Posted on: 20 Aug 2026
The University of Pennsylvania accepted 40% of applicants back in 1980. In recent cycles, that figure has fallen to roughly 4%. Those wanting to join the Quaker campus a generation ago could gain acceptance simply by producing strong grades and test scores. Today, applicants find themselves in a hyper-competitive process, and in 2026-27 they need […]
Posted on: 20 Aug 2026
Short version: UVA has no supplemental essay for the vast majority of applicants. The only exception is the School of Nursing, which retains a single short answer. Everyone else submits the Common Application personal statement and nothing more. This is the second consecutive cycle under that policy. The University of Virginia is one of the […]
Posted on: 20 Aug 2026
With an acceptance rate in the neighborhood of 5-6%, Vanderbilt has become one of the most selective schools in the United States. Roughly 47,000 applicants now compete for about 1,700 spots. It’s easy for prospective applicants who can claim a 1500 SAT and a position near the top of their high school class to feel […]
Posted on: 20 Aug 2026
Short version, and the only thing most readers came here for: the University of Georgia no longer requires a supplemental essay. The well-known “meaningful book” prompt, which asked applicants about a book that made an impact on them around the middle-to-high-school transition, has been eliminated for the 2026-27 cycle. Applicants now submit the Common Application […]
Posted on: 20 Aug 2026
Short version, and the only thing most readers came here for: UNC-Chapel Hill no longer requires supplemental essays. Both short-answer questions have been removed for the 2026-27 application cycle. Applicants submit the Common Application personal statement, the activities list, and the optional additional information section, and nothing else. The Office of Undergraduate Admissions announced the […]
Posted on: 20 Aug 2026
Short version, and the only thing most readers came here for: the University of Miami no longer requires a supplemental essay. The community reflection prompt has been eliminated for the 2026-27 cycle. Applicants submit the Common Application personal statement and nothing else in the way of writing. Miami announced the change in June 2026 and […]
Posted on: 18 Aug 2026
With a most recently confirmed acceptance rate of 3.8%, Stanford University is in a league of selectivity with only a handful of other schools including Harvard, MIT, and Princeton. That figure comes from the Class of 2029, when Stanford admitted 2,302 students from a record 60,646 applications. Stanford withheld its Class of 2030 numbers, as […]
Posted on: 18 Aug 2026
With an acceptance rate of about 7% for the Class of 2030, Northwestern University is very much an “Ivy-equivalent” school. This is true both in terms of quality academics and selectivity. Last fall, incoming Wildcats almost universally placed within the top 10% of their respective high school class. They also boasted average SAT scores in […]