Duke University
NC · Private · South · National university · Top 10 tier · 6,434 undergraduates (medium)
Admission rates
Latest admit rates
How much of the class comes from ED
~42% 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. Report the official ACT superscore plus highest section scores. When both tests are sent, Duke uses the best.
How to send scores
Self-report accepted; official scores only after admission/enrollment
School’s words: “will accept self-reported scores for purposes of assessing an application ... Scores sent by testing agencies will be required only from students who enroll at Duke.”
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 ↗ | 3,190 | 7.7% | 15% | Not reported | 100% | 55% | 57% | 1480-1570 | 33-35 | ||
| 2020-21 ↗ | 3,085 | 7.8% | Not reported | Not reported | 100% | 60% | 60% | 1480-1560 | 34-35 | Early Decision counts not reported. | |
| 2021-22 ↗ | 2,911 | 5.9% | 16.4% | Not reported | 93% | 47% | 46% | 1490-1560 | 33-35 | Policy box marked Required; the policy text (C8F) says test-optional. Admitted is the total line (2,911); the rows by sex sum to 2,921. | |
| 2022-23 | Common Data Set not found online | ||||||||||
| 2023-24 ↗ | 3,145 | 6.8% | 19.7% | Not reported | 77% | 47% | 30% | 1520-1570 | 34-35 | ||
| 2024-25 ↗ | 2,957 | 5.7% | 17.3% | 60% | 78% | 48% | 30% | ERW 740-770, Math 760-800 | 34-35 | ||
| 2025-26 ↗ | 2,910 | 5.2% | 11.1% | 42% | 75% | 48% | 27% | 1510-1570 | 34-35 | ||
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 Test-optional2023-24 CDS
- Fall 2024 Not reported2022-23 CDS
- Fall 2023 Required (as marked)2021-22 CDSAs the school reported it. Not borne out: in the class that entered Fall 2023, 47% submitted SAT and 30% ACT (2023-24 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.
Duke's Common Data Set leaves Early Decision counts blank. The Early Decision figures shown on this page are from Duke's December 2024 announcement.
Source: Duke Today, Dec 2024: first members of the Class of 2029 ↗
Duke's Class of 2029 profile reports admit rates of 12.6% for Early Decision and 4.2% for Regular Decision.
Notes
- Duke also admitted 113 QuestBridge students in December, not included in the Early Decision count.
- The total rows are blank in the Common Data Set; applied, admitted and enrolled are the sums of the rows by sex.