Bowdoin College
ME · Private · Northeast · Liberal arts college · Top 10 tier · 1,837 undergraduates (small)
Admission rates
Latest admit rates
How much of the class comes from ED
~57% of enrolled freshmen were admitted through Early Decision.
This is a share of the freshman class, not an admit rate.
† Regular round (est.) = (all admitted students − Early Decision admits) ÷ (all applicants − Early Decision applicants).
Trends, Fall 2019–Fall 2025
Admission rates
ED share of the enrolled freshman class (% of first-years admitted ED, not an admit rate)
Early plans
Fall 2027 applicants
Testing
Testing policy
Superscoring
What this means:
- SAT
- Superscores
- ACT
- Superscores
Source ↗ · checked Nov 3, 2026
Test-optional for fall 2027 entry. Bowdoin recalculates the ACT composite from English, Reading and Math.
How to send scores
Self-report accepted; official scores only after admission/enrollment
Bowdoin says it verifies scores for enrolling students; it does not use the word 'official' in that sentence.
School’s words: “We accept self-reported scores for all applicants. ... Bowdoin will verify scores for all enrolling students.”
Source ↗ · checked Nov 3, 2026
Students submitting scores
‡ Est. % submitting scores adds the share of enrolled first-years who submitted the SAT to the share who submitted the ACT.
Score ranges (middle 50%)
Enrolled first-years who submitted scores, Fall 2025. A quarter scored below the range and a quarter above.
Trends, Fall 2019–Fall 2025
Share of enrolled students submitting scores
SAT composite, middle 50%
ACT composite, middle 50%
Year-by-year data, Fall 2019–Fall 2025
| CDS year | Admitted | Admit rate | ED rate | ED share of class | Est. % submitting | % SAT | % ACT | SAT mid-50 | ACT mid-50 | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2019-20 ↗ | 845 | 9.1% | 22.6% | Not reported | 100% | 59% | 45% | 1340-1512 | 31-34 | |
| 2020-21 ↗ | 861 | 9.2% | 21.5% | 52% | 100% | 67% | 40% | 1340-1510 | 30-34 | |
| 2021-22 ↗ | 822 | 8.8% | 27.4% | 51% | 88% | 55% | 33% | 1330-1510 | 31-34 | |
| 2022-23 ↗ | 862 | 9.2% | 26.5% | 53% | 88% | 58% | 30% | 1340-1520 | 31-35 | |
| 2023-24 ↗ | 879 | 8% | 17.6% | 55% | 58.5% | 36.7% | 21.8% | 1470-1530 | 33-35 | |
| 2024-25 ↗ | 946 | 7.1% | 13.5% | 53% | 47.9% | 31.2% | 16.8% | 1470-1540 | 33-35 | |
| 2025-26 ↗ | 957 | 6.8% | 14.9% | 57% | 52% | 34.8% | 17.3% | 1470-1540 | 33-35 |
Waitlist admit rate
Share of students who stayed on the waitlist and were later admitted, by entering class.
Test policy in each Common Data Set
History only. The current policy is under Testing above.
- Fall 2027 Test-optional2025-26 CDS
- Fall 2026 Test-optional2024-25 CDS
- Fall 2025 Not reported2023-24 CDS
- Fall 2023 Not reported2022-23 CDS
- Fall 2023 Not reported2021-22 CDS
- Fall 2022 Not reported2020-21 CDS
- Fall 2021 Not reported2019-20 CDS
From the school's website
Figures from the school’s own pages that add to its Common Data Set. Each links its source.
Bowdoin reports 14,045 applicants, 957 admitted (7%) and 515 enrolled; 50% of the class did not submit test scores. It does not publish a score range. Counts match the Common Data Set.
Notes
- The waitlist section of this Common Data Set gives only the number admitted from the waitlist.