Admissions & selectivity
DePauw University Acceptance Rate & Admissions
What is the acceptance rate at DePauw University?
DePauw University’s reported acceptance rate is 57.2%.
- Acceptance rate · Fall 2024
- 57.2%
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.
Source: DePauw University Common Data Set 2025-26, C1 · first-time, first-year students.
How to interpret the acceptance rate
Admission to DePauw University was recorded at 57.2%, a lower share than the median of 75.7% for comparable institutions (same type and size). That difference describes admissions outcomes across the reported pools, rather than a prediction for an individual applicant.
In its 2025-26 Common Data Set, the university reported 6,772 first-year applicants, 3,794 admitted applicants, and 484 enrolled first-year students.
What SAT and ACT scores do enrolled DePauw University students report?
In its 2025-26 Common Data Set, DePauw University reported that 53% of enrolled first-year students submitted SAT scores, with the middle half falling between 1170 and 1390. 19% of the entering class submitted ACT scores; the middle half of those enrollees ranged from 26 to 32.
Prospective students should treat the university's 1170 to 1390 SAT interval and 26 to 32 ACT interval as context for recent submitters, not as admission floors. Among enrolled first-year students with a reported class rank, 35% placed in the highest tenth of their high-school class and 69% in the highest fourth.
The ranges below describe enrolled students who submitted test scores at DePauw University. Use them as academic context, then check the university’s current testing policy for your application cycle.
53% of entering students submitted SAT scores
- 25th percentile
- 1170
- Median
- 1290
- 75th percentile
- 1390
CDS 2025-26 · enrolled first-year score submitters. This range is not an admission cutoff.
19% of entering students submitted ACT scores
- 25th percentile
- 26
- Median
- 28
- 75th percentile
- 32
CDS 2025-26 · enrolled first-year score submitters. This range is not an admission cutoff.
Source: DePauw University Common Data Set 2025-26, C9 · Enrolled first-time, first-year score submitters.
Who enrolls at DePauw University?
- Pell Grant recipients
- 16.4%
- Entering students outside the first-time, full-time group
- 1.2%
- First-year retention
- 88.6%
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.
DePauw University enrolls 1,905 undergraduates. 16.4% receive Pell Grants, and an estimated 1.2% arrive as transfers or part-time students—the campus is built around the first-year entry path.
In its 2025-26 Common Data Set, the university reported 6,772 degree-seeking first-year applicants, 3,794 admitted, and 484 enrolled. For transfer students, 115 applied, 20 were admitted, and 10 enrolled.
A student considering DePauw should know that the transfer route is narrow, and the published counts reflect that. Pell-eligible applicants can use the cost calculator to see their estimated grant-adjusted price before committing to the application.
Students who begin at DePauw University tend to remain enrolled and finish at rates above those at comparable institutions. In its 2025-26 Common Data Set, the university reported 89% retention for the first-time, full-time fall 2024 entering class, meaning full-time first-time bachelor’s students retained to the next fall.
Federal data put first-year retention for full-time bachelor’s-seeking entrants at 88.6%, above the peer median of 74.2% for comparable institutions. The first-time full-time cohort’s six-year graduation rate is 74.7%, also above the peer median of 54.9%.
Pell recipients completed within six years at 81.5%, above the overall rate by 6.8 percentage points. Enrolled students can expect persistence and completion figures that exceed peer medians, with Pell completion also higher than 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.