This page provides the latest information on Santa Clara University (SCU)'s admission process, acceptance rate, and student profile. SCU's acceptance rate is 48.00% for 2024-2025 admission. A total of 18,970 students applied and 9,105 were admitted to the school. It means that your chances of getting into SCU is not low.
To apply to SCU, recommendations and personal statement (or essay) are required to submit. The SAT and ACT score is not required, but considered for admission. