CRITERIA FOR ADMISSION To reach admission decisions, Southwestern evaluates all candidates in a comprehensive way using the academic record, standardized testing, a written essay, extracurricular activities, letters of recommendation and the personal interview. Students selected are those presenting the most competitive applications and considered most likely to be successful, contributing members of the community and to graduate from Southwestern. ACADEMIC RECORD is the most important element used in making admission decisions at Southwestern. A minimum, recommended college preparatory course sequence includes: four years of English, four years of mathematics, three years of science, three years of social science and/or history, two years of the same foreign language, and at least one year of an academic elective (17 academic units, minimum). The number of courses identified as advanced, honors or accelerated is considered, along with overall preparation and performance. SAT I or ACT standardized test results are required by Southwestern to be considered for admission, without prescribed minimum levels. The middle 50% of the Class of 2007 first-year students scored between 1130 and 1310 on the SAT I and between 24 and 29 on the ACT. Southwestern uses the highest score submitted for the student in decision making and in this statistical profile. The ESSAY is required of all candidates who complete the Southwestern Application for Admission and Merit Scholarships. The essay provides a sample of original written work and further insight into the candidate. EXTRACURRICULAR ACTIVITIES are reviewed to assess what a candidate has accomplished outside of the classroom, noting leadership positions held, breadth of experience and sustained interest in individual activities. A RECOMMENDATION is required from the high school counselor. Teacher and parent recommendations are optional, although highly recommended. All recommendations provide further information about the student The PERSONAL INTERVIEW allows a candidate to learn more about Southwestern and to discuss elements of his or her application file with a member of the admission staff. While not required for admission review, an official campus visit and interview are STRONGLY RECOMMENDED and may be considered as a factor in the overall evaluation process. Personal interviews for scholarship consideration must be conducted by February 1. Applicants are encouraged to schedule a personal interview by calling 1-800-252-3166 or 512-863-1200, or by sending an e-mail message to the Office of Admission. ADMISSION COMMITTEE When a candidate is clearly admissible or inadmissible, decisions are made by members of the admission staff who read individual completed files. When an applicant's admissibility is unclear, the file goes to the Admission Committee. Typically, students who score under 1150 on the SAT I or under 24 on the ACT, or who rank outside of the top quarter of their graduating class may anticipate Admission Committee review of their file. The 8 voting members of the SU Admission Committee meet in late November to consider and vote on Early Decision candidates requiring Admission Committee review and in late March to consider Regular Decision candidates. The voting membership of the committee is composed of four admission staff members and four faculty members elected from each of the academic divisions: Humanities, Natural Sciences, Social Sciences and Fine Arts. Admission Committee review usually means a delayed admission decision and requires that additional information be obtained from a candidate such as seventh-semester grades and/or a personal interview. FIRST-YEAR ACCEPTANCE RATES FIRST-YEAR ACCEPTANCES BY CLASS RANK (2007) CLASS RANK NUMBER OF APPLICANTS NUMBER OFFERED ADMISSION PERCENT OFFERED ADMISSION ENROLLED STUDENTS Top 10% 552 511 93% 159 Top 11-25% 430 348 81% 99 Top 26-50% 300 169 56% 49 Top 51-75% 98 24 24% 12 Top 76-100% 17 0 0% 0 Not ranked 519 239 46% 52 Total 1916 1291 67% 371   FIRST-YEAR ACCEPTANCES BY SAT (2007) *Critical Reading and Math Combination SAT I SCORES NUMBER OF APPLICANTS NUMBER OFFERED ADMISSION PERCENT OFFERED ADMISSION ENROLLED STUDENTS 1500-1600 23 20 87% 2 1400-1499 143 135 94% 30 1300-1399 320 290 91% 71 1200-1299 384 331 86% 109 1100-1199 338 245 72% 69 1000-1099 243 147 60% 54 900-999 116 41 35% 16 LESS THAN 900 116 41 35% 16 TOTAL 1623 1210 75% 351   FIRST-YEAR ACCEPTANCES BY ACT (2007) ACT SCORES NUMBER OF APPLICANTS NUMBER OFFERED ADMISSION PERCENT OFFERED ADMISSION ENROLLED STUDENTS 34-36 17 15 88% 4 32-33 55 52 95% 16 30-31 99 92 93% 26 28-29 161 143 89% 37 26-27 144 122 85% 37 24-25 188 151 80% 42 20-23 183 104 57% 33 16-19 48 12 25% 4 15 or less 9 0 0% 0 TOTAL 904 691 76% 199