Notes on the Release of Early Decision Notifications
50
Posted by: Admissions_Daniel | 
December 16 2006 | 
Comments (50)
I often times enjoy journaling, so throughout the day on Friday (December 15, 2006) I decided to walk around with a pad and pen and jot down a series of entries. Since these entries primarily focused on my thoughts about the release of Early Decision notifications, I thought I would gear them to include details you all might find interesting. I hope you all enjoy this entry, and a special congratulations to the first members of the Johns Hopkins Class of 2011.
7:15 a.m. EST
The start of a busy day. It is the Ides of December and a thick, ominous fog has descended over the campus and all of Baltimore. Is this a sign of impending doom (a.k.a. holiday shopping) or is it just another sign of the fickle nature of Baltimore weather? Who knows, but it sure does make for some unique visual imagery. (I just hope the photos I took show how truly eerie the morning looked.
*
Boy am I tired. The last few days have been quite hectic, but it has been a good week. This Early Decision class is impressive and with the volume of applications I am surprised that we finished on time. I do think though that the plan to move the Early Decision deadline to November 1 next year is a good idea — it will make sure we have the time to make the right decisions.
ED release day is always one of my favorite professional days each year. I can still remember my first year as an admissions counselor rendering ED decisions. In fact I still remember a number of my first ED admits — I wonder what Greg, Lizzy, and Katie are doing now? This year’s pool also had some of those truly memorable candidates, including two that I hope to meet up with next fall and watch in awe as they go through four years of the Hopkins experience.
OK, time to get my work day officially started. First on the agenda is correspondence: clear out the e-mail accounts, respond to some comments on the blog, check the Hopkins Forums, and answer some final crazed questions on College Confidential. I wonder how many times today I will be questioned about what time the ED emails will be sent. Oy vei.
11:20 a.m. EST
Just returned to my desk after helping the Operations team stuff, seal, and add postage to the final admit packets. A few of my colleagues are taking all the decision letters and admit packets to the postal center. The ED Class of 2011 is officially signed, sealed, and in the early stagings of being delivered. I snapped some fun shots of these final steps in the process – enjoy!
As I was helping out sealing the admit packets, I actually reflected on two things. First, I really like the packet we send admits. Sending them Priority Mail is a nice touch. The black folder with the little “Yes” tab is really cool. The poster insert is a lot of fun. And then, special to me, is the Hopkins Interactive insert which resemble the little discs we give out to visitors. I never complain when we are promoting Hopkins Interactive.
The other thing I was reflecting about was how different the admissions decision release process is today compared to when I applied to college back in 1992-93. Back in my day, I had applied to two Early Action schools. Being a first-generation college applicant and having a guidance counselor who knew very little, I really was clueless going into the process. I was able to come up with a list of about 10 schools I was interested in, and two that were clearly at the top of the list. Early Action was something that seemed easy to do, so I took a chance.
Just to paint the picture a bit more — there were no online applications, there was no E-mail, there was no College Confidential, there were no college Web sites, heck the Internet didn’t even exist. The obsession over college selectivity was minimal at best. You picked your schools, you applied to each school individually (Common App., if it existed, was not popular), and then you actually had to wait for the mail. It was truly the Dark Ages compared to today — now students seem to control a lot more of the process, and demand much more too.
But I digress. What I was truly remembering was finding out on December 15, 1992 that I had been deferred from both of my Early Action schools. I opened the small letters, read them fully, showed them to my family, and then filed them away. No real reaction, well maybe a bit of disappointment. I was done with my other applications already, and I knew that I would ultimately get in some where. Looking back now almost 15 years later, it was not the most momentous day of my life up to that point…it was just another day. The day in late March of 1993 when all my other letters arrived was more memorable, but still the whole time period was not filled with much anxiety, dread, anticipation, fear, and/or stress. Some of it actually was fun and enjoyable.
