Upsurge in Applications

Applications for admission to Dartmouth College have increased dramatically over last year, and year-round operation and coeducation are credited with being the main reasons for the upsurge, which runs counter to the national trend for private universities.

When the January 1 deadline for applications for the Class of 1977 arrived, the number was placed at approximately 7000, up from 5700 last year and 4700 the year before. Preliminary figures from other Ivy League universities would indicate that their application totals are holding at about the same level as last year.

Although his office had not broken down the applicants by sex, Director of Admissions Edward T. Chamberlain '36 noted that the bulk of the increase this year has undoubtedly come from women. The official announcement of coeducation at Dartmouth came too late last year for any large number of women to complete applications.

The Class of 1977 will number approximately 1050, of whom 800 will be men and 250 women. Other women will be admitted into the upper classes as transfers.

Although some persons feared that the Dartmouth Plan requirement that each student enroll for at least one summer term would scare prospective students away, the result has been the opposite, in the view of President Kemeny. In his meetings with high school students and guidance counselors while touring the country in recent months, he found tremendous interest in the flexibility offered by the Dartmouth Plan, and also in coeducation.