The Competition for College Seats is Not Sustainable

Last Updated:

• Applications to the Ivy League schools plus M.I.T, Duke University, University of Chicago, and Stanford have tripled since 2002 to almost 600,000 total


• As some universities drop standardized testing and students go to elite prep programs to get high scores, students will have to stand out based on essays and extracurricular activities


• Even though fewer jobs require four-year degrees and state schools are great, top schools still draw the most attention from researchers and innovative companies

Vice-President Kamala Harris announced recently that she plans to continue the trend of eliminating four-year degree requirements from federal jobs, something supported by previous actions of the Trump administration and private companies like Google.

While this has stirred the debate over the affordability of college, there’s another angle to consider too: top colleges are crazy competitive now and getting worse.

In 2002, the Ivy League schools plus M.I.T, Duke, Chicago, and Stanford received 175,000 applications combined. In 2022, they received 590,000 applications. That’s a threefold increase, without class sizes increasing at the same rate. Since 2017, the acceptance rates at UC Berkeley and UCLA have nearly been halved into single digits.

With acceptance rates so low, good scores and grades won’t be what differentiates talent. Those become the bare minimum to even be considered. Instead, students will need to stand apart with their essays and extracurriculars, which are difficult to navigate for those unfamiliar with what colleges may be looking for.

This trend of holistic admissions has been around for a while now, but lately it has hit extreme heights. Students are starting nonprofit initiatives in high school, developing their first mobile apps in middle school, and beginning to prepare for international STEM competitions in elementary school.

Even though many companies are dropping the job requirements to attend four-year colleges, top colleges still provide unique opportunities to their students. Research projects, job fairs, exclusive training for cutting-edge innovations, powerful alumni networks, and funding for startups remain concentrated in the Top 50 schools.

So Google and Tesla may not require a four-year degree for many of their jobs, but they’re still going to send recruiters to top universities looking for students with internships and research experience.

How Oil Companies Built a Pipeline into Universities

The Racist Legacy of Legacy Admissions

The Rise and Fall of Affirmative Action

International Conflicts are Slowing Down Research Projects

Why the Military is Ramping Up Funding for Colleges

International Students are Enrolling in the US at Fastest Rate in Decades