Stanford offered admission to 755 students who applied under early action this fall, with an acceptance rate of about 12.8 percent. The University received 5,880 early action applications for the Class of 2016, nearly reaching last year’s record 5,929 applications.

The Office of Undergraduate Admission emailed the restrictive early action decisions to students several days earlier than expected on Dec. 9.

Students accepted through restrictive early action, meaning they applied early to one school only, can weigh regular admission acceptance letters from other schools before the May 1 deadline to commit to Stanford.

The deadline to apply for regular admission is Jan. 1.

“We continue to attract an exceptional number of highly competitive candidates and we are honored by the interest they have shown in Stanford,” said Dean of Admission and Financial Aid Richard Shaw, in a statement.

Both Harvard and Princeton University restored their restrictive early action programs this fall after a four-year hiatus. As of Nov. 30, the schools had received 4,245 and 3,547 applications, respectively, while Yale University reported an 18 percent drop in early action applicants and an admit rate of about 14.5 percent.

– Margaret Rawson