Princeton’s admission process goes beyond simply looking for academically accomplished students. For each freshman class, we bring together a varied mix of high-achieving, intellectually gifted students from diverse backgrounds to create an exceptional learning community. We care about what students have accomplished in and out of the classroom. The process is highly selective. In recent years, we've offered admission to only about 10 percent of applicants.

As you prepare your application, help us to appreciate your talents, academic accomplishments and personal achievements. We'll ask for your transcript and recommendations, and we will want to know more than just the statistics in your file. Tell us your story. Show us what’s special about you. Tell us how you would seize the academic and non-academic opportunities at Princeton and contribute to the Princeton community. Above all, please write in a style that reflects your own voice.

Before you begin preparing your application, we strongly encourage you to review our publication How to Apply to Princeton (PDF), which contains detailed information regarding the Princeton's application process, standardized testing requirements and financial aid.

All applicants to Princeton must submit both the Common Application and Princeton's Supplement to the Common Application. We accept online and paper applications.

To apply online, you'll need to submit both the Common Application and Princeton's Supplement to the Common Application via the Common Application website.

To submit your application on paper, you may obtain the Common Application form from your guidance counselor or download and print a PDF version of the Common Application. You may also download and print a PDF version of Princeton's Supplement to the Common Application.

Students may request a fee waiver if they are applying for financial aid and the cost of applying to Princeton represents a financial hardship for the family. Please note that applying for a fee waiver will not disadvantage an applicant in any way. You may contact your college or guidance counselor for assistance in obtaining a fee waiver form from the College Board, NACAC, or ACT. If your counselor does not have access to these forms, he or she may write a letter on your behalf stating that he or she is familiar with your family’s financial circumstances and acknowledges this application fee would cause financial hardship for your family. If you submit one of these forms or a letter from your counselor, it will be accepted. Because of Princeton’s generous financial aid program, there is no need to contact the Admission Office for further request of a fee waiver. If we have any questions, we will contact you.

We also accept ECO (Expanding College Opportunities) fee waiver forms. Students who submit their admission application in paper form should include the ECO fee waiver with their application materials. Students who submit their application online via the Common Application site should choose “Other Fee Waiver” as their payment option and then mail in the waiver to the Princeton Admission Office.

If you have already started a college or university degree program elsewhere, you are not eligible to apply for admission to Princeton. We accept students who will begin their freshman year in the fall. Princeton does not offer spring semester entry or a transfer admission option.

The University's admission process involves a holistic review of each applicant's entire file. No particular factor is assigned a fixed weight; rather, the process involves a highly individualized assessment of the applicant's talents, achievements and his or her potential to contribute to learning at Princeton.