Only 4 Percent of Duke University’s Early Admits Are Black

Apparently, in response to Harvard and Princeton’s eliminating their early admissions programs, many other highly ranked universities have seen a surge in early applicants. For example, Yale reported a 36 percent increase in early applicants this year. The University of Chicago had a 42 percent increase in early admission applications.

But at Duke University, early applicants increased by only 5 percent. The university accepted 472 students during the early decision process. The early decision students will make up 28 percent of the incoming class.

Duke reports that 25 percent of all early acceptances are “students of color.” This is a record high percentage for the university. However, only 20 of the 472 students accepted early are black. Thus, at Duke, blacks made up only 4.2 percent of all students admitted early.

JBHE research has shown that many black students do not participate in the early admissions process because it restricts their ability to negotiate financial aid packages among competing institutions.

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