Book

Description

Why are some universities dramatically more selective than others? Yield Rates and Institutional Selectivity examines how student demand, enrollment behavior, institutional size, retention, and public versus private status relate to college acceptance rates across the United States. Using 2024 IPEDS data from 1,039 universities, Michael Delavan analyzes three regression models centered on yield rate, the percentage of admitted students who ultimately enroll. The results show a strong negative relationship between yield and acceptance rates, while retention, institutional size, and public status also help explain differences in selectivity. The relationship between yield and selectivity is weaker among public universities, suggesting that different institutions translate student demand into enrollment in different ways. The book expands beyond the regression results to examine financial aid, enrollment management, Early Decision, prestige, capacity constraints, public funding, application growth, and the economics behind university admissions. Rather than treating acceptance rate as a simple measure of quality, it presents selectivity as the outcome of student demand, institutional strategy, and the number of seats a university is prepared to supply.