According to a report compiled by Dean of Admissions Jennifer Britz, next year’s class of first-year students, the class of 2009, will be the most selective in the history of Kenyon College.

According to Britz, Kenyon received a record-setting 3,922 applications for the 435 spots in the class of 2009. This is up from 3,807 who applied for places in the class of 2008 and nearly double the 2,002 applicants for the class of 2005. Britz notes that this number was in spite of Kenyon moving its application deadline forward two weeks to January 15.

The increased number of applications has led to a “record low selectivity [percentage],” according to Britz. Only 36 percent of this year’s applicants were admitted, compared to 38 percent of the class of 2008 and 66 percent of the class of 2005.

Kenyon also admitted far fewer early decision applicants than before. Whereas nearly 75 percent of those students who applied for early decision for the class of 2008 were admitted, only 57.2 percent of those applicants who applied early decision for the class of 2009 were admitted. However, the percentage of the class admitted through early decision has not changed a great deal, down only one percent from last year’s 38 percent and still nearly double the twenty percent of the class of 2005 that was composed of early decision applicants.

Minority students have also applied to Kenyon in higher numbers this year. Minority students made up 13.9 percent of the applicant pool this year, up from 8.4 percent of the class of 2005. Unlike the class of 2008, minority students were admitted at a higher rate than the class as a whole, so they make up fifteen percent of the admitted pool.

Gender balance in the class of 2009 “is a challenge,” Britz said. The admitted class of 2009 is 55 percent women. However, she cited data saying that men tend to matriculate at a higher rate than women, which she said would help balance the class. The class of 2008 is the only class with an equal ratio of men to women, and women tend to outnumber men on college campuses nationwide. At Kenyon, the class of 2005 is the most unbalanced, with 57 percent women.

This increased selectivity has caused many indicators of academic performance to go up. The average SAT score of the admitted class of 2009 is 1360, fifteen points higher than the admitted class of 2008, and 55 points higher than the class of 2005. ACT scores have shown an increase to an average of 29.6, from 29.4 in both the admitted classes of 2007 and 2008 and 28.4 in the admitted class of 2005.

Average high school grade-point averages are up slightly from past years. The admitted class of 2009 had an average GPA of 3.85, up just two-hundredths of a point from the admitted class of 2008. However, the admitted class of 2006 also had a 3.85 average GPA.

Although Kenyon admitted more applicants than anticipated, Britz does not foresee any problems with over-enrollment. “We are still anticipating a class of 435 students,” said Britz. “Our deposits have come in right on target. We anticipated a lower yield because of the increase in quality, and the indicators on May 4 are that we were correct in our yield anticipation.”