The College of William & Mary, the second oldest institution of higher learning in America, received a record number of applications this admissions cycle. In all, 18,050 students applied to William & Mary in the hope of joining the Class of 2026. This marks a 3.5% increase over last year’s then-record application tally. Early Decision applications to the Virginia-based school were also up — by a margin of 5%. And applications from underserved groups also rose with applications of first-generation college students up 10%, students of color up 7%, and low-income students (specifically, those requiring an application fee waiver) up 14%.

As Erin Zagursky writes in a William & Mary press release entitled “W&M sets new application record for freshmen,” “Last year, the university also saw a record-setting number of applications, with a 23% increase from the previous year. ‘Following last year’s dramatic increase in applications, we didn’t know what to expect going into this year,’ said Tim Wolfe, Associate Vice President for Enrollment and Dean of Admission. ‘We’re delighted to see that when the dust settled, we experienced an additional increase in applications again this year, including record totals for our Early Decision programs and overall. It’s also exciting to see this includes continued growth in applications from first-generation students and students of color.’ Wolfe attributes the increases to the university’s work to remove barriers and expand access by continuing to make standardized test scores optional and by expanding application fee waivers for first-generation and Pell Grant-eligible students. While both efforts have been in place for a couple of years now, awareness of their availability is spreading, Wolfe said.”

Early Decision notifications for the William & Mary Class of 2026 are already out. Regular Decision notifications will be released in late March. Congratulations to the William & Mary admissions office on another banner year in admissions after setting a new application benchmark just last year.