In an attempt to increase their dwin-dling numbers of minority applicants, the graduate schools of Harvard, Yale and Princeton have tentatively agreed to form a centralized recruitment consortium.

Graduate school officials from Yale and Princeton confirmed yesterday that Harvard has asked them to participate in a program whereby a prospective applicant to one school would automatically be considered for admission to all the schools.

The proposed plan--the details of which will be worked out at a meeting in New Haven on September 29--may be impemented for this year's applicants, and should include several other prestigious Eastern graduate schools, Nina P. Hillgarth, director of Graduate School of Arts and Sciences (GSAS) admissions, said yesterday. Hillgarth said the hopes the program will eventually be nationwide.

Dramatic Decreases

The new plan comes at a time when many top graduate schools have witnessed a dramatic decrease in the number of minority applicants--with students opting instead to go to professional schools--and at a time when the GSAS's other recruitment methods have proved ineffective. The GSAS last year suffered about a 32 per cent drop in black applicants from the previous year.

Peter S. McKinney, administrative dean of the GSAS, reaffirmed his belief on Wednesday that the individual academic departments at all graduate schools are ultimately responsible for admission of applicants, and that the will not only have to approve the plan, but actively help in its implementation.

Financial Assistance

McKinney also said the GSAS is willing to give department chairmen financial assistance for their individual recruitment efforts.

Last March President Bok and Dean Rosovsky asked Andrew F. Brimmer, chairman of the W.E.B. DuBois Institute Advisory Board, to aid the GSAS in developing more effective recruitment methods, but McKinney said that the idea to form a consortium originated with Philip T. Gay, whom the GSAS had hired last year to act as minority recruiter. Gay will not continue in the position this year.

The advisory board, McKinney said, took no part in any planning sessions.

To further recruitment efforts, Harvard, along with Yale, Princeton, Brown, the University of Pennsylvania and MIT has already created a system to facilitate the exchange of names of highly qualified minority students who are potential candidates for graduate school.

Hillgarth, who will head the GSAS's latest recruitment drive, said she would like to see an exchange of names among up to 50 schools.

Archie C. Epps III, dean of students, will coordinate Harvard's end of the name-gathering drive.

McKinney said Harvard will continue to use the minority locater service, which identifies prospective minority applicants through the Graduate Record Exam, even though this has not been a successful method in the past. In addition, the GSAS will do "some recruiting," McKinney said.