The Oriel 25 is an annual editorial list from Oriel Admissions recognizing 25 remarkable students entering the Class of 2030 at Harvard, Yale, Princeton, Columbia, Penn, Brown, Dartmouth, Cornell, Stanford, and MIT. Entry is free, takes about ten minutes, and requires nothing but this form. There are no transcripts, no uploads, and no letters of recommendation. Entries close September 30, 2026. Honorees are announced October 13, 2026. The Official Rules and the Program Privacy Notice appear in full at the bottom of this page.
The Oriel 25 - Official Rules
1. Sponsor. The Oriel 25 (the "Program") is organized by Oriel Admissions LLC ("Oriel Admissions"), reachable at oriel25@orieladmissions.com. The Program is an editorial recognition list. It is free to enter. No purchase or payment of any kind is necessary to enter or to be selected. The Program is not a lottery, sweepstakes, or game of chance.
2. No affiliation. The Program is not sponsored, endorsed, administered by, or associated with Harvard University, Yale University, Princeton University, Columbia University, the University of Pennsylvania, Brown University, Dartmouth College, Cornell University, Stanford University, or the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (together, the "Listed Universities"). All university names are used solely to identify where entrants are enrolled.
3. Eligibility. The Program is open only to individuals who, at the time of entry: (a) are legal residents of the United States; (b) are 18 years of age or older; and (c) are enrolled as incoming first-year students in the Class of 2030 at one of the Listed Universities, with an active institutional .edu email address issued by that university. Current and former clients of Oriel Admissions are not eligible, in this or any future edition of the Program. Employees and contractors of Oriel Admissions and members of their immediate households are not eligible. Void where prohibited by law.
4. Entry period. The entry period begins when the entry form is published and ends September 30, 2026, at 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time. Entries received after that time will not be considered.
5. How to enter. Enter by completing the entry form on this page, including all required fields and attestations. Entry is limited to one entry per person and per .edu email address; a later submission from the same address replaces the earlier one. No documents, files, or images may be submitted with an entry, and none are required. Entries generated by script or other automated means are void.
6. Review and finalists. Entries are reviewed on a rolling basis beginning when the Program opens. Oriel Admissions may designate any entrant as a finalist at any time before selection. Finalist designation is not selection, confers no right to recognition, and does not guarantee inclusion in The Oriel 25. Finalists may be asked to (a) confirm enrollment by replying from their institutional .edu email address, (b) provide one photograph that they own or have permission to use, (c) sign the Finalist Consent, Publicity, and Embargo Agreement, and (d) review and approve a draft profile. Oriel Admissions may set reasonable deadlines for each item, and a finalist who does not complete a required item by its deadline may be removed from consideration.
7. Selection. All complete, eligible entries received by the entry deadline are considered. The 25 honorees are selected after the entry deadline at the sole editorial discretion of Oriel Admissions, based on the substance and distinctiveness of each entrant’s story and accomplishments. Selection is a subjective editorial judgment, and all decisions of Oriel Admissions are final. Honorees are announced on October 13, 2026.
8. Recognition. Recognition consists of inclusion in The Oriel 25 editorial list, a written profile published by Oriel Admissions, and related press outreach. There is no monetary prize, and recognition has no cash value and may not be transferred, substituted, or exchanged.
9. Publicity. Submitting an entry does not itself grant Oriel Admissions any right to publish an entrant’s name, story, or likeness. Publication rights arise only under the Finalist Consent, Publicity, and Embargo Agreement, which becomes effective only upon selection. Entries from entrants who are not selected remain confidential and are never published. Oriel Admissions may publish aggregated, de-identified information about the entry pool, such as the number of entries received or general themes, provided it does not identify any entrant.
10. Verification and disqualification. Oriel Admissions may verify eligibility and the accuracy of any entry at any time and may disqualify any entrant who provides false or misleading information, violates these Official Rules, or breaches the confidentiality obligations of the Finalist Consent, Publicity, and Embargo Agreement.
11. Changes and cancellation. Oriel Admissions reserves the right to modify, suspend, or cancel the Program, or to publish fewer than 25 profiles, if the volume or quality of eligible entries, a technical failure, or another cause beyond its reasonable control prevents the Program from running as intended. Any material change will be posted on this page.
12. Limitation of liability. To the fullest extent permitted by law, by entering, entrants agree that Oriel Admissions and its owners, employees, and contractors are not liable for any claim arising out of participation in the Program or the use of any recognition, and entrants waive any right to claim ambiguity in these Official Rules. Nothing in these rules limits liability that cannot be limited by law.
13. Privacy. Information submitted with an entry is handled as described in the Program Privacy Notice below.
14. Governing law. These Official Rules are governed by the laws of the State of New Jersey, without regard to conflict of law principles. If any provision of these rules is held invalid, the remaining provisions remain in effect.
15. Contact. Questions about the Program may be sent to oriel25@orieladmissions.com.
The Oriel 25 - Program Privacy Notice
Who we are. This notice describes how Oriel Admissions LLC ("Oriel Admissions") handles personal information collected for The Oriel 25 (the "Program"). Questions and requests, including requests for a mailing address, may be sent to oriel25@orieladmissions.com.
What we collect. The entry form collects: your name, your university, your institutional .edu email address, your hometown and state, your entry text, and, if you choose to provide them, your high school and one public link. If you are designated a finalist, we may also collect a photograph you provide, your signed Finalist Consent, Publicity, and Embargo Agreement, and your responses to a draft profile. We do not collect your date of birth, and no files may be uploaded through the entry form. The Program is open only to individuals 18 years of age or older, and we do not knowingly collect information from anyone under 18.
How we use it. We use this information only to run the Program: to verify eligibility and enrollment, to review entries and designate finalists, to contact you at your .edu address about your entry, to select the 25 honorees, and, for selected honorees only and only under a signed consent, to publish a profile and conduct related press outreach.
What we do not do. We do not sell personal information. We do not use entry information for advertising or for marketing any Oriel Admissions service, and entering the Program adds you to no marketing list. We do not share entry information with the Listed Universities. Entries from entrants who are not selected are confidential and are never published, although we may publish aggregated, de-identified information about the entry pool, such as the number of entries received or general themes, in a form that identifies no entrant.
Who can see it. Entry information is accessible to the Oriel Admissions editorial team and to the service providers that operate the entry form, website hosting, email service, spreadsheet storage, and e-signature service, each of which processes it only on our behalf. We may disclose information if required by law.
How long we keep it. All personal information of entrants who are not selected, including photographs, signed consents, and draft profiles collected at the finalist stage, is deleted by November 13, 2026. Information about the 25 honorees is retained as part of the published editorial record, as described in the signed consent.
Your choices. You may withdraw your entry and request deletion of your information at any time before selection by writing to oriel25@orieladmissions.com from your .edu address. You may also request a copy of the information we hold about you or ask us to correct it. We will respond to any request within a reasonable time, and applicable state privacy laws may give you additional rights.