The day is finally here. Students from around the world apply to top private research universities in hopes of receiving an acceptance letter. These prestigious schools can make or break students’ dreams in a matter of seconds on this very day. You guessed it, Ivy Day 2021 has officially approached .

Ivy Day this year takes place on Tuesday, April 6th at 7 p.m. for students who chose to apply through the regular decision process.

There are eight Ivy League schools located in the Northeastern part of the United States. They include Princeton, Brown, Cornell, Yale, Dartmouth, Harvard, Columbia, and the University of Pennsylvania, also known as UPenn .

You may be wondering why this day is such a big deal for hardworking and determined students across the globe. It is because these top American universities offer such an excellent education as well as being top tier research universities. These schools have connections with international programs and studying abroad opportunities that allow for first hand experiences in your intended field of study.

With that being said, these schools may seem impossible to get into considering their extremely low acceptance rates. With the lowest acceptance rate at a staggering 5%, Harvard is exceptionally the hardest Ivy League school to receive a spot at. Not far after Harvard ranks Princeton. The so-called ‘easiest’ Ivy League to receive admission to is Cornell which usually ranges from 10%-11%, which is still clearly very selective.

These universities provide materials, resources, facilities, and opportunities that are truly once in a lifetime. This is why these schools are almost seen as the ‘American Dream’ to foreign students or even American students as well because they are able to take one step closer to a better education and future with the help that these schools provide their students.

There was also quite a major difference between this year’s Ivy Day and all of the other past years. Ivy Day usually takes place the last week or so of March, but as stated earlier, it is now in the first week of April. This all roots back to the current pandemic and the effect it has on students as a whole, but especially the senior class of 2025.

This year, many schools went test optional because of the circumstances in this unprecedented time. The thoughts of many students, coming from a fellow student who felt this as well, was that we would have a better chance of getting into harder colleges since we did not have to send our test scores if it wasn’t as high as the school requires or expects.

However, this in addition to gap year students applying as well, created an immense flux or jump in applications with practically every school, more specifically top universities and colleges such as these Ivy League schools. This college process that we all thought was going to be ‘easier’, actually lowered acceptance rates even further and more applicants applied than ever. With so many students applying all with the same goal, the universities needed more time to access their applicant pools. This ensures that every student was given a fair chance and review of their application.

Ivy League School Locations:

• Brown University; Rhode Island
• Dartmouth University; New Hampshire
• Harvard University; Massachusetts
• Cornell University; New York
• Yale University; Connecticut
• Princeton University; New Jersey
• Columbia University; New York
• University of Pennsylvania; Pennsylvania

With college decisions arriving, just remember that applying to college in the first place is a huge accomplishment in itself. You put yourself out there and tried your best. A rejection does not make you any less of a person, if anything use it to motivate you and to prove yourself to them!

This is a huge step, but soon an even bigger step will be taken. Committing to a college and putting that final deposit down is so soon and that puts the finishing touches on this whole process. Before you know it you’ll be spending the next four years at your temporary home.

Good luck with the rest of your applications and I wish you the best for your future endeavors