The end result is essentially the same. However, the relative competition varies with the number of applicants in each subsample. If one faculty member is choosing from among 10 applicants and another is choosing from among 3, then the applicants in the latter group have a better chance of selection. Although the groups may use some sort of scaling to make an initial stratification of the applicants, they usually engage in a lot of shifting of the sample in order to accommodate to the fact that many applicants have the same ratings for virtually every area and the listing is somewhat arbitrary. In addition, many applicants have unique credentials or experiences that are reasons for moving them up or down in the list.
Some faculty make special arguments for applicants they want to advance up the list.
After considerable discussion, the committee finally comes to the list of applicants who will be awarded admission into the program. This number is still relatively low and probably never exceeds three new students for each faculty member. If you want to make a quick estimate of the number of new students a program likely accepts, then simply count the faculty. Anticipating that many applicants will not accept their program, most committees extend acceptances to twice as many applicants as they expect to have in the incoming class. Some committees will initially only admit the number they expect for the new class and then wait to see who accepts the program.