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Admissions

Macalester College
Admissions

Interested in attending Macalester College?

On this page, you'll learn how difficult it is to get into Macalester College, we'll dig into high school grades and test scores, and you'll find out the factors the school considers when reviewing applications.

28
%
Acceptance rate
1418
SAT Midpoint
January 15
Regular admission deadline

Admission Rates

Is it difficult to get into Macalester College?

28%

Using the most up-to-date data on record, Macalester accepted 28% of applicants. We classify this as selective.

In the most recent year, 8,952 people applied and 2,558 were accepted.

Accepted/Applied
Women
1521 / 4855 (31%)
Men
1033 / 4097 (25%)

Acceptance rates at colleges can change over time, with some becoming more competitive and others accepting more students. Here’s a look at the acceptance rate trend for the past 3 years at Macalester College:

100%
82.0
64.0
46.0
28.0
10.0
2023
2024
2025

Acceptance rates at schools can vary depending on if the student is in-state, out-of-state, or international.

21%
Enrollment of those accepted
Medium
Yield rate

Of those accepted, 21% ended up enrolling at Macalester College, making their yield rate Medium. The yield rate is the percentage of accepted students who enroll at the school. You can use the yield rate to find out how coveted a school is for the students who apply to it.

Application Factors

You can increase your chances of getting into Macalester College by looking at what the school considers during the application process.

Here are the things Macalester considers:

Considered

  • Academic GPA
  • Alumni/AE Relation
  • Application Essay
  • Character/Personal Qualities
  • Class Rank
  • Extracurricular Activities
  • First Generation
  • Geographical Residence
  • Interview
  • Level of Applicant's Interest
  • Recommendation(s)
  • Religious Affiliation/Commitment
  • Rigor of Secondary School Record
  • Standardized Test Scores
  • State Residency
  • Talent/Ability
  • Volunteer Work
  • Work Experience

Grades & Testing

Do you have the grades and test scores to get into Macalester College?

1418
SAT Midpoint

Grades

57% of freshmen who attended Macalester were in the top 10% of their graduating high school class, and 86% were in the top 25% of their graduating high school class.

Applicants submitting SAT Scores

30%

Applicants submitting ACT Scores

28%
SAT Math Scores
25th Percentile
670
Math Mean
710
75th Percentile
750
SAT Verb Scores
25th Percentile
680
Verbal Mean
708
75th Percentile
750
SAT Composite Scores
25th Percentile
1360
Composite Mean
1418
75th Percentile
1490

Application Deadlines

These are the deadlines for applying to Macalester College. Application deadlines are subject to change, so please verify all deadlines with the school.

Regular Admissions

January 15
Regular admission deadline
March 16
Application notification

Early Decision

Early Decision is a program in which students commit to attend a school if they are accepted. Some schools have a higher acceptance rate for Early Decision than regular decision. Macalester's Early Decision acceptance rate is 39%, compared to 28% overall. If you’re sure you want to attend Macalester College, you might consider applying Early Decision.

November 1
Applications Due
December 8
Notification Date
39%
Early Decision Acceptance Rate
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