of color is up—two populations that we typically aid in higher percentages than the overall student body," said Meiklejohn.
Nevertheless, the average family need decreased, showing "a larger group of slightly wealthier families qualifying for aid," according to Meiklejohn.
The early decision applicant pool's geographical make-up was nearly identical to last year's: roughly 45 percent from New England, 23 percent from the mid-Atlantic, 8 percent from the West, 6 percent from the Midwest, 6 percent from the South, 2 percent from the Southwest, and 9 percent from outside of the United States.
The percentage of applicants coming from public schools increased to 56 percent, compared to 53 percent last year, while private school applications decreased from 35 percent to 32 percent.
Last year's applicants consisted of 2,708 males and 3,325 females, while this year saw 2,602 males and 3,327 females. Bowdoin has traditionally received more applications from females, although the Class of 2012 includes slightly more male than female students.