Carleton College acceptance rate and your odds of getting in
Carleton College is a private college in Minnesota that admits roughly 20% of applicants, which puts it in the highly selective range. A rate like this means it turns away most applicants; the bar is less about clearing a single cutoff and more about how your full profile compares to admitted students.
Use this page to see what Carleton College weighs, where it ranks among Minnesota schools, and how a profile like yours is likely to land. Admitted students post a 75th-percentile SAT around 1510, a useful checkpoint for where your scores sit, though it is a reference range and not a cutoff.
What is the early decision acceptance rate at Carleton College?
In its 2025-26 Common Data Set, Carleton College admitted 34.6% of Early Decision applicants (263 of 760), against about 20.2% of everyone else. Its overall rate that year was 21.8%.
Source: Carleton College Common Data Set 2025-26, IPEDS admissions survey, fall 2023. Updated October 30, 2026.
Carleton College application deadlines, 2026-27
What do students study at Carleton College?
Bachelor's degrees awarded by field in 2023 (IPEDS completions). Each field has its own page with the school's numbers, the model's major adjustment, and peers offering it.
Will I get into Carleton College?
Direct answers to what applicants ask about getting into Carleton College, plus a free way to calculate your own odds.
What are my chances of getting into Carleton College?
At Carleton College, your real chance depends on far more than the published 20% admit rate. Your real odds depend on how your GPA, course rigor, test scores, and activities compare to its admitted students. Run your profile through the free CollegeCalcAI calculator to get a personalized acceptance percentage for Carleton College in about three minutes, with no account needed to start.
Is Carleton College hard to get into?
Carleton College is highly selective: it turns away most applicants, with about a 20% acceptance rate. Strong academics are expected here, so the rest of your profile usually decides the outcome.
What GPA do you need to get into Carleton College?
There is no hard GPA cutoff at Carleton College, but most admitted students present roughly a 3.8 to 4.0 GPA with a rigorous course load. Carleton College reads your GPA alongside the rigor of your courses, so a challenging schedule matters as much as the number itself.
Your chances at Carleton College by GPA and SAT
Estimated chance of admission at Carleton College for plain profiles, from the same model as the calculator. Unweighted GPA, 6 AP courses, Regular Decision, no legacy, athletic or first-generation hook. The last column is test-optional (no score sent).
What are my chances at Carleton College with a 3.7 GPA and a 1510 SAT?
About 34% (Target), by CollegeCalcAI's deterministic model, for an applicant with a 3.7 unweighted GPA and a 1510 SAT, the middle of Carleton College's admitted range, applying Regular Decision without a hook. A 3.9 GPA with a 1560 SAT comes out near 41%. Courses, activities, essays and the application round move the number; the free calculator includes them.
Estimates, not guarantees. Get yours with your real courses and activities. Assistants and developers can fetch this table from the free API: /api/v1/colleges/carleton-college.
Early Decision, Early Action and the waitlist at Carleton College
From Carleton College's own 2025-26 Common Data Set (fall 2025 entering class): sections C1, C2, C21-C22 and D2.
What is the early decision acceptance rate at Carleton College?
34.6%. Carleton College admitted 263 of 760 Early Decision applicants for fall 2025, against 21.8% of all 6,796 first-year applicants (Carleton College's 2025-26 Common Data Set).
Does applying early decision help at Carleton College?
On the raw numbers, yes: Early Decision applicants were admitted at 34.6% versus about 20.2% for everyone who applied another way, 1.7x the rate, and Early Decision filled 17.8% of the admitted class. Part of that gap is who applies early (recruited athletes and legacy applicants often do), so it is not all the round itself. Early Decision is binding: apply only if Carleton College is your clear first choice and the family can commit without comparing aid offers.
How many students get off the waitlist at Carleton College?
33 for fall 2025. Carleton College offered 675 applicants a waitlist spot, 335 accepted one, and 33 were admitted from it: 9.9% of those who stayed on (Carleton College's 2025-26 Common Data Set).
What is the transfer acceptance rate at Carleton College?
21.2%: 28 of 132 transfer applicants were admitted for fall 2025 (Carleton College's 2025-26 Common Data Set).
Source: Carleton College Common Data Set 2025-26. Read from the document twice independently; only matching figures are shown. See how early rounds compare across colleges in the Early Decision rankings.
How to get into Carleton College
Built from Carleton College's admitted class and what it reports weighing. The typical-admit GPA and SAT are CollegeCalcAI's modeled figures, not published cutoffs.
Getting into Carleton College comes down to four decisions, each one visible in the data on this page.
CollegeCalcAI's modeled typical admit at Carleton College carries about a 3.78 core GPA and a 1510 SAT, in the most rigorous schedule available. Landing at or above it makes you competitive; the rest of the file decides.
The admitted middle 50% is 1450 to 1560 SAT (32 to 34 ACT). Submit a score at 1505 or higher; below 1450, apply test-optional if the policy allows.
Carleton College rates rigor of secondary school record, academic GPA, and application essay highest in its own Common Data Set. Put your depth there: essays that sound like you and answer the actual prompt, and a transcript whose rigor rises through junior year.
Selective private colleges admit a larger share of their class in binding Early Decision; if Carleton College is your clear first choice and the net price works, ED is the single biggest lever an applicant controls. Most early deadlines fall on November 1 and Regular Decision on January 1 to 15; confirm Carleton College's exact dates at www.carleton.edu.
How many students apply to Carleton College, and how many get in?
