Bucknell University
PA · Private · Mid-Atlantic · Liberal arts college · Top 50 tier · 3,888 undergraduates (small)
Admission rates
Latest admit rates
How much of the class comes from ED
~63% 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
Early plans
Fall 2027 applicants
Testing
Testing policy
Superscoring
What this means:
How to send scores
Self-report accepted; official scores only after admission/enrollment
School’s words: “If an applicant is offered admission and enrolls, an official copy of the SAT/ACT scores will be required.”
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 ↗ | 3,370 | 34.2% | 63.6% | Not reported | 100% | 72% | 36% | 1280-1410 | 28-32 | |
| 2020-21 | 3,712 | 37.5% | 55.2% | Not reported | 98% | 66% | 32% | 1230-1390 | 27-31 | |
| 2021-22 ↗ | 3,886 | 34.5% | 54.9% | Not reported | 83% | 57% | 26% | 1230-1390 | 26-32 | |
| 2022-23 ↗ | 3,811 | 32.6% | 54.2% | Not reported | 96% | 70% | 26% | 1180-1390 | 27-32 | Bucknell's own published admitted-student ranges for this class differ from these Common Data Set figures (see comparison above). |
| 2023-24 ↗ | 3,524 | 32% | 55% | Not reported | 89% | 67% | 22% | 1170-1360 | 25-32 | Bucknell's own published admitted-student ranges for this class differ from these Common Data Set figures (see comparison above). |
| 2024-25 ↗ | 3,291 | 28.9% | 55.5% | Not reported | 87% | 68% | 19% | 1170-1380 | 26-32 | Bucknell's own published admitted-student ranges for this class differ from these Common Data Set figures (see comparison above). |
| 2025-26 ↗ | 3,723 | 32.2% | 54.7% | Not reported | 86% | 68% | 18% | 1170-1360 | 25-32 |
Waitlist admit rate
Share of students who stayed on the waitlist and were later admitted, by entering class.
- 2025: 11%
- 2024: 8%
- 2023: 0.1%
- 2022: 0.6%
- 2021: 4%
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 Test-optional2023-24 CDS
- Fall 2024 Test-optional2022-23 CDS
- Fall 2023 Test-optional2021-22 CDS
- Fall 2022 Test-optional2020-21 CDS
- Fall 2021 Not reported2019-20 CDS
Figures differ from the school's website
Year by year
Common Data Set: enrolled first-year students. Bucknell Fast Facts: admitted students (as footnoted on the page). Each column links to its source.
| Class of | CDS Reading & Writing | Fast Facts Reading & Writing | CDS Math | Fast Facts Math | CDS ACT | Fast Facts ACT | Sources |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | 620-700 | Not reported on the school's website | 635-730 | Not reported on the school's website | 28-32 | Not reported on the school's website | CDS 2019-20 ↗ |
| 2024 | 610-690 | 620-700 | 610-710 | 630-700 | 27-31 | 29-32 | CDS 2020-21 ↗ · Fast Facts ↗ |
| 2025 | 610-690 | 640-710 | 600-720 | 660-740 | 26-32 | 29-33 | CDS 2021-22 ↗ · Fast Facts ↗ |
| 2026 | 590-690 | 650-730 | 580-710 | 660-770 | 27-32 | 29-33 | CDS 2022-23 ↗ · Fast Facts ↗ |
| 2027 | 580-680 | 660-730 | 580-690 | 670-760 | 25-32 | 31-34 | CDS 2023-24 ↗ · Fast Facts ↗ |
| 2028 | 590-690 | 670-740 | 570-690 | 670-760 | 26-32 | 31-34 | CDS 2024-25 ↗ · Fast Facts ↗ |
| 2029 | 590-690 | 670-740 | 570-680 | 670-750 | 25-32 | 31-34 | CDS 2025-26 ↗ · Fast Facts ↗ |
Notes
- The Common Data Set file header reads 2024-2025; the data describe the Fall 2025 entering class.