So I guess what I am trying to say is that, though I do enjoy this day every year when we release ED decisions, I do wish we could find a way to go back to the good old days when anxiety and stress were not so prominent. The whole process has gone awry, and I think on a day when I am not so worn out I could really come up with some ideas to turn things around. But that is for another day … it is lunch time, and I have some online Christmas shopping to do.
2:15 p.m. EST
The fog is gone and it actually feels like a nice spring day outside now. Baltimore weather is so strange. I love that there is a Chipotle now just a few minutes from campus. And oh yeah, I have already answered that “what time are the emails being sent” question 14 times just today. Patience people!!!
So John [Director of Admissions, John F. Latting] just distributed the ED statistics and they just prove what a great start to the admissions cycle we have experienced. There is some great data, especially when compared to the ED pools of the past few years. Here are the highlights:
- Second largest ED applicant pool = 997 which is just down 1% (7 total apps.) from last year’s record 1004 applications which had been a 39% overall increase. Just five years ago in 2002 we had 516 ED applications, and in 9 years ago it was 462.
- The acceptance rate dropped once again – this year we chose to admit 45% which means 447 students will be receiving the good news that they are the first students to be admitted to the Johns Hopkins Class of 2011.
- Of the 447 admits: 46% are female, 43 are underrepresented minority students, 34% are Engineers, 34% Natural Science, and 28% interested in Humanities or Social Sciences.
- As far as the “quality” of the admits, everything is up. Mean SAT Critical Reasoning + Math is a 1364, up from 1352 last year.
- New Jersey remained the top state (73), Maryland second (60), and New York third (50). 28 totals states represented with the admits.
3:49 p.m. EST
I just got off the phone with a college counselor and we were discussing the case of an ED student who was deferred. Those conversations are never easy, but they are not as hard as the “Deny” talks or any conversation with a student or parent who wants an explanation about why a certain decision was rendered. The conversation made me reflect on the deferred students and I thought I should include some information for them in this journaling.
I guess the most important thing to say to the ED deferred students is that the road does not end here and you shouldn’t lose all hope. We will admit deferred students during regular decision. ED deferred applicants are admitted every year, and are provided the same chance of admission as the applicants who apply regular decision. At Hopkins, we do not defer all applicants who are not admitted ED, we actually do deny a number of ED applicants who we determine do not have a chance for admission in the RD review process. Deferred applicants do have a second chance.
Here is my list of suggestions and advice that I always pass along when speaking with ED Defers:
- Apply to other schools. Though obvious, your chance for admission to Hopkins is not guaranteed and you want to make sure you have options.
- Make sure you update the academic portion of your application. This would include mid-year grades (which will play an important role in your re-review), additional standardized test scores you may have taken, and maybe even an updated letter of recommendation from your guidance counselor.
- Consider updating the non-academic portion of your application. Though not required, an updated resume and an additional letter of recommendation (especially from a senior year teacher) can always help. Just make sure anything you add does contribute in a new way to your application. Do not be redundant.
- Write a letter to the Admissions Committee. Though not something all deferred applicants need to do or even should do, some of you may consider writing a personal letter to the Admissions Committee stressing your interest in Hopkins and why you feel you are an appropriate candidate for admissions. Consider this a cover letter to your overall application.
- Most importantly, have a stellar senior year academically. The most important part of the review of a early decision deferred applicant is their academic progress throughout senior year.
[Note: We have started an ED Defer discussion thread on the Hopkins Message Boards. Check it out here, and post questions if you have any.}
6:25 p.m. EST
Just got home. Long day. The emails have all been sent out, and I am anxious to go online and see the reaction. However, I am going to first enjoy a nice dinner with Soze, purchase my last Christmas present online, watch Stump the Schwab on ESPN Classic, and then watch Wheel of Fortune on ABC. I’ll log on around 8:00.
