Last week, 969 prospective students received letters of admission to Swarthmore’s Class of 2030, out of 13,029 applicants. 

“Helping to shape the future of Swarthmore is a treasured gift and immense responsibility that our Admissions Office carries with great care. Our holistic application review means we not only see the numbers on a transcript, but we also read the story of each student’s journey,” says Jim Bock '90, vice president and dean of admissions.

Here is the admitted class by the numbers:

Twenty-five percent of the admitted students are first-generation college students. A total of 26% are affiliated with local, national, and international community-based organizations, such as Bridge2Rwanda, College Match, EducationUSA, Heights Philadelphia, Jack Kent Cooke Foundation, Matriculate, Prep for Prep, QuestBridge, The Sutton Trust, TeenSharp, and The Wight Foundation.

Sixty-one percent of the admitted students attend public or charter schools, 29% attend private independent schools, 9% attend religious schools, and 1% are home-schooled. Among all the students, 13% are enrolled in schools abroad, and 6% attend rural public high schools.

Of the admitted students attending high schools that report class rank, 94% are in the top decile.

“There’s no one quality that makes a Swattie,” adds Bock. “Swarthmore is a community of people who care deeply about learning and can get each other excited about what excites them. Perhaps most importantly, Swatties care about the world around them and making a positive impact on it — together.”

The admitted students span six continents and 71 nations, including international citizens, dual citizens, and permanent residents. All 50 U.S. states are represented, as well as the District of Columbia, the Northern Mariana Islands, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands. California is the most highly represented home state of members in the newly admitted class. Rounding out the top 15 with double-digit admits, in order, are New York, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Massachusetts, Maryland, Virginia, Texas, Florida, North Carolina, Connecticut, Illinois, Ohio, Arizona, and Washington.

Engineering is the most popular intended major among the admitted students. Next, in order, are political science, economics, English literature, biology, mathematics and statistics, philosophy, biochemistry, psychology, neuroscience, computer science, physics, music, history, and environmental studies.

Swarthmore expects to yield a first-year class of about 430 students. The Admissions Office and our entire community look forward to welcoming the incoming class to our campus for Swatstruck this spring and celebrating their arrival in the fall.