The University received the largest number of applications in its history this year and accepted 33 percent of those applicants for the Class of 2014 in comparison to last year's acceptance rate of 40 percent. According to a March 25 campuswide e-mail sent by University President Jehuda Reinharz, the overall number of applications increased from last year's number of 6,815 to 7,738. Senior Vice President for Students and Enrollment Jean Eddy wrote in an e-mail to the Justice that the Office of Admissions had accepted approximately 2,500 applicants and that she expected between 825 and 850 students to enroll in the Class of 2014.

The enrollment figures, which were originally presented by Eddy at a March 23 Board of Trustees meeting, show that the number of international student applicants increased from 1,211 to 1,599. Additionally, the number of "students of color" who applied increased from 1,706 to 2,111, according to Reinharz's e-mail and Eddy's presentation. Reinharz's e-mail also explained that the mean SAT score for the accepted students had increased from 1392 to 1400.

"I expect that a third of [admitted students] will . join us in August," Eddy wrote. She also wrote that 1,500 students had registered for Admitted Students Day. Admitted Students Day took place yesterday in the Gosman Sports and Convocation Center and included several information sessions and panels to acquaint prospective students with the University.

Jonathan Chabon, an accepted student from western Massachusetts visiting for Admitted Students Day, said that he was attracted to Brandeis because of the academic facilities and the campus atmosphere.

"I really liked the open atmosphere of the campus and the science facilities," he said, explaining that he was planning on majoring in Chemistry and Physics should he enroll. Chabon said he was unsure if he would enroll but that he was deciding between Brandeis and Wesleyan University.

The expanded number of applications applied to the graduate schools as well, according to Reinharz's e-mail.

Applications to the Heller School for Social Policy and Management increased by 10 percent, and applications to the International Business School by 14 percent.

Eddy attributed the rise in applicants to intensified recruitment efforts by the Office of Admissions.

"I think we had a bit of bad publicity last year that we were mindful of. So the admissions team traveled a lot and reached out a lot to make sure incoming students knew that things are great at Brandeis," she wrote.

Eddy did not elaborate in her e-mail on the bad publicity that occurred last year, but the University received a substantial amount of media attention as a result of the controversy surrounding the Rose Art Museum.

The New York Times blog "The Choice," which provides commentary and statistics about college admissions, reported on April 2 that several selective colleges such as Harvard, Brown, the University of Pennsylvania and Dartmouth College, Cornell University, Stanford University and Duke University had reported a rise in applications, which induced record-low acceptance rates.