Admissions & selectivity
State University of New York at Cortland Acceptance Rate & Admissions
What is the acceptance rate at State University of New York at Cortland?
State University of New York at Cortland’s reported acceptance rate is 59.8%.
- Acceptance rate · Fall 2024
- 59.8%
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: State University of New York at Cortland Common Data Set 2025-26, C1 · first-time, first-year students.
How to interpret the acceptance rate
Admission is less common at State University of New York at Cortland: 59.8% of applicants were admitted in the reported entering class. That rate is below the median of 85.9% for comparable institutions (same type and size).
In its 2025-26 Common Data Set, the university reported 18,352 first-year applicants, 11,451 admitted, and 1,353 enrolled.
What SAT and ACT scores do State University of New York at Cortland students report?
SAT and ACT ranges are not available for State University of New York at Cortland 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 State University of New York at Cortland?
- Pell Grant recipients
- 27.4%
- Entering students outside the first-time, full-time group
- 22.4%
- First-year retention
- 81.1%
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.
State University of New York at Cortland enrolls an undergraduate body that includes both Pell Grant recipients and a notable transfer pathway. Pell Grant recipients account for 27.4% of undergraduates, while an estimated 22.4% enter as transfers or part-time students.
Federal enrollment data record 5,901 undergraduates. This composition suggests that the university serves students arriving through more than one route, including those using federal grant aid and those continuing prior college work.
The figures describe the undergraduate body and transfer pathway rather than admission priorities. The enrollment mix does not describe any individual applicant’s admission odds.
The transfer estimate is a campus-level measure, not a count of transfer applicants.
Students who start at State University of New York at Cortland return and finish at rates that exceed the medians for comparable institutions. The first-year retention rate is 81.1%, against a peer median of 73.7%.
The six-year graduation rate for the first-time, full-time cohort is 68.0%, compared to a peer median of 49.1%. In its 2025-26 Common Data Set, the university reported a retention rate of 84% for the first-time, full-time fall 2024 entering class.
The six-year graduation rate for the first-time, full-time fall 2019 entering class was 72.6%, with Pell recipients in that cohort completing at 65.0%, below the overall rate. Federal data shows Pell recipients in the first-time, full-time cohort complete at 65.1%, which is 2.9 percentage points below the overall rate.
Enrolled students can expect retention and completion rates above the peer medians and should note the Pell completion rate trails 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.