According to the College’s Office of Admissions, Hamilton received a record 8,338 applications for the Class of 2023, up 34 percent from last year’s then-record total of 6,240.

The acceptance rate for the Class of 2022, 21 percent, was also the lowest in the College’s history at the time. This year, that number projects to be even lower.

The Office of Admissions regards this year’s application statistics as a success.

“This is a team win, to be sure, and we hope everyone in our community takes pride in this historic admission year,” said Vice President for Enrollment Management Monica Inzer.

This year’s applicant pool is not only larger, but also more diverse. 24 percent of applicants are international students, while 37 percent of U.S. applicants identified as students of color. 57 percent are women and 43 percent are men. Finally, the applicant pool covers 49 states and 121 countries.

Likely explanations for the consistent surge in applications in recent years revolve around a few factors. First, the College removed some barriers in the application submission process, including waiving the application fee for first-generation college students and allowing applicants to self-report their standardized testing scores. The admissions team believes this helped persuade more students who were considering applying to submit their application. Still, those who might have taken advantage of the relatively greater ease in applying via the Common Application accounted for less than half of this year’s increase in applications.

Other contributing factors include the Office of Admissions use of Slate, an admissions database that allows the team to better track and communicate with prospective students. Using this tool, the Office of Admissions say they enhanced their international communication plan to make it more targeted, conducting more strategic outreach and travel.

Finally, this was the second year the Office partnered with QuestBridge, a non-profit program that raises student awareness of educational and scholarship opportunities among U.S. colleges and universities.

In addition to the sustained efforts of the admissions team, Hamilton’s expanded financial aid options, informative tour guides and interns, new faculty hires, and new facilities and resources like the Johnson Center for Health and Wellness were also key in attracting a higher number of applicants.

Throughout the next six weeks, the admissions team will begin a committee selection process in which they identify the students who will be invited to join the Class of 2023. Despite the greater number of applications to process, Inzer says the selection process will remain the same.

“No one in admissions chose this job because we like rejecting students,” she said. “Every candidate — even in a year with a 34 percent increase in applications — will get our thoughtful and serious consideration.”

With an increase in applications comes an increase in rejections, an aspect of the job that the admissions team reiterate they not take lightly. Naturally, though, the acceptance rate is expected to decrease — likely into the teens after last year’s 21 percent mark.

Describing expectations for demographic representation in the Class of 2023, Inzer says, “In the end, as is always the case, we’ll try to shape a class that is academically strong, personally talented, from a diverse range of backgrounds and cultures, and committed to thriving in and positively contributing to a residential community like ours.”

The admissions team has a busy few months ahead of them before May 1, the deadline for students to choose a college and reserve a place at their chosen school.