Undergraduate Admission and Aid

Admission and Enrollment

Admission to Princeton is quite competitive. In recent years, Princeton has offered admission to about 10 percent of those who apply. Successful applicants must demonstrate exceptionally high academic ability and performance. Personal strengths and nonacademic talents and commitment are also highly valued.

Princeton offers two admission programs: Early Decision, where candidates file their completed applications by November 1, and Regular Decision, where candidates file their completed applications by January 1.

In 2005–06, there were 3,987 candidates for the A.B. degree and 774 for the B.S.E. degree. The largest number of students came from New Jersey (633), New York (615), California (550), Pennsylvania (273), Maryland (208), Texas (198), and Virginia (179).

Admission Rates, 5-year history

Academic year		Applications		Admitted		%
2006–07		17,564		1,790		10.2
2005–06		16,529		1,826		11.0
2004–05		13,695		1,732		12.6
2003–04		15,726		1,601		10.2
2002–03		14,521		1,585		10.9

Undergraduate Enrollment, 2005–06

Group		Number		%
Total		4,761
Men		2,548		54
Women		2,213		46
American minorities*		1,388		29
Alumni children		667		14
Foreign citizens		423		9

*Includes African-American, Asian-American, Latino, and Native American students.

Approximate Undergraduate Enrollment, 2006–07

Group		Number		%
Total		4,763
Men		2,537		52
Women		2,266		48
American minorities*		1,334		28
Alumni children		619		13
Foreign citizens		381		8

*Includes African-American, Asian-American, Latino, and Native American students.

In recent years, approximately 88 percent of each entering class has graduated from Princeton within four years, and 97 percent of all undergraduates have received a degree from Princeton within six years.

Admission 2006: Class of 2010

==================================================================================
                   Applicants               Admitted           Enrolled
All            --------------     ------------------     --------------
percentages              % of                   % of               % of      % of
rounded           #     Total        #    Applicants       #   Admitted     Class
__________________________________________________________________________________

Total          17,564       —     1,790           10     1,232       69         —
   Men          9,160      52       937           10       653       70        53
   Women        8,404      48       853           10       579       68        47

Alumni
children          519       3       200           39       171       86        14

Minority
students        6,240      36       790           13       454       57        37

International
students        2,770      16       175            6       129       74        10
__________________________________________________________________________________

SATs/ SAT II Subject Tests

Middle 50 percent of Verbal SAT, Mathematics SAT, and three highest SAT II Subject Tests. For example, 25 percent of the applicants had Verbal scores below 650; 50 percent had Verbal scores between 650 and 760; 25 percent had Verbal scores above 760.

		Applicants		Admits		Enrollees
Critical Reasoning		640–750		690–800		680–800
Math		660–780		700–790		690–790
Writing		630–740		680–780		660–770
SAT II		670–770		710–790		690–780

Costs and Financial Aid

Here is what it costs for an undergraduate to study in 2006–07:

Tuition and other fees		$33,000
Room		4,885
Board		4,315
Miscellaneous expenses (books, supplies, etc.)		3,300
Total		$45,500

Firmly committed to equality of opportunity, Princeton admits students without regard to their financial circumstances and provides student grants and campus jobs—not student loans—to meet the full demonstrated financial need of all students offered admission. This policy applies to both domestic and international applicants. Currently, more than half of Princeton’s undergraduate students receive financial aid from the University.

Class of 2010

		%		Amount
Percent of Class on aid		54%
Not on aid: 46%
Average aid award				$30,980
Grant aid		95%		$29,500
Campus job		5%		$1,480

Students who receive financial aid help pay for their education by working in the summer and during the school year. Since they are no longer required to take loans to help pay their basic expenses, the University provides grants to fill any gap between the cost of attendance and the amount a student and his or her parents are able to pay.

The amount parents are asked to contribute varies from family to family based on a review of their financial circumstances. Princeton uses its own need formula to determine parental contributions.

Princeton’s Financial Aid Budget, 2006–07

	%	Amount
Number of undergraduates receiving financial aid	52%	2,524
Median family income of students receiving aid		$89,600
Average parental contribution for students receiving aid		$13,600
Total scholarship budget		$72,650,000
Provided by the University	92%
Endowed scholarships		47,260,000
General funds		16,030,000
Yearly gifts to scholarship program		3,400,000
Provided by government	4%	2,850,000
Provided by outside organizations	4%	3,110,000
Earnings of financial aid students		$2,000,000

Awards and Scholarships

Princeton students do very well in the national scholarship and fellowship competitions. During the past 10 years, 15 Princeton undergraduates have been Rhodes Scholars.

The table below lists seven of the award programs open to graduates and shows the number of Princetonians who have won these scholarships over the past five years.

	Awarded nationally	01–02	02–03	03–04	04–05	05–06
Churchill	11	1	1	0	0	0
Fulbright	958	14	9	15	10	9
Hertz	30	0	0	1	0	1
Marshall	40	4	0	2	2	2
Mellon	80	0	4	5	1	0
NSF*	850	18	20	18	8	16
Rhodes	32	4	1	2	0	1

*National Science Foundation