College Yield Drops 3 Percent Since COVID-19

Some students have deferred their enrollment to next year. 

Entrance to the Harvard Office of Admissions and Financial Aid

The Office of Admissions and Financial Aid 
Photograph by Lydia Carmichael/Harvard Magazine

The College’s yield for the class of 2024, or the share of admitted students who indicated that they will attend Harvard, has dropped from 84 percent on May 1 to 81 percent, according to a University announcement made today. Some students have deferred their enrollment until next fall due to the COVID-19 pandemic, which accounts for the drop. 

Last year’s yield was 82.1 percent; the 84 percent yield earlier this year was the highest since the early 1970s. 

First-generation college students make up 18.7 percent of the incoming class, and 22.4 percent of them qualify for the Harvard Financial Aid Initiative’s policy of making the College tuition-free for students whose families earn less than $65,000. The class’s racial makeup is similar to what was already reported about the admitted class in March: 24.6 percent are Asian-American; 13.9 percent are African-American; 11.8 percent are Latinx; and 2 percent are Native American or Native Hawaiian. 

Find more of Harvard Magazine’s reporting on what the fall semester will look like here and here

Read more articles by Marina N. Bolotnikova

You might also like

Eating for the Holidays, the Planet, and Your Heart

“Sustainable eating,” and healthy recipes you can prepare for the holidays.

Where Does Biomedicine Go from Here?

A former Harvard physician on why public trust in healthcare is falling.

A Flu Vaccine That Actually Works

Next-gen vaccines delivered directly to the site of infection are far more effective than existing shots.

Most popular

Getting to Mars (for Real)

Humans have been dreaming of living on the Red Planet for decades. Harvard researchers are on the case.

Is Ultraprocessed Food Really That Bad?

A Harvard professor challenges conventional wisdom. 

On Weekends, These Harvard Math Professors Teach the Smaller Set

At Cambridge Math Circle, faculty and alumni share puzzles, riddles, and joy.

Explore More From Current Issue

A bald man in a black shirt with two book covers beside him, one titled "The Magicians" and the other "The Bright Sword."

Novelist Lev Grossman on Why Fantasy Isn’t About Escapism

The Magicians author discusses his influences, from Harvard to King Arthur to Tolkien.

Lawrence H. Summers, looking serious while speaking at a podium with a microphone.

Harvard in the News

Grade inflation, Epstein files fallout, University database breach 

Four men in a small boat struggle with rough water, one lying down and others watching.

The 1884 Cannibalism-at-Sea Case That Still Has Harvard Talking

The Queen v. Dudley and Stephens changed the course of legal history. Here’s why it’s been fodder for countless classroom debates.