8:10 p.m. EST
Well the news is out. Everyone is reacting. Very interesting. It’s been a long process so I am going to have a glass of wine (maybe 2 or 3) and enjoy some DVDs. I have had the same Netflix DVDs for the past three weeks. Then it is off to bed for a long night sleep and the start to a relaxing weekend.
Congratulations and best wishes.
Loading ...
By Michael C, January 1, 2007 @ 2:22 AM
Regarding the “quality” of the admits is there a mean gpa also? ^^ and approximately how many students will be coming from the west coast (specifically calif.)? =D ty!
By Daniel Creasy, January 1, 2007 @ 7:54 AM
Michael,
We don’t provide mean GPA stats to the public. GPA is a really tricky admission statistic for us and one we typically do not publish. Every high school computes GPA differently, have different weighting systems, have different grading systems, etc. For this reason there really is no way to quantify an average GPA.
As for west coast ED admits:
California = 40
Washington = 2
Oregon = 3
By Michael C, January 1, 2007 @ 1:24 PM
=D yesssss atleast 45 students will freeze to death next year like me lol O.o
By Jessica, January 1, 2007 @ 2:28 PM
Thank you so much for posting these!
Look out Johns Hopkins…Class of 2011 here we come! :-D
Happy New Year!
PS I was very impressed with the folders: velcro, the Yes, the color scheme…quite impressive.
By Mandy, January 1, 2007 @ 3:51 PM
Do you know approximately how many students were admitted from the South? I’m from NC and everyone I’ve talked to so far is from NY/NJ/PA!
By Daniel Creasy, January 1, 2007 @ 4:12 PM
Mandy,
Here are the ED admits from the South:
FL = 13
GA = 4
KY = 1
MS = 1
NC = 7
VA = 16
So yes there are more than NY/NJ/PA people. Those mid-atlantic people seem to be prominent in cyberspace.
By John, January 1, 2007 @ 6:15 PM
I’m always going to remember December 15th, it was a very long day for me but ended quite nicely. Quite a few of my friends, who were browsing through my belongings on my desk as they always do, commented on how cool the acceptance packet is.
A bit of a non sequitur:
Daniel, there is a question I’ve been meaning to ask: Is there a big “The Wire” community at Hopkins? Is there any way to watch it there (being that it’s on HBO)? I just started watching it a month or two ago and feel like I’m getting to know Baltimore a little more (yes,I DO know it’s fictitious but I can’t help but imagine I’ll be looking for some of the characters and mayor Tommy Carcetti in B-more).
Anyways, thanks for the post -Jack
By Ann, January 1, 2007 @ 8:18 PM
How many admits were from the west? New Mexico/arizona/colorado/utah/wyoming?
thanks
By Dan Bee Kim, January 1, 2007 @ 9:34 PM
Hey John, wazzup my little Korean pal? haha.
Also, can you please let us know how many people were international applicants? Just outa curiosity lol.
Yes, i was literally SHOCKED at the JHU acceptance packet. i mean a velcro and a yes? come on you’ve gotta admit this is cool!(and expensive!) i’m not trying to compare, but my other college acceptance packet was good too but nothing compared to the black-velcroed-”yes”-bag-looking-packet! woohoo! (ok… i’m getting a little bit too excited about a velcro and i used the word “compare” -_-.) haha Happy New Year!
By Byung Joon Park, January 1, 2007 @ 10:00 PM
Hey Dan Bee, that John is the other John -_- Well, Happy New Year to everyone here!
and Dan Bee it’s so wonderful THAT you got into BME! :)
By Jack, January 1, 2007 @ 10:44 PM
Ha yeah… I saw that there was another John. I go by Jack so I’ll just post as that now.
By George, January 1, 2007 @ 11:58 PM
Hi Daniel!
Could you could post up somewhere the mean SATI and SATII scores for the BME acceptances? I’m curious as to how difficult it was for them to get in ;].
