Claremont McKenna College: Acceptance Rate and Admissions Statistics

Claremont McKenna College is a private liberal arts college with an acceptance rate of 10.3%. Located 35 miles east of Los Angeles, Claremont McKenna's 50-acre campus is located in the heart of The Claremont Colleges, a consortium of seven schools. Students at CMC share facilities and can cross-register for classes at schools in the consortium including Scripps College, Pomona College, Harvey Mudd College, and Pitzer College. Claremont McKenna has an 8-to-1 student/faculty ratio, a diverse student body, and strong liberal arts credentials that earned it a chapter of Phi Beta Kappa. 

Considering applying to this highly selective school? Here are the Claremont McKenna admissions statistics you should know.

Acceptance Rate

During the 2018-19 admissions cycle, Claremont McKenna had an acceptance rate of 10.3%. This means that for every 100 students who applied, 10 were admitted, making Claremont McKenna's admissions process highly competitive.

SAT Scores and Requirements

Claremont McKenna requires that all applicants submit either SAT or ACT scores. During the 2018-19 admissions cycle, 56% of admitted students submitted SAT scores.

The admissions data tells us that most of Claremont McKenna's admitted students fall within the top 20% nationally on the SAT. For the evidence-based reading and writing section, 50% of students admitted to Claremont McKenna scored between 670 and 730, while 25% scored below 670 and 25% scored above 730. On the math section. 50% of admitted students scored between 690 and 780, while 25% scored below 980 and 25% scored above 780. Applicants with a composite SAT score of 1510 or higher will have particularly competitive chances at Claremont McKenna.

Requirements

Claremont McKenna does not require the SAT writing section or SAT Subject tests. Note that Claremont McKenna participates in the scorechoice program, which means that the admissions office will consider your highest score from each individual section across all SAT test dates.

ACT Scores and Requirements

Claremont McKenna requires that all applicants submit either SAT or ACT scores. During the 2018-19 admissions cycle, 53% of admitted students submitted ACT scores.

The admissions data tells us that most of Claremont McKenna's admitted students fall within the top 5% nationally on the ACT. The middle 50% of students admitted to Claremont McKenna received a composite ACT score between 31 and 34, while 25% scored above 34 and 25% scored below 31.

Requirements

Claremont McKenna does not require the ACT writing section. Unlike many schools, Claremont McKenna superscores ACT results; your highest subscores from multiple ACT sittings will be considered.

GPA

Claremont McKenna College does not provide data about admitted students' high school GPAs.

Self-Reported GPA/SAT/ACT Graph

The admissions data in the graph is self-reported by applicants to Claremont McKenna College. GPAs are unweighted. Find out how you compare to accepted students, see the real-time graph, and calculate your chances of getting in with a free Cappex account.

Admissions Chances

With an acceptance rate of just over 10%, Claremont McKenna College is one of the country's most selective colleges. However, Claremont McKenna has a holistic admissions process involving other factors beyond your grades and test scores. A strong application essay and glowing letters of recommendation can strengthen your application, as can participation in meaningful extracurricular activities and a rigorous course schedule. Students with particularly compelling stories or achievements can still receive serious consideration even if their test scores are outside Claremont McKenna's average range.

In the scattergram above, the blue and green dots represent accepted students. You can see that the majority of successful applicants had "A" averages, SAT scores of about 1350 or higher (ERW+M), and ACT composite scores of 29 or higher. The higher those numbers, the better your chances of receiving an acceptance letter. Note that there are many red dots (rejected students) and yellow dots (waitlisted students) hidden behind the green and blue of the graph.

If you're applying to Claremont McKenna College, you should consider the school a reach even if you have exceptional grades and standardized test scores. The graph above illustrates why. Many students with unweighted "A" averages and extremely high standardized test scores were still rejected by Claremont McKenna.

All admissions data has been sourced from the National Center for Education Statistics and Claremont McKenna College Undergraduate Admissions Office.