Senior Survey 2023

Before making their home at Old Nassau, the Class of 2023 arrived from around the world, representing no fewer than 41 U.S states and territories and 33 countries. Though some of our graduates boast proficiency in Ukrainian, Urdu, and Uyghur, the majority (50.2 percent) are not proficient in a language other than English. Nearly one-in-four 2023s took a gap year between their forthcoming graduation and their high school graduation, with 16.4 percent stepping away from school after matriculating to Princeton. 19.6 percent of respondents came out as LGBTQ+ while at Princeton.

Geography Identity Experience

Geography

12.7 percent of respondents identified themselves as international students. Although 33 different countries are represented by the survey’s respondents, over ⅕ reported that their home is in Canada. 15.6 percent of domestic students hail from New Jersey.

International Students

Identity

Respondents were more white and female than the overall class: 52.8 percent of respondents identified as white, higher than the 44 percent reported by the University, although the University’s statistics count all mixed-race students as people of color. Similarly, 55.7 percent of survey respondents identified themselves as female, while only 52 percent of the whole class identified as female upon entering Princeton.

Survey respondents were overwhelmingly non-religious, with over 65 percent describing themselves as “not at all religious” or “not very religious.” Students were also overall left-leaning, with over 60 percent describing themselves as “somewhat liberal” or “very liberal,”, and over 17 percent describing themselves as “leftist/socialist.” Additionally, 17 percent of respondents are first-generation college students and 65.1 percent identify as straight, both declines from last year’s senior survey

Experience

The Class of 2023’s parents are overwhelmingly highly educated, with almost 70 percent of respondents’ parents holding a master’s degree, professional degree, or doctorate — significantly more educated than the United States as a whole, where 13 percent of people hold a master's degree or higher. Princeton families are also wealthier than the median American family, which has an income of $91,162 – 49 percent of respondents stated their household income as $125K or above. Of the eleven eating clubs, Cottage and Cloister have the wealthiest seniors, with over 30 percent of respondents in each club reporting a family income above $500,000 and no seniors in Cloister reporting a family income below $40,000.

Nearly a quarter (21.4 percent) of survey respondents are legacy students. 13 percent of the respondents had parents who are alumni, while Princeton reported that 11 percent of the admitted class were children of alumni. Additionally, just over 60 percent of seniors receive some amount of University financial aid, with just under a quarter receiving full financial aid. Students on partial financial aid are more likely to take out loans than their peers on full financial aid or no financial aid.