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NUMBER OF COLLEGES TO APPLY
Number of Colleges to apply
There are differing views on how many universities a student should apply to. Several reports suggest that applying to too many universities caused unnecessary stress and expense, and hampers a student from targeting applications to a few select universities. But other advisors suggest that applying to more universities increases overall chances for acceptance. We suggest applying to nine to twelve universities is best, and that applying to too many universities is counterproductive. There are reports that the average number of universities that students are applying to has been increasing. In 2008, applications to Harvard University had increased to a record number at 27,278, a 19% increase from the year before. One effect of these numerous applications is to lower the average yield of universities, which dropped from 46% to 38% in 2014 according to one account.
