Thursday, about 420 new Belles strolled down the Avenue as the class of 2019 moved in.
According to the Admissions Office, the number of women in the first-year class has 40 more students than last year’s incoming class, and the number of transfer students has doubled.
This year more students than ever applied to the College, director of admissions Sarah Dvorak said. More than 1,700 applications went through the office, of which 1,382 were accepted. Sixty of those students applied early decision, and about 55 of them were accepted, Dvorak said. Nearly 13 percent of the women in the class are legacies, with either a mother or sister alumna connection.
“As an all-women's, Catholic, liberal arts college, we have a reputation as an academically challenging institution, and we work hard to set the expectation for what we expect our of our applicants," Dvorak said. "We find that our students self-select at the point of application and therefore, we don't receive too many applications from unqualified students.”
Diversity has increased in the College as well. Incoming students come from five different countries, meaning Saint Mary’s students now come from 16 different countries including Vietnam, Japan and Zambia, Dvorak said.
The class also represents a number of racial and ethnic minority groups including Latina, African American, Asian, American Indian or Alaskan Native and Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander, Dvorak said.
“The diversity represented in this class will undoubtedly impact the Saint Mary's community in a variety of ways,” Dvorak said. “They represent a large spectrum of socioeconomic, geographic, racial and ethnic categories, but they also bring a wide array of diverse backgrounds, perspectives, experiences and academic and co-curricular interests.”
Accepted students display a variety of talents, both academic and extracurricular. The incoming class includes women who have founded philanthropic organizations, entrepreneurs, musicians, artists and athletes, Dvorak said.
“We look for academically talented students who have challenged themselves in the classroom, achieved academically and who strive for social justice, equality and human dignity,” Dvorak said. “We want students who will flourish at Saint Mary's — who will appreciate the benefits of an all-women's college and who will value the opportunity to explore and discover their passions and potential in the world.
“I have no doubt that the Saint Mary's community can only benefit from the opportunity to learn from this incredible class.”
