Mount Holyoke College: Acceptance Rate and Admissions Statistics

Mount Holyoke College is a private women's liberal arts college with an acceptance rate of 38%. Founded in 1837, and located in South Hadley, Massachusetts, Mount Holyoke College is the oldest of the Seven Sisters colleges. Mount Holyoke is also a member of the Five College Consortium with Amherst College, UMass Amherst, Smith College and Hampshire College. Students can register for courses at any of the five schools. The college has a chapter of the prestigious Phi Beta Kappa Honor Society for its strengths in the liberal arts and sciences. The student-to-faculty ratio is 10-to-1.

On the athletic front, the Mount Holyoke Lyons compete in the NCAA Division III New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference for most sports. The college fields 14 varsity sports. Mount Holyoke has a beautiful campus, and students can enjoy the college's botanic gardens, two lakes, waterfalls, and horseback-riding trails.

Considering applying to Mount Holyoke? Here are the admissions statistics you should know, including average SAT/ACT scores and GPAs of admitted students.

Acceptance Rate

During the 2018-19 admissions cycle, Mount Holyoke had an acceptance rate of 38%. This means that for every 100 students who applied, 38 students were admitted, making Mount Holyoke's admissions process competitive.

SAT Scores and Requirements

Mount Holyoke has a test-optional standardized testing policy. Applicants to Mount Holyoke may submit SAT or ACT scores to the school, but they are not required. During the 2018-19 admissions cycle, 50% of admitted students submitted SAT scores.

This admissions data tells us that of those students who submitted scores during the 2018-19 admissions cycle, most of Mount Holyoke'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 Mount Holyoke scored between 630 and 720, while 25% scored below 630 and 25% scored above 720. On the math section, 50% of admitted students scored between 640 and 770, while 25% scored below 640 and 25% scored above 770. While the SAT is not required, this data tells us that a composite SAT score of 1490 or higher is competitive for Mount Holyoke.

Requirements

Mount Holyoke College does not require SAT scores for admission. For students who choose to submit scores, note that Mount Holyoke participates in the scorechoice program, meaning that the admissions office will consider your highest score from each individual section across all SAT test dates. Mount Holyoke does not require the essay section of the SAT.

ACT Scores and Requirements

Mount Holyoke has a test-optional standardized testing policy. Applicants may submit SAT or ACT scores to the school, but they are not required. During the 2018-19 admissions cycle, 27% of admitted students submitted ACT scores.

This admissions data tells us that of those who submitted scores during the 2018-19 admissions cycle, most of Mount Holyoke's admitted students fall within the top 15% nationally on the ACT. The middle 50% of students admitted to Mount Holyoke received a composite ACT score between 27 and 32, while 25% scored above 32 and 25% scored below 27.

Requirements

Note that Mount Holyoke does not require ACT scores for admission. For students who choose to submit scores, Mount Holyoke participates in the scorechoice program, meaning that the admissions office will consider your highest score from each individual section across all ACT test dates. Mount Holyoke does not require the ACT writing section.

GPA

In 2019, the average high school GPA for incoming Mount Holyoke freshmen was 3.84, and over 50% of admitted students ranked in the top 10% of their class. These results suggest that most successful applicants to Mount Holyoke have primarily A grades.

Self-Reported GPA/SAT/ACT Graph

The admissions data in the graph is self-reported by applicants to Mount Holyoke 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

Mount Holyoke, which accepts just over one-third of applicants, has a competitive admissions pool. However, Mount Holyoke also has a holistic admissions process and is test-optional, and admissions decisions are based on much more than numbers. 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. The college is looking for students who will contribute to the campus community in meaningful ways, not just students who show promise in the classroom. While not required, Mount Holyoke strongly recommends interviews for interested applicants. Students with particularly compelling stories or achievements can still receive serious consideration even if their grades and scores are outside of Mount Holyoke's average range.

In the graph above, the blue and green dots represent accepted students, and you can see that most students who got into Mount Holyoke had averages of B+ or higher, SAT scores (ERW+M) over 1200 and ACT composite scores of 25 or higher. Note that SAT and ACT scores are optional, so your grades are going to matter much more than your test scores.

If You Like Mount Holyoke College, You May Also Like These Schools

• Wesleyan University
• Swarthmore College
• Boston University
• Brown University
• Cornell University
• Tufts University
• Bowdoin College
• Haverford College
• Bryn Mawr College
• Vassar College

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