Study at Princeton University | What you need to know
Higher education is the start of a promising career path and professional development. The better you do at university, the higher your chances will be for further success.
On your way to finding the university or college that would fit you the most, let’s take a look at one of the world’s most popular educational institutions - Princeton University.
Princeton University in figures
Coming from the 18th century and continuing its journey till today, Princeton University has managed to become the number 1 in US News’ list of National Universities.
With 5,267 undergraduate and 2,946 graduate students, the campus of Princeton University is home to 98% of its undergraduate students.
Gender equality is as perfect as you could think of - 50:50. With about 860,000 annual visitors, Princeton University has 6 residential colleges and more than 200 campus buildings. The latter include the 10 locations of Princeton Library. All of this is placed within the 600 acres the university has as its territory.
Princeton University has been ranked amongst the best 6 universities in the world by the ARWU (Shanghai ranking) for 5 years. Moreover, the QS World University Ranking has ranked Princeton as the 12th this year. Princeton is the 9th in THE’s *Times Higher Education) this year’s list. To say it in a sentence, Princeton has its stable place in the world’s top universities in every ranking list you look for.
Standing proudly on the list of Ivy League Schools, Princeton is one of the most competitive schools in the U.S. with a predictable low acceptance rate. The average acceptance rate for 2021 has been 6.1%, with an estimated SAT score swinging between 1520 and 1550.
What to study at Princeton University?
While the promising numbers may grab your attention at once, you may be willing to explore the academic opportunities offered by the university to understand whether it is the place you would fit the best.
Princeton is a liberal arts school with highly developed research opportunities and high-quality knowledge sources. With 36 academic departments, the university offers studies in various disciplines, which include Humanities, Social Sciences, Engineering, Natural Sciences, etc.
Princeton University supports its undergraduate and graduate students by providing a variety of courses and services for academic and professional development. Courses like Freshman Seminars and Writing Seminars help students to improve their critical and analytical thinking skills and implement those during their studies.
How to apply to Princeton?
As competitive as it can get, Princeton, like all the universities, has its admission requirements for prospective students.
There are 2 admission stages for Princeton: the single-choice early action and the regular decision. Details and deadlines for each application period can be found here.
Princeton has adopted a holistic admission, which indicates that it takes into consideration all the components of the student profile and analyzes them collectively to make the final decision regarding the student’s acceptance.
Thus, let’s take a look at the set of requirements Princeton University has for its applicants to understand its policies better.
Common Application
As almost all American universities do, Princeton also requires its applicants to represent the Common Application. The alternative for this is the Coalition Application. It is up to you which application to choose, however, note that Common Application can serve you while applying for all the other universities in the U.S., while Coalition Application might not be an available option for all of them.
Princeton Supplement
Like many competitive colleges do in the States, Princeton also requires its students to submit a supplement in order for the admission committee to know you better and to take a closer look at your potential.
Standardized Tests
Due to Covid-19, Princeton does not require a standardized test result for the 2021-22 application cycle. Furthermore, similar to its strategy of previous years, neither does the university require SAT subject tests.
For the information of those students, who, notwithstanding the university’s exemption of the requirement, wish to take the test, the average SAT score acceptable by the university so far has been somewhere between 1520 and 1550.
Graded Written Paper
Princeton requires its applicants to submit a graded written paper completed during the last 3 years of high school. It is preferable for the paper to be done for English, Social Sciences, History, etc. A research paper, an essay, or an exam work with a length of one to two pages are sufficient.
TOEFL, IELTS, or PTE Academic Scores
If English is not your native language or your school has not adopted English as a language of instruction, you must take TOEFL, IELTS Academic, or PTE Academic.
What transcripts do you need?
As part of their holistic admission process, the university requires its applicants to attach the below-mentioned transcripts with their application.
School transcript
Your school counselor or another representative from your school should send an official transcript to the university.
School report
When filling in the Common Application, you will come across the School Report form. Ask your counselor to complete that for you as part of your application process.
Counselor and teacher recommendations
Again, use the tools provided by the Common Application to “invite” your school counselor and 2 of your school teachers to write recommendation letters for you.
Mid-year grade report
Once your mid-year grades are available, ask your school counselor to submit them to the university by using the forms available both in Common Application and Coalition Application.
What about financial aid?
Princeton University has been putting tremendous effort to make education accessible for its students.
The overall cost of attendance for 2021-22 is $77,690. For families that make up to $65,000 per year, the financial aid package covers the entire tuition, room and board, and residential college fee. 100% of families making up to $180,000 were qualified for financial aid for the class of 2023.
To know whether you are eligible for financial aid and if so, to estimate the approximate amount of aid you will be able to receive in the university, use this financial aid estimator designed by Princeton.