6,464 students applied to Carleton College for fall 2023; 1,440 were admitted (22.3%). 538 enrolled. Roughly 37% of admitted students enrolled, a typical yield for a school in this range. Carleton College enrolls about 2,086 undergraduates in total, 50% of them women, with a student-to-faculty ratio of 8 to 1.
Source: U.S. Department of Education, IPEDS 2023 admissions and enrollment.
What SAT and ACT scores do you need for Carleton College?
Admitted students at Carleton College post SAT scores of 1450 to 1560 in the middle 50%, with an average of 1517. On the ACT the middle 50% runs from 32 to 34. A score above 1560 puts you in the top quarter of admits and turns the test into an asset; a score below 1450 puts you in the bottom quarter, where the rest of the application has to carry more weight. Carleton College is test-optional: scores are considered if you submit them but not required. Send a score at or above the middle of the admitted range; otherwise apply without one and let your transcript lead.
Source: College Scorecard (U.S. Department of Education), release 2026-06-10.
What Carleton College looks for
What Carleton College weighs most heavily in its admissions review, informed by its reported Common Data Set.
Carleton College signals that it values rigor of secondary school record, academic GPA, and application essay above the rest of the file. At this level of selectivity, the difference between admits is rarely the transcript alone; essays, recommendations, and a coherent story matter. These ratings come from Carleton College's reported Common Data Set, so the full chart below reflects what the school itself says it values, not a generic guess.
SAT score positioning at Carleton College
How common SAT scores sit relative to the admitted middle. This is context, not a probability. Your full profile determines the real estimate.
How much does Carleton College cost after financial aid?
The full sticker price at Carleton College (tuition, fees, housing, food, books) is about $84,893 a year. Tuition and fees alone are $68,892. What families actually pay is different: the average net price after grants and scholarships is $25,407 a year, and it ranges from $7,881 for families earning under $30,000 to $44,082 for families earning over $110,000. 17% of undergraduates receive a federal Pell Grant.
Source: College Scorecard (U.S. Department of Education), release 2026-06-10. Net price is what students receiving aid paid after grants, by family income.
What do Carleton College graduates earn, and how many graduate?
Median earnings for Carleton College students ten years after entry are $75,525 ($53,989 at the six-year mark). 90% of first-time, full-time students graduate within six years, and 96% return for a second year. Among graduates who borrowed, median federal debt at graduation is $16,750; 43% of undergraduates take federal loans.
Source: College Scorecard (U.S. Department of Education), release 2026-06-10. Earnings cover students who received federal aid.
How Carleton College compares in Minnesota
Carleton College ranks #1 most selective of 23 schools in Minnesota in our database.
Among the 23 Minnesota schools we track, Carleton College ranks the most selective by acceptance rate. Nothing else in the state is harder to get into; the next tier down includes Crown College at 23%.
Similar to Carleton College
Schools with a similar selectivity profile, worth comparing as you build a balanced list.
If Carleton College is on your list, schools with a similar admit profile are worth a look: Hillsdale College, Skidmore College, and Smith College. Running the same profile against each one in the free calculator is the fastest way to see where you are a reach, a match, or a likely.
Frequently asked questions
What is Carleton College's acceptance rate?
Carleton College admitted 1,440 of 6,464 applicants for the fall 2023 entering class, an acceptance rate of 22.3% (U.S. Department of Education, IPEDS). 37% of admitted students enrolled.
What SAT score do you need for Carleton College?
The middle 50% of admitted students scored 1450 to 1560 on the SAT and 32 to 34 on the ACT. A score above 1560 is in the top quarter of admits. Carleton College is test-optional, so only submit a score that helps.
Is Carleton College test-optional?
Yes. Carleton College reports that test scores are considered but not required. Submit a score at or above the middle of the admitted range; otherwise apply without one.
How much does Carleton College cost after financial aid?
The average net price at Carleton College, what students receiving aid paid after grants and scholarships, is $25,407 a year against a sticker price of about $84,893. Families earning under $30,000 paid about $7,881 on average.
What do Carleton College graduates earn?
Median earnings ten years after entering Carleton College are $75,525 a year among students who received federal aid, and 90% of students graduate within six years (College Scorecard).
What does Carleton College value most in applicants?
Based on its admissions profile, Carleton College weighs rigor of secondary school record, academic GPA, and application essay most heavily. The full factor breakdown is on this page.
Does Carleton College consider legacy or demonstrated interest?
Many private colleges weigh legacy relationships and demonstrated interest. Carleton College's full factor profile is charted on this page, and CollegeCalcAI models a legacy effect scaled to a school's selectivity.
How can I improve my chances at Carleton College?
Focus on the highest-leverage parts of your application: course rigor and GPA trajectory first, then test scores, then a focused leadership or activity spike. CollegeCalcAI's Power-Ups quantify how much each change would move your odds at Carleton College specifically.
What makes an application stand out at Carleton College?
Beyond strong academics, Carleton College rewards a clear, specific story: focused activities with real impact, essays in an authentic voice, and recommendations that corroborate it. Depth beats a long list of unrelated activities.
Acceptance rate, application counts, admitted test ranges, cost, and outcomes reflect publicly reported federal data (U.S. Department of Education: IPEDS 2023 and the College Scorecard) and each school's Common Data Set; figures are rounded and lag the current cycle by one to two years, so confirm deadlines and policies on the school's own site. The typical-admit GPA and SAT are CollegeCalcAI's modeled estimates. Estimates from CollegeCalcAI are a planning tool computed by a fixed, transparent model, not a guarantee of any admission decision.