In a September 26 Wall Street Journal article Elizabeth Bernstein reports on graduate school admissions, and some of the undergraduate origins of those students who started their graduate studies this fall at 15 — five each — of the top business, medical, and law schools. Besides researching the background of more than 5,000 students who enrolled at schools such as Harvard Law School and Wharton, the Journal survey“canvassed grad-school admissions offices, spoke to officials at more than 50 colleges and in some cases counted up kids one by one in student ‘face book' directories." The article also included examples of what several schools are doing to help their undergraduates gain admission to top graduate schools. The Journal's ranking of“the top feeder schools”was based on the number of students a college sent to one of the 15 top graduate schools divided by the college's class size. Of the top 50 feeder schools, Haverford was ranked sixth among all colleges and 18 among all colleges and universities. (From its survey of the class of 2002 approximately six months after graduation, the Career Development Office at Haverford found that of those who responded, 47% said they planned to attend some type of graduate program within five years, the largest percentage being in the arts and sciences.)

IN ANOTHER SURVEY…in the November 2003 issue of The Atlantic Monthly, Haverford was ranked 29 among the 50 most selective colleges and universities in the country and 10th among all of the colleges for the year 2002.

The Atlantic Monthly's selectivity ranking was based on 2002 student admission rates, SAT percentiles, and high school class standing for the freshman class matriculating in the fall of 2002. The pool included U.S. doctoral universities, liberal arts colleges, and service academies.