Skidmore College Reports It Received Largest Number Of Applicants In School’s History

The number of applicants for the incoming class at Skidmore College has broken the record in each of the past three years, college officials said. 

This year, Skidmore received 10,750 applications, the largest number in college history, representing a 7 percent increase over 2017 and a 30 percent increase in applications over the last five years.

College officials said Skidmore continues to experience growth in applications from international students, as well as domestic students who self-identify as students of color. In the past decade, the percentage of domestic students of color in the college’s applicant pool has increased to 30 percent from 21 percent, and the percentage of international student applicants has increased to 30 percent from 6 percent. 

Skidmore also received a record number of “early decision” applications, with 695 students applying to Skidmore as their first choice of college, a 12 percent increase compared to 2017, according to the college. Since 2012, Skidmore has seen a 65 percent increase in early decision applications. 

Additionally, the collective student body is comprised of 14.1 percent first-generation college students.

“Skidmore College has become increasingly attractive to exceptional high school students because of its emphasis on distinctive interdisciplinary connections between and among the sciences, arts, humanities and social sciences, and between the campus and the broader world beyond,” said Mary Lou Bates, vice president and dean of admissions and financial aid. 

Skidmore expects its Class of 2022 to include 690 students. Accepted students hail from 47 states and 51 countries. Approximately 38 students will choose to begin their college experience at Skidmore’s First-Year London Program. 

“Driven by a core belief that ‘Creative Thought Matters,’ Skidmore provides students with an academic and co-curricular environment that is richly influenced by creative thinking across many disciplines including business, humanities, sciences, social sciences, arts and literature—a tradition that values and rewards real-world actions and outcomes,” Bates said.

Skidmore College is consistently named as one of the nation’s best liberal arts colleges by U.S. News and World Report, and has recently been featured on the Forbes lists of America’s Top Colleges, America’s Best Value Colleges and America’s Most Entrepreneurial Colleges.