Princeton Accepts Early Applicants to the Class of 2026…But Where Are The Numbers?

On December 16, Princeton sent out acceptance letters to early applicants. But the University won't release how many candidates have been extended an invitation to join the Class of 2026. Nor will they release this year's Early Action admissions rate, the number of applicants, demographics of accepted students, or statistics like average SAT score and GPA of admits. The University is the only Ivy League school to withhold their admission results for the early action/early decision. According to a statement released online from the Ivy, they will not release acceptance rates for the Regular Decision cycle or transfer admissions cycle either — and "in recent years," has declined to release the "annual admission rate." 

In last year's regular admissions cycle, Princeton admitted a record-low 1,498 students out of 37,601 applicants for an acceptance rate of 3.98 percent — a significant drop from the 5.6 percent acceptance rate for the Class of 2024. An additional 149 students had deferred admission or were admitted off the waitlist for a total acceptance rate of 4.38 percent.

"We believe this decision will help us keep students central to our work and tamp down the anxiety of applicants," the University said in the statement released on their website. 

Princeton's decision not to release admission results leaves many scratching their heads. This choice begs the question, is Princeton intentionally not releasing admit rates so they can keep the inventory of candidates low as a catalyst to drive up demand and maintain the allure and prestige of one of the top-ranked universities? 

Is the motivation for not revealing these numbers to quell candidates' anxiety, or is it a ploy by the prestigious University to differentiate and compete? We believe it is more so the latter.

Princeton University's single-choice Early Action program is a non-binding process. If admitted, candidates have until May 1 to notify the University about their decision to matriculate. If a candidate applies single-choice Early Action, also known as “Restrictive Early Action,” they may not apply early at any other private college or university. 

​​The other two Ivy League institutions with Single Choice Early Action admissions (Harvard and Yale) admitted 7.9 percent and 10.9 percent of early applicants, respectively in the 2021-22 cycle. Columbia, Dartmouth, UPenn, and Brown also released Early Decision statistics. 

For students preparing their applications for Regular Decision, the deadline is January 1. That means there are just a few days for students to devise a compelling application to catch the eyes of the highly selective Princeton admissions committee. 

Interested in a final application review by college admissions experts? Call Ivy Link today. 

Results for Princeton's Class of 2026 are set to be released in April.