The light at the end of the tunnel

If only we looked this cute reading applications

Well, I wouldn't define it as bright light - more a dim glow, really - but it's clear we're approaching the end.  My first reader queue is nearly empty - all but a few "problem" cases of students missing this important document or that required recommendation.  Close enough. 

At this very moment, we're in full-on decision mode, closeted in our little lilac conference room, laptops and computer cords crowding all available surfaces.  It's intense.  And surprisingly fun.  By this point in the process we know we're shaping an extraordinary class; while there are still many more students to discuss, with such an embarrassment of riches, we can't screw up too badly.

Which brings us to the question of how many.  Despite the fact that we're a STEM school, predicting yield is not a perfect science.  Here at Mudd we start with our target number of students and work backwards.  At a school as tiny as Mudd, over-enrolling even by a few students could create serious havoc.  If we know we only have X beds on campus, and lab sections for Y students, then it's preferable to under-enroll and fill in extra spaces (if any) with students from the alternate list. 

Preferable in theory - but that assumes that talented, supercool students with many college options are willing to hang out indefinitely on our alternate list, just waiting for a phone call from HMC.  That'd be great, but it's not always reality.  So we have to strike a balance between the risk of overloading our small community and the risk of losing students we'd really like to have on campus. 

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I also wanted to once again thank all of you for your patience with my very delayed blog posts - I miss being able to check in more often!  Yes, we are drinking lots of tea (thanks Karthika!), Jamilla has her Snuggie, and we are successfully demolishing Girl Scout cookies by the dozen (speaking of which, what happened to the good old names like Samoas and Tagalongs?).

RE the question about whether ED students are eligible for merit aid - yes, absolutely!  We make Harvey S Mudd Merit decisions at the time of admission, but FIRST, National Merit, PSP, RIF, and even the So Scholarship for international students can all go to early decision students (and very often do). 

As to whether we'll have letters in hand before April 1 - well, that's the goal.  We've already scratched our first (far too optimistic) mailing date; the end of March is far more likely.  Then it will depend on our friends at the US Postal Service; usually it takes about three business days for the letters to reach the entire country.  This year we've considered electronic notification more carefully than ever, but there are so many horror stories of electronic notification gone terribly wrong that this is not something we want to implement last minute.  Plus I've already had the admit packets printed - and the admit folders are awesome.  (Don't spoil the surprise, ED students!  But seriously, aren't they cool?)  So, short answer: we will certainly mail before April 1, and with luck you'll have your decision by that date.

Okay.  Back to committee!