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Admissions & selectivity

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# Bowdoin College Acceptance Rate & Admissions

Updated October 1, 2026

[Overview](/school/bowdoin-college/)[Cost & aid](/school/bowdoin-college/cost/)[Outcomes](/school/bowdoin-college/outcomes/)Admissions[Majors](/school/bowdoin-college/majors/)[Similar schools](/school/bowdoin-college/similar/)

**On this page**+

## What is the acceptance rate at Bowdoin College?

Bowdoin College’s reported acceptance rate is 7.1%.

**Acceptance rate · Fall 2024**
7.1%

Source: College Scorecard · Fall 2024 admissions. Acceptance rates can change from year to year; this figure does not predict the current or next admission cycle.

First-year applicants and admitted students · CDS 2025-26

**Applicants**
14,045

**Admitted**
957

Source: Bowdoin College Common Data Set 2025-26, C1 · first-time, first-year students.

How to interpret the acceptance rate

Bowdoin College admits 7.1% of applicants, a figure that sits well below the median of 75.7% for comparable institutions (same type and size). In its 2025-26 Common Data Set, the university reported 14,045 first-year applicants, 957 admitted students, and 515 who enrolled.

## What SAT and ACT scores do enrolled Bowdoin College students report?

In its 2025-26 Common Data Set, the university reported the middle half of SAT scores for enrolled first-year students who submitted them: 1470 to 1540. 35% of the entering class submitted SAT scores.

For the ACT, the middle half of submitters scored from 33 to 35, with 17% of enrolled students submitting. These ranges describe enrolled students who chose to report scores, not a minimum for admission.

Among enrolled first-year students with a reported high-school class rank, 89% finished in the highest tenth and 100% in the highest quarter. 27% of the entering class reported a rank.

The ranges below describe enrolled students who submitted test scores at Bowdoin College. Use them as academic context, then check the university’s current testing policy for your application cycle.

**35% of entering students submitted SAT scores**

SAT: reported composite scores

**25th percentile**
1470

**Median**
1510

**75th percentile**
1540

CDS 2025-26 · enrolled first-year score submitters. This range is not an admission cutoff.

**17% of entering students submitted ACT scores**

ACT: reported composite scores

**25th percentile**
33

**Median**
34

**75th percentile**
35

CDS 2025-26 · enrolled first-year score submitters. This range is not an admission cutoff.

Source: Bowdoin College Common Data Set 2025-26, C9 · Enrolled first-time, first-year score submitters.

## Who enrolls at Bowdoin College?

**Pell Grant recipients**
17.3%

**Entering students outside the first-time, full-time group**
1.4%

**First-year retention**
96.8%

Retention source: College Scorecard; full-time first-year retention.

About these student measures

The entering-student group includes part-time entrants as well as other attendance patterns.

Bowdoin College enrolls 1,873 undergraduates. 17.3% receive Pell Grants, and an estimated 1.4% enter as transfers or part-time students.

In its 2025-26 Common Data Set, the university reported 14,045 first-year applicants, 957 admitted, and 515 enrolled. For transfer students, the same edition reported 362 applicants, 29 admitted, and 12 enrolled.

The composition points to a campus built almost entirely around a traditional first-year entry path. Pell-eligible and transfer applicants should review the cost calculator for a grant-adjusted price estimate and understand that transfer admission is a narrow route.

Of full-time, first-year students, 96.8% return for a second year, well above the 74.2% median for comparable institutions. The [six-year graduation rate](/analysis/what-the-graduation-rate-doesnt-count/) is 95.3%, against a peer median of 54.9%.

In its 2025-26 Common Data Set, the university reported a retention rate of 98% for the first-time, full-time fall 2024 entering class. Enrolled students can expect completion and retention rates that sit well above the peer medians.

## Data & methodology

Sources and reporting periods: [methodology](/methodology/).

Analysis and methodology by [Daniel Rogers](/about/#founder), founder of College Azimuth.

Explanatory text is AI-assisted drafting checked against those figures; it is not an additional data source.

Admission rates describe past applicants, not an individual’s chance of admission; confirm requirements and deadlines with the institution.

Figure notes link to sources and limitations. [About College Azimuth](/about/).