For the third consecutive year, Cornell has posted a record-high number of applications for admission. More than 51,000 students sought a place in the Class of 2022.

As that number goes up, the overall admit rate goes down, this year to an all-time low of 10.3 percent of the applicant pool. The university has admitted 5,288 applicants (including early decision candidates) and offered 6,684 students a place on a waitlist. Applicants to Ivy League schools were notified of their selection status March 28 at 7 p.m.

“We have admitted a highly talented and accomplished Class of 2022 who will flourish as Cornellians. We look forward to welcoming them into our campus community,” said senior vice provost Barbara A. Knuth.

Jason C. Locke, associate vice provost for enrollment, said the newly admitted class also reflects Cornell’s diversity.

Of the admitted first-year students, 33 percent self-identify as underrepresented minority students; 54 percent are students of color, including underrepresented and Asian-American students. Students admitted also include more than 700 first-generation college students.

“The exceptionally large applicant pool this year produced a most remarkable class,” Locke said. “With Ezra Cornell’s ‘any person … any study’ guiding our admissions efforts, it is no surprise that we have also admitted the most diverse class in university history. No doubt Ezra would be proud of the Class of 2022!”

International students make up nearly 9 percent of the Class of 2022. Based on citizenship, admitted students represent 93 nations outside of the United States. The top countries represented other than the U.S. are Canada, China, India, the Republic of Korea, Singapore and the United Kingdom.

Admitted students also reside in all 50 states as well as Guam, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands and Washington, D.C.; and in 73 countries outside the U.S.

Admitted students have until May 1 to accept Cornell’s offer of admission. Prior to that date, prospective students and their families will have opportunities to discover firsthand what the university has to offer.

The Undergraduate Admissions Office anticipates that 1,800 students will visit the campus during Cornell Days 2018, the university’s admitted student visitation program, scheduled for April 12-23 on selected days. Throughout April, more than 400 underrepresented students will attend Diversity Hosting Month activities.

“These programs present a tremendous opportunity for newly admitted students to see Cornell up close and imagine themselves here,” said Shawn Felton, director of undergraduate admissions. “Admitted students visiting campus will attend a class, stay overnight in a residence hall, dine in our award-winning eateries, see our extraordinary facilities, and talk with current students, faculty and staff. The interactions that admitted students have with members of the Cornell community play a significant role in their decision to attend.”

More than 1,500 early decision admits are participating in CU on the Hill, a peer-to-peer Cornell social network. New Cornell admits will be invited to join CU on the Hill on March 29. The online portal was created several years ago for admitted students unable to visit the campus in April, Felton said. Newly admitted students are encouraged to use the hashtags #MyCornellMoment and #Cornell2022 on social media.

Cornell alumni and current student ambassadors will host CU on the Hill Days and events including a virtual open house welcoming the Class of 2022, on Saturday, April 14; along with dozens of text, chat and social media engagement opportunities throughout the month.

“CU on the Hill allows admitted students around the world to interact with each other and with current Cornell students and alumni, creating an overall greater connection to the people that make Cornell a very special place,” Felton said.

In-person events being hosted by Cornell at locations around the world include a reception April 1 in Mumbai, India, for newly admitted Tata scholars.

Cornell anticipates enrolling 60 freshmen in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences and the College of Arts and Sciences in January 2019, as part of the First-Year Spring Admission program. Cornell welcomed its third class of FYSA students this semester.