Fifty-five percent of students accepted to the class of 2017 have decided to attend, marking the highest yield rate in the history of the College. This is a nine–percentage point increase from last year’s 46 percent yield.

At 1,479 students, the incoming first-year class exceeded the College’s target class size for the second year in a row. However, it is lower than the class of 2016’s class size of 1,527. Despite the demolition of Pierce Tower at the end of the school year, the class is not expected to merit special housing accommodations.

The yield rate of students from the city of Chicago jumped to 63 percent this year from around 46 percent in 2012. According to News Director Jeremy Manier, the surge is likely related to the new UChicago Promise program, which launched in this fall and replaces loans with grants for local students.

The class of 2017 also includes an uptick in the number of students admitted who are black and Latino from last year’s 19.98 percent. While the specific breakdown of numbers will not be available until October, the incoming class is slated to be the most diverse yet, considering that 42 percent of last year’s matriculating class was composed of minority students.

The rate at which the yield increased for the University outpaced many peer institutions. Harvard and Princeton had one-point and two-point gains in yield rates, respectively. However, UChicago’s overall yield rate still substantially lags behind these institutions, with Harvard yielding 82 percent, Princeton at 68.7, UPenn at 64.3, and Brown at 60.