By Daniel Creasy, January 2, 2007 @ 5:54 AM
Jack – I am really not sure if students watch “The Wire” – you might want to ask on the message boards. I personally have made it a new year’s resolution to catch up on all the past seasons (probably will have to wait until the summer). I first got addicted to shows about Baltimore with one of my favorite series ever, Homicide: Life on the Street. Though both shows focus more on a Baltimore of 10 years ago, it is always cool to see a show filmed in your city.
Cheers.
By Daniel Creasy, January 2, 2007 @ 5:59 AM
More West Coast admits:
AZ = 6
CO = 8
NM, UT, WY = 0 admits (only 2 ED applicants from these states.)
***************************
International admits = 33 (9 of whom were schooled in the U.S.)
***************************
George — we do not release admissions statistics for specific majors — sorry!
By Rob, January 2, 2007 @ 8:22 AM
How about the New England admits: ME, NH, VT, MA, RI?
Thanks
By Daniel Creasy, January 2, 2007 @ 8:27 AM
I was waiting for someone to ask about the great New England admits — the ones so dear to my heart:
MA = 17
NH = 3
RI = 3
ME = 1
VT = 0 (only 1 ED applicant from VT)
By Albert, January 2, 2007 @ 10:16 AM
How about Midwest admits? Especially MO :-).
By William, January 2, 2007 @ 10:56 AM
How about the CT admits, we’re New England too?
By Daniel Creasy, January 2, 2007 @ 2:24 PM
William:
CT may be part of New England but here at Hopkins our territories are not broken down that way. CT is combined with NY for its own region. But as far as CT admits = 17.
Albert:
Midwest #s
MO = 1
IL = 13
MI = 10
MN = 2
OH = 9
By Derek, January 2, 2007 @ 6:42 PM
Stats from Pennsylvania please?
Thanks!
By Daniel Creasy, January 2, 2007 @ 7:20 PM
ED Admits from PA = 43.
By Dan Bee Kim, January 3, 2007 @ 12:01 AM
woops, my bad!lol
wow… there are so many people who got in! (and thank you for posting everyone’s answers to the statistics.)
ok. the regulars’ applications are all in… the process starts all over again i guess.
hi byung joon!
By Jennifer Kwon, January 3, 2007 @ 6:55 AM
Hi!
I was wondering how many Korean students residing in Korea atm were accepted ED this year.
Thanks (:
By Daniel Creasy, January 3, 2007 @ 9:04 AM
Of the 33 International admits, 5 are Korean citizens from Korean high schools.
By Dan Bee Kim, January 3, 2007 @ 9:59 AM
5!! wow now that’s what i call amazing (since they must have had extra work to do.. right?)
can you please advise how many Koreans were admitted in total? thank you ;)
By Daniel Creasy, January 3, 2007 @ 10:21 AM
We do not share breakdowns based on race until the complete Class is completed after the RD process. Also we do not breakdown the Asian race category, so it is impossible for us to say how many Koreans were admitted.
By Dan Bee Kim, January 3, 2007 @ 12:17 PM
oh ok. well i guess i’ll find out later when i go to JHU :)
By Ehsan Dowlati, January 3, 2007 @ 4:07 PM
Hi, i know that 16 people got in from VA, can you tell me how many ED applicants there were from VA?
By Daniel Creasy, January 3, 2007 @ 4:38 PM
16 out of 31
By Siavash, January 3, 2007 @ 5:13 PM
Hi, could you tell me how many Canadian students were admitted ED?
By Albert, January 3, 2007 @ 6:39 PM
Wow, only one from MO? Could you tell me how many ED applicants there were from MO?
By Michael C, January 3, 2007 @ 7:47 PM
now that ehsan brought it up ^^ how many people from california applied ed? =D
By Byung Joon Park, January 3, 2007 @ 10:22 PM
5 Korean students from Korean High Schools! :) That’s amazing! btw can you please tell me how many ED applicants there were from TX and how many got in? Thank you :)
By Daniel Creasy, January 4, 2007 @ 9:30 AM
Wow, you all love these stats. Not sure why – they really do not lead to any conclusions.
