The Office of Admissions has announced the students
who make up the Class of 2028.
After three rounds of an intensive and thoughtful selection process, ϳԹվ College has enrolled a total of 507 students from 13,265 submitted applications—the most the College has ever received—resulting in an acceptance rate of 7 percent.
Matriculating students this year represent forty-five states as well as the District of Columbia and fifty-three countries. Twelve students join the class after a gap year, and nineteen students were admitted to ϳԹվ through the QuestBridge Match process. The College will also welcome seven transfer students and three veterans who have served with the US Air Force or US Navy.
“The members of the Class of 2028 and our transfer students come from many backgrounds,” said Claudia Marroquin ’06, senior vice president and dean of admissions and student aid.
“They are inspiring scholars, caring and active members of their communities, talented in many ways, and ready for this stage of their educational journey. They shared willingly and thoughtfully of themselves throughout the application process. The admissions team has enjoyed getting to know these young people, and I am excited for the ϳԹվ community to get to know them too.”
This year’s admissions cycle was the first after the US Supreme Court’s decision on the use of race and the challenging federal roll-out of the simplified Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA.)
“Many have wondered about the impact of the Supreme Court decision,” said Marroquin. “We made several changes to our processes to comply with the court’s ruling, and the impact of the decision will take more than a single admissions cycle to fully understand.
“We continued our recruitment efforts in many ways: including our strong partnerships with community-based organizations throughout the country and direct outreach to students throughout the world. While a data point will never capture the complexity of a student’s identity nor their lived experience, the class consists of 39 percent students who self-identify as a domestic student of color, a decrease from last year’s number of 42 percent.
“Historically, our practice has been to share details of the racial composition in late September when we publicly report our data to the National Center for Education Statistics, but we share the following information about the Class of 2028 knowing that this moment is different: Asian: 9 percent; Black: 6 percent; Hispanic/Latino: 16 percent; and two or more races: 8 percent.
Gender Identity: 52 percent women; 45 percent men; 3 percent another identity
First generation to attend college (neither parent has a four-year college degree): 16 percent
Students of color: 39 percent
International background: 11 percent
Students from Maine: 9 percent
Most represented states: California, Connecticut, Florida, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Texas, Virginia, Washington (all with ten or more students)
Percent receiving student aid: 53 percent
Pell grant recipients: 20 percent
Aided Students with $0 Family Contribution: 27 percent
Legacy (parent or grandparent who also attended ϳԹվ): 6 percent
Public and/or charter schools: 53 percent
Independent schools: 37 percent
Religious and/or parochial schools: 10 percent
Number of unique high schools represented: 404
Chose not to submit testing: 54 percent
“In terms of the FAFSA rollout, ϳԹվ was able to provide financial aid awards to students at the same time admissions decisions were released, which lessened the uncertainty and worry that so many families experienced this spring. ϳԹվ remains committed to creating a diverse student body where different lived experiences, perspectives, talents, and achievements are considered within the context of a student’s many identities and where we provide opportunities for all our students,” Marroquin said.
ϳԹվ’s student aid program supports all admitted students and their families by meeting 100 percent of each student’s calculated financial need with need-based scholarships and grants—and all aid packages are loan-free.
All enrolled students at ϳԹվ receive a MacBook Pro, iPad mini, and Apple Pencil as part of the College’s groundbreaking Digital Excellence Commitment (DExC), an initiative in place since fall 2023.
“ϳԹվ continues to level the playing field for students,” Marroquin said. “We seek a student body composed of the broadest definition of diversity—perspectives, beliefs, upbringings, experiences—and we recognize that talent and excellence exist across socioeconomic levels. The College’s financial aid support and DExC programs are two ways in which we ensure that every student can fully participate in the ϳԹվ experience. The newest members of the ϳԹվ community are an impressive group of young people. I look forward to seeing their successes and outcomes in the years to come.”
Read about arrival day, orientation trips, and students' first days as members of the Class of 2028.
