Swarthmore College has sent letters of admission to 963 prospective members of the Class of 2020. Twelve percent of the 7717 students who applied were offered a position in the first year class. Based on previous admissions patterns, Swarthmore expects this group of admitted students to yield a first-year class of about 420 for next fall.
“Swarthmore received another exceptional pool of applicants from all over the United States and from all corners of the world,” says Jim Bock ’90, vice president and dean of admissions. “The admitted class represents a diverse set of students who value residential liberal arts education in this ever globally interdependent world. They are committed to an intellectually rigorous education while understanding the importance of giving back to their communities and leaving the world a better place than they found it. Many have recognized our commitment to an affordable and accessible education, and we look forward to welcoming them to our campus and seeing their impact on our community.”
Fifty-nine percent of the admitted students come from public and/or charter schools, 20 percent from private independent schools, 11 percent from parochial schools, and 10 percent from schools overseas.
Twenty-three percent of the admitted students are among the first generation in their family to attend college.
The admitted students come from or represent six continents, 70 nations, and 49 U.S. states as well as the District of Columbia, Guam, and Puerto Rico. California is the most highly represented home state of members in the newly admitted class. Following, in order, are New York, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Maryland, Massachusetts, Virginia, Illinois, Texas, and Florida.
China and India, each with 10 students, are the most represented nations among non-U.S. citizens in the admitted class. Eight are from South Korea, seven are from Mexico, six are from Canada, and four are from Hong Kong. Three each are from Brazil, Japan, Malaysia, New Zealand, and the United Kingdom.
Two each are from Australia, France, Greece, Honduras, Indonesia, Kenya, Nepal, Russia, Thailand, Turkey, Uganda, and Vietnam. One each is from Argentina, Austria, Bahamas, Botswana, Colombia, Congo (Kinshasa), Denmark, Egypt, Italy, Jamaica, Jordan, Macau, Macedonia, Morocco, Myanmar, Nigeria, Pakistan, Peru, Philippines, Portugal, Singapore, Somalia, Sweden, Switzerland, and Taiwan.
Additionally, there are many students who carry dual citizenship with the U.S. or who have permanent residency whose nationalities are not included in this summary.
Of the admitted students attending high schools reporting class rank, 95 percent are in the top decile.
Engineering is the most popular intended major among the admitted students. Next, in order, are political science, economics, biology, mathematics, computer science, English literature, physics, psychology, and environmental studies.
