Record 4000 Applicants Seek Admission to '59

Applications for the class of '59 exceed 4,000 for the first time, Dean Bender announced yesterday. More than 2,100 of the 4,017 applicants also requested scholarship aid.

Despite a rise of almost 20 percent in the applications, Dean Bender reported that the Committee on Admissions will be aiming at a class of only 1,100, 50 less than this year's 1,150 ideal. Congestion in the Houses and the Yard are responsible for the cut, he said.

The new application figure represents an increase of 626 over the previous high of 3,391 who applied for admission to the class of '57. The number of scholarship applicants this year increased from the '58 record total of 1,716 to 2,112. Dean Bender suggested that the filing of multiple applications, especially common among scholarship seekers, was partially responsible for the rise.

400 Scholarships to Be Offered

The Committee will offer about 400 scholarships to the 2,112 applicants in hope of actually awarding no more than 325. In the past this number has worked out satisfactorily because acceptances have usually been close to 70 percent.

Since 62 percent of those accepted last year entered, the Committee will accept approximately 1,750 to place 1,110 in the Yard next fall. However, Dean Bender warned that, with multiple applications, this percentage can easily vary from year to year.

The percentages of those accepting admission and scholarship offers also varies for applicants from different schools and different sections of the country, he explained, and the Committee must consider this in determining the number accepted.

The choice is further confused by scholarship applicants who decide to come here despite the fact that they did not receive grants. The Committee finds it increasingly difficult to calculate how many of these men will find its possible to matriculate. At present, there are 265 in the freshman class who applied for but did not receive scholarships.

The number of scholarship applications represent 50.7 percent of the total applications, a slight drop from the percentages of 51.7 for the class of '58 and the record 52.4 for '57