Admissions & selectivity
North Dakota State University-Main Campus Acceptance Rate & Admissions
What is the acceptance rate at North Dakota State University-Main Campus?
North Dakota State University-Main Campus’s reported acceptance rate is 95.0%.
- Acceptance rate · Fall 2024
- 95.0%
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: North Dakota State University-Main Campus Common Data Set 2024-25, C1 · first-time, first-year students.
How to interpret the acceptance rate
North Dakota State University-Main Campus admits 95.0% of applicants, a rate that sits above the median of 85.9% for comparable institutions (same type and size). The university's door is wider than most of its peers'.
In its 2024-25 Common Data Set, the university reported 7,228 applicants and 6,864 admitted students for the fall entering class.
What SAT and ACT scores do enrolled North Dakota State University-Main Campus students report?
In its 2024-25 Common Data Set, North Dakota State University-Main Campus reported an average high-school GPA of 3.52 among enrolled first-year students, with 94.9% submitting a GPA. That figure describes the recent entering class rather than an admission cutoff.
Among first-year students with a reported class rank, 17% were in the top tenth and 38% were in the upper quarter; 47% of the entering class reported a rank. The middle half of SAT scores from enrolled submitters fell between 1130 and 1430, a range that reflects enrolled students and is not a cutoff.
The ACT range for enrolled submitters ran from 19 to 25, and 52% of enrolled first-year students submitted ACT scores. Applicants should compare their scores to the 1130 to 1430 SAT range and the 19 to 25 ACT range to see how they align with recent enrolled students.
The ranges below describe enrolled students who submitted test scores at North Dakota State University-Main Campus. Use them as academic context, then check the university’s current testing policy for your application cycle.
- 25th percentile
- 1130
- Median
- 1280
- 75th percentile
- 1430
CDS 2024-25 · enrolled first-year score submitters. This range is not an admission cutoff.
52% of entering students submitted ACT scores
- 25th percentile
- 19
- Median
- 22
- 75th percentile
- 25
CDS 2024-25 · enrolled first-year score submitters. This range is not an admission cutoff.
Source: North Dakota State University-Main Campus Common Data Set 2024-25, C9 · Enrolled first-time, first-year score submitters.
Who enrolls at North Dakota State University-Main Campus?
- Pell Grant recipients
- 19.7%
- Entering students outside the first-time, full-time group
- 21.4%
- First-year retention
- 78.4%
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.
North Dakota State University-Main Campus enrolls 9,471 undergraduates, with 19.7% receiving Pell Grants and an estimated 21.4% entering as transfers or part-time students. That composition suggests a campus where a student is as likely to arrive from another institution as to be an undergraduate receiving a Pell Grant.
In its 2024-25 Common Data Set, the university reported 1,010 degree-seeking transfer applicants, 977 admitted, and 569 enrolled. Pell-eligible applicants can use the cost calculator to estimate their own grant-adjusted price.
Most students who start at North Dakota State University-Main Campus stay, and most finish within six years — both rates run ahead of what comparable institutions see. The first-year retention rate is 78.4%, above the peer median of 73.7% for comparable institutions (same type and size).
The six-year graduation rate for the first-time full-time cohort is 63.9%, well above the peer median of 49.1%. Pell Grant recipients in that cohort complete at 55.5%, below the overall rate.
In its 2024-25 Common Data Set, the university reported a retention rate of 78% for the first-time, full-time fall 2023 entering class. The six-year graduation rate for the first-time, full-time fall 2018 entering class was 63.9%, while Pell Grant recipients in that cohort completed at 55.0%, below the overall rate.
Enrolled students can expect a university where persistence is the norm and graduation rates outpace peers, though Pell recipients finish at a lower rate than the class as a whole.
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.