"Karen Vargas" Archive

Class of 2024 Enrollment Update

Guest post from Eric Maguire, Vice President of Enrollment:

To date, more than 1,500 students have submitted a deposit to secure a seat in the Wake Forest Class of 2024. We are excited to welcome the talented students who decided to call Wake Forest their collegiate home. The class’ academic credentials rival those of prior cohorts. More than half of students are ranked in the top five percent of their graduating class, and more than three quarters are ranked in the top decile. Among standardized test submitters, the middle 50 percentile SAT score is slightly ahead of last year’s class, while ACT ranges remain unchanged.

The Class of 2024 is also notable for its socio-economic and racial/ethnic diversity. Nearly 10 percent of the incoming class qualifies for Pell grants, while an equal proportion identifies as first-generation college students. Among incoming first-year students, 24 percent identify as either African American, Asian American, Latinx, Native American, or of multiple racial backgrounds. This representation is greater than in previous years. Nine percent of the incoming class are international students, North Carolina residents comprise 16 percent, and 56 percent of the class is female.

In a typical year, more than 1,500 students in the first-year class would signal a significant over-enrollment, as only a portion of those deposits would “melt” over the summer and recent classes have had about 1,400 students. This is far from a typical year, with lingering uncertainty because of the coronavirus pandemic. Although it is difficult to predict attrition of deposits and resulting class size with precision, we believe we are well-positioned for a variety of future possibilities.

We will know our final incoming class size and profile later this summer, but I would like to celebrate this high-achieving group of students who have made the commitment to enroll — and recognize staff who worked tirelessly to enroll such a talented and diverse group. Hats off to the Admissions and Financial Aid teams who made an incredibly quick pivot to remote yield activities and helped guide these students to enroll at Wake Forest.
And let me offer a special thanks to a few individuals who were promoted to new roles in January and whose efforts are reflected in our incoming class: Karen Vargas was appointed to serve as Dean of Admissions; Dawn Calhoun was promoted to Sr. Associate Dean; and Terri Legrand was tasked with leading a new department of Enrollment Compliance and Technology. Their work, in addition to Tom Benza’s promotion to Director of Financial Aid after the June retirement of Bill Wells, will serve us well for many years to come.

As we have made the transition to remote teaching, learning and work, please know that we appreciate our campus community’s tremendous effort to affirm and continue the many qualities which make Wake Forest such a special University. I hope you will join me in welcoming the Class of 2024.

Comings and goings for October 2017:

See a list of employees joining and leaving the University in October 2017:

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