Of those admitted to the Stanford Class of 2016, 8.9 percent are international students, according to Director of Admissions Bob Patterson.
While the statistic hovers around the roughly 9 percent it stood at for last year’s admitted class, the percentage still remains smaller than that at peer institutions. International students make up 10 percent of those accepted to the Class of 2016 at Harvard University, 9.3 percent at Dartmouth University and 12.2 percent at Princeton University.
Stanford defines international applicants as those who are neither U.S. citizens nor U.S. permanent residents. This year, the largest country of origin for students outside the U.S. was the United Kingdom, followed by China, Canada and South Korea.
Despite the fact that Stanford is currently lagging behind other universities in the percentage of international students admitted, Patterson partially attributed this year’s record-breaking number of applications — 36,631, a 6.7 percent increase from the 34,348 students who applied for the Class of 2015 — to a rise in applicants from other countries.
“We received a record-breaking number of applications this year and are unsure if the trend will continue or if our numbers will remain flat,” Patterson wrote in an email to The Daily. “However, given Stanford’s increased involvement in global outreach, we may see applicants from parts of the world that historically have not applied.”
At the end of March, the University opened a research and education center at China’s Peking University. This center, which will host 10 of Stanford’s programs, is expected to raise the University’s publicity and profile throughout China.
“We do anticipate additional applicants from China in future years,” Patterson said.
However, obstacles remain for students in developing countries who wish to apply to Stanford. In contrast with the need-blind admissions policy for domestic applicants, Patterson explained that Stanford has a limited amount of financial aid dollars available for international students.
“We do not maintain a need-blind financial aid policy because we do not have enough financial aid dollars to support such a program,” Patterson said. “We generally have a small percentage of international students on financial aid.”
The University accepted 2,427 students to be members of the Class of 2016, only 6.6 percent of this year’s admit pool, besting last year’s 7.1 percent admission rate. In December, 755 students were admitted through Stanford’s early action program, while 1,672 students received offers of admission via email Friday, March 30.
The Office of Undergraduate Admission has invited accepted students to visit the campus this weekend to participate in the University’s Admit Weekend from Thursday, April 26 to Sunday, April 29.