St. Olaf College acceptance rate and your odds of getting in
With an acceptance rate near 48%, St. Olaf College is a selective private college in Minnesota. Because it admits a minority of applicants, admission turns on the strength of your whole profile rather than any one number.
Use this page to see what St. Olaf 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 1380, a useful checkpoint for where your scores sit, though it is a reference range and not a cutoff.
What do students study at St. Olaf 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 St. Olaf College?
Direct answers to what applicants ask about getting into St. Olaf College, plus a free way to calculate your own odds.
What are my chances of getting into St. Olaf College?
St. Olaf College admits roughly 48% of applicants, but that overall rate is not your personal chance. 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 St. Olaf College in about three minutes, with no account needed to start.
Is St. Olaf College hard to get into?
St. Olaf College is selective: it admits a minority of applicants, with about a 48% acceptance rate. A solid academic record puts you in good position, and the rest of your profile can tip the result either way.
What GPA do you need to get into St. Olaf College?
There is no hard GPA cutoff at St. Olaf College, but admitted students commonly present roughly a 3.5 to 3.9 GPA. St. Olaf College reads your GPA alongside the rigor of your courses, so a challenging schedule matters as much as the number itself.
Your chances at St. Olaf College by GPA and SAT
Estimated chance of admission at St. Olaf College for plain profiles, from the same model as the calculator. Unweighted GPA, 3 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 St. Olaf College with a 3.5 GPA and a 1390 SAT?
About 76% (Safety), by CollegeCalcAI's deterministic model, for an applicant with a 3.5 unweighted GPA and a 1390 SAT, the middle of St. Olaf College's admitted range, applying Regular Decision without a hook. A 3.8 GPA with a 1470 SAT comes out near 90%. 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/st-olaf-college.
How to get into St. Olaf College
Built from St. Olaf College's admitted class and what it reports weighing. The typical-admit GPA and SAT are CollegeCalcAI's modeled figures, not published cutoffs.
Here is how to get into St. Olaf College, built from what its admitted class actually looks like and what the school says it weighs.
CollegeCalcAI's modeled typical admit at St. Olaf College carries about a 3.47 core GPA and a 1420 SAT, in the most rigorous schedule available. Meeting it puts you in the admitted range for most applicants.
The admitted middle 50% is 1300 to 1470 SAT (28 to 32 ACT). Submit a score at 1385 or higher; below 1300, apply test-optional if the policy allows.
St. Olaf 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.
An early application signals interest and gets your file read before the pool fills. Most early deadlines fall on November 1 and Regular Decision on January 1 to 15; confirm St. Olaf College's exact dates at wp.stolaf.edu.
How many students apply to St. Olaf College, and how many get in?
For the fall 2023 entering class, St. Olaf College received 5,956 applications and admitted 3,106, an acceptance rate of 52.1%. 825 enrolled. Only about 27% of admitted students enrolled, so the school admits several students for every seat it expects to fill, which is why its acceptance rate reads higher than its selectivity feels. St. Olaf College enrolls about 3,093 undergraduates in total, 58% of them women, with a student-to-faculty ratio of 11 to 1.
Source: U.S. Department of Education, IPEDS 2023 admissions and enrollment.
What SAT and ACT scores do you need for St. Olaf College?
Admitted students at St. Olaf College post SAT scores of 1300 to 1470 in the middle 50%, with an average of 1380. On the ACT the middle 50% runs from 28 to 32. A score above 1470 puts you in the top quarter of admits and turns the test into an asset; a score below 1300 puts you in the bottom quarter, where the rest of the application has to carry more weight. St. Olaf 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 St. Olaf College looks for
What St. Olaf College weighs most heavily in its admissions review, informed by its reported Common Data Set.
In its review, St. Olaf College leans most on rigor of secondary school record, academic GPA, and application essay. Solid grades in a challenging schedule do most of the work here, with the rest of the application providing context. These ratings come from St. Olaf 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 St. Olaf 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 St. Olaf College cost after financial aid?
The full sticker price at St. Olaf College (tuition, fees, housing, food, books) is about $71,843 a year. Tuition and fees alone are $59,760. What families actually pay is different: the average net price after grants and scholarships is $23,874 a year, and it ranges from $10,404 for families earning under $30,000 to $33,166 for families earning over $110,000. 21% 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 St. Olaf College graduates earn, and how many graduate?
Median earnings for St. Olaf College students ten years after entry are $65,543 ($48,373 at the six-year mark). 84% of first-time, full-time students graduate within six years, and 92% return for a second year. Among graduates who borrowed, median federal debt at graduation is $26,000; 42% 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 St. Olaf College compares in Minnesota
St. Olaf College ranks #5 most selective of 23 schools in Minnesota in our database.
Among the 23 Minnesota schools we track, St. Olaf College ranks #5 most selective by acceptance rate. Schools like Carleton College (20%) and Crown College (23%) sit nearby, which makes Minnesota a useful frame for calibrating a balanced list.
Similar to St. Olaf College
Schools with a similar selectivity profile, worth comparing as you build a balanced list.
Build around St. Olaf College with peers at a comparable selectivity, such as Santa Clara University, Austin College, and Rollins 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 St. Olaf College's acceptance rate?
St. Olaf College admitted 3,106 of 5,956 applicants for the fall 2023 entering class, an acceptance rate of 52.1% (U.S. Department of Education, IPEDS). 27% of admitted students enrolled.
What SAT score do you need for St. Olaf College?
The middle 50% of admitted students scored 1300 to 1470 on the SAT and 28 to 32 on the ACT. A score above 1470 is in the top quarter of admits. St. Olaf College is test-optional, so only submit a score that helps.
Is St. Olaf College test-optional?
Yes. St. Olaf 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 St. Olaf College cost after financial aid?
The average net price at St. Olaf College, what students receiving aid paid after grants and scholarships, is $23,874 a year against a sticker price of about $71,843. Families earning under $30,000 paid about $10,404 on average.
What do St. Olaf College graduates earn?
Median earnings ten years after entering St. Olaf College are $65,543 a year among students who received federal aid, and 84% of students graduate within six years (College Scorecard).
What does St. Olaf College value most in applicants?
Based on its admissions profile, St. Olaf College weighs rigor of secondary school record, academic GPA, and application essay most heavily. The full factor breakdown is on this page.
Does St. Olaf College consider legacy or demonstrated interest?
Many private colleges weigh legacy relationships and demonstrated interest. St. Olaf 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 St. Olaf 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 St. Olaf College specifically.
Is St. Olaf College a target or a reach for an average applicant?
For an applicant whose GPA and scores sit near St. Olaf College's admitted range, it generally reads as a target rather than a reach. Run your exact profile through the free calculator to see your personal verdict.
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.