Admissions & selectivity
Cleveland State University Acceptance Rate & Admissions
What is the acceptance rate at Cleveland State University?
Cleveland State University’s reported acceptance rate is 91.3%.
- Acceptance rate · Fall 2024
- 91.3%
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.
How to interpret the acceptance rate
Cleveland State University admits 91.3% of applicants, a rate that signals broad access for students in Cleveland, Ohio. The median of 85.9% for comparable institutions (same type and size) places the university slightly above the peer midpoint.
What SAT and ACT scores do Cleveland State University students report?
SAT and ACT ranges are not available for Cleveland State University in the data shown here. Missing scores do not establish whether tests are required, optional or excluded from review.
Figures cover fall 2024.
Who enrolls at Cleveland State University?
- Pell Grant recipients
- 40.5%
- Entering students outside the first-time, full-time group
- 41.7%
- First-year retention
- 70.3%
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.
Cleveland State University enrolls 8,969 undergraduates, with 40.5% receiving Pell Grants and an estimated 41.7% arriving as transfers or part-time students. The campus draws from two large entry points: students using federal grant aid and people continuing coursework begun elsewhere.
For Pell-eligible applicants, the cost calculator on this site can estimate a grant-adjusted price before committing. The figures describe who attends, not how the university weighs applications.
An individual applicant's chances depend on factors the enrollment data alone cannot capture.
Of full-time students who start at Cleveland State University, 70.3% return for a second year and 50.6% finish within six years. Both figures sit close to the medians for comparable institutions (same type and size): 73.7% for retention and 49.1% for completion.
Pell recipients in the same entering cohort complete at 45.8%, 4.8 percentage points below the overall rate.
Data & methodology
Sources and reporting periods: methodology.
Analysis and methodology by Daniel Rogers, 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.