Canadians: 8 admits of 16 ED applications
Missouri: 1 of 3
California: 40 of 81
Texas: 10 of 31
By Claire, January 4, 2007 @ 8:33 PM
Hi Daniel! Just wanted to let you know how much I love reading your posts! You present such a personal, caring side to Hopkins here. And, to share a personal moment of my own, I got the acceptance e-mail via my boss’s blackberry as I was riding the bus to work in North Philly. I started blubbering when I saw the “Congratulations from Hopkins” headline, which has caused endless teasing from my co-workers. But it’s all worth it. Thanks for making the application process that much easier with these posts.
Also, to Jack: As a Charm City local, I would say the Wire is a widespread addiction here. Video Americain, the local video store, carries rentals of seasons 1-3. Though certain aspects of the show may be dated, it is generally an apt reflection of urban Baltimore life. And even if the show isn’t popular with the JHU student body, you’re welcome to watch Season Five at my house!
By Daniel Creasy, January 5, 2007 @ 8:47 AM
Claire:
Thanks for the nice comments. I always like to know that are are people out there who enjoy my unusual ramblings – besides my Mom. And great story about how you found out you got in — you will remember that for the rest of your life time.
Cheers!
By Ann, January 5, 2007 @ 6:07 PM
what percents of applicants were deferred this year?
By Daniel Creasy, January 6, 2007 @ 8:36 AM
As I stated in the post above 447 of the 997 ED applicants were offered admissions (acceptance rate = 44.8%). 348 of the 997 were deferred to RD (defer rate = 34.9%).
Please note one things about these stats…these are not set rates from year-to-year. For ED our admit and defer rates vary depending on the quality of the applicant pool.
By Nisha I., January 6, 2007 @ 10:31 AM
Could you tell us how many students were accepted into the BME program out of the students who applied to BME for ED? Or is that a departmental thing?
By Dan Bee Kim, January 6, 2007 @ 11:07 AM
someone asked the same question and the answer was “no” because it’s a department thing.
By Daniel Creasy, January 7, 2007 @ 7:59 AM
The # of students selected to the BME program is not released until the final decisions are made during RD. We do not release acceptance statistics (such as avg. SAT for BME admits) for selection into BME as we do not release departmental specific stats.
By Amy Morgan, January 8, 2007 @ 8:47 PM
Hi Mr Creasy! How many Delaware students applied early decision and how many were admitted?
By Daniel Creasy, January 9, 2007 @ 9:02 AM
Delaware: 5 applies – 3 admitted
By Dan Bee Kim, January 12, 2007 @ 12:09 PM
hm… i’m dying to read new posts Mr.Creasy! i love reading your posts, so please post a new post soon! (ok.. how many times did i write the word post here? lol)
By Elya, January 23, 2007 @ 7:35 PM
Mr. Creasy,
I am from Los Angeles where there is a large population of Armenians compared to the rest of the US and I was wondering if there is an Armenian population at JHU or in Baltimore.
By Daniel Creasy, January 31, 2007 @ 11:30 PM
Elya,
Sorry but the admissions office does not keep statistics on the number of Armenian students, nor do I know anything about the Armenian population in Baltimore.
By Jinesh, February 1, 2007 @ 7:53 AM
Hey,
Since everyone seems to be asking about stats only, i don’t think that i should differ.Lol… How many people from India got in ED and how many had applied?
Thanks
By Daniel Creasy, February 1, 2007 @ 10:19 AM
ED students from India: 5 applied, 1 admit
By karen, December 1, 2008 @ 5:32 PM
How about Nebraska?
By Kevin Hong, December 11, 2008 @ 8:34 AM
Hi Daniel,
Could you please tell me how many Chinese mainland applicants were admitted? What was the pool? Many thanks