All data on race and ethnicity for incoming students was self-reported via the Common Application, which allows applicants to select all race and ethnicity categories in which they identify. Brown will complete its annual enrollment census in October in preparation for reporting race and ethnicity data per federal standards, which add a “Two or More Races” category and (distinct from the Common Application) require that all students are reported in one category only.

Commitment to sustaining excellence and diversity

Powell said Brown’s commitment to implementing lawful measures to ensure a diverse, talented applicant pool and enrolled class was essential in avoiding a more precipitous decrease in racial and socioeconomic diversity.

For the 2023-24 cycle, Brown’s admissions team engaged with a wide variety of stakeholders to encourage a diverse pool of applicants and to support admitted students in determining whether Brown was the best fit for them. The University worked with its affinity groups — including, among others, the Inman Page Black Alumni Council, the Brown University Latino Alumni Council, the Asian / Asian American Alumni Alliance, and the Native American Brown Alumni group — to call upon the expertise of Brown’s alumni network.

Brown also continued its fruitful partnerships with organizations like QuestBridge, the TEAK Fellowship and the Jack Kent Cooke Foundation, all of which support talented students from low-income families in pursuing college degrees, and Service to School, which prepares U.S. military veterans to apply to colleges and graduate schools. The University also expanded the number of community-based organizations visited by admissions staff, with a focus on those that serve students from groups underrepresented in higher education, and partnered with other institutions, including historically Black colleges and universities and one of the U.S. military academies, for recruitment travel across the country.

“Brown’s commitment to a diverse campus community in every sense remains unchanged, and the first step in admitting a diverse class is ensuring that talented students of every background apply,” Powell said.

For the application process itself, the University added four short-answer questions and replaced a prior essay prompt with one that asked applicants to reflect on how an aspect of their growing up inspired or challenged them, and what unique contributions that experience would enable them to make at Brown. Those changes came in an effort to learn more, directly from applicants, about their experiences and what they would contribute to Brown. The Supreme Court’s ruling was one factor among many in the essay changes, Powell noted.

“While some applicants focused on experiences related to their identity, others wrote about a range of topics in response to the new essay prompt — everything from the impacts of climate change and global conflict on their lives, to personal experiences and work in their own communities,” he said. “Ultimately, our goal was to provide applicants ample opportunity to detail their talents, skills, experiences and ideas as they sought a college education that best fits them. We admitted a class that is academically talented and reflective of the wide range of perspectives and experiences essential for a learning and research community.”

Brown’s admissions team ran a robust matriculation campaign to increase yield among underrepresented populations, including students from low-income families, first-generation college students, military veterans, and students from rural and small-town communities. For example, the University increased the number of prospective students from rural and small-town communities who visited campus through a fly-in program it launched in recent years — one element of Brown’s work with a new nationwide consortium of universities called the Small Town and Rural Students College Network in which Brown is a founding member.

Amid all these efforts, staff involved in admissions decisions also completed extensive training on how to comply with the law while balancing Brown’s commitment to diversity as central to its educational mission. Among other outcomes, the Office of College Admission established rigorous protocols for masking information about race submitted by applicants.

However, another significant factor, in addition to the court’s decision, affecting admissions for colleges and universities this year was the national challenge with the rollout of the new Free Application for Federal Student Aid by the federal government. While it is intended to simplify the federal financial aid application process, the FAFSA rollout was delayed, and many applicants encountered system errors that prevented the required form’s timely submission. While Brown requires the submission of the more detailed CSS Profile as well and was able to make estimated financial aid offers on its typical timeline, the FAFSA challenges may have dissuaded some prospective students — and particularly those with high financial need — from applying for admission.

Brown to further expand strategies for future recruitment

Moving forward, Powell said Brown’s admissions team will expand on previous measures and implement additional race-neutral strategies to encourage outstanding, diverse classes of first-year undergraduates.

For example, beginning with the Class of 2029, Brown has reinstated the requirement that applicants submit standardized tests scores, while increasing outreach to ensure applicants know that scores are interpreted in the context of a student’s overall record, background and opportunities. An analysis of the University’s COVID-era test-optional approach suggested that some students from less-advantaged backgrounds chose not to submit scores when doing so could have increased their chance of admission. Strong testing, interpreted in the context of a student’s background, may demonstrate the ability to succeed at Brown — a point the University is emphasizing to students and school counselors, Powell said. The committee that recommended reinstatement said the decision was “consistent with Brown’s commitments to excellence and equity and will serve to expand access and diversity.”

Powell added that the Office of College Admission continually evaluates the success of its outreach efforts to learn which are the most effective, and it will explore ways to build on initiatives that helped promote diversity among applicants and incoming students. A continued focus on partnerships with college pathways programs is being supported with the addition of new staff positions at the University. This includes programs at Brown, including the new Brown Collegiate Scholars Program, as well as efforts with community-based organizations.

Graduate Students by the Numbers

• Approximately 1,420 incoming graduate students have begun studies in 45 doctoral and 37 master’s and executive master’s programs in Fall 2024.
• 33% of all new graduate students from the U.S. are from groups historically underrepresented in higher education.
• 48% of all new graduate students are international students.
• Incoming students come from 46 U.S. states and territories and 71 nations.
• Beyond the U.S., the countries most represented are China, India, Canada, South Korea and Brazil.

Brown’s M.D. Class of 2028

• A total of 144 aspiring physicians began their medical education in early August at the Warren Alpert Medical School.
• 24% of students are from groups historically underrepresented in medicine.
• Students come from 53 colleges and universities — including 59 from Brown’s Program in Liberal Medical Education.
• Members of the class come from 28 U.S. states and territories, and 14 nations.
• 16 students have started in Brown’s combined M.D.-Sc.M. program in Primary Care-Population Medicine, the first of its kind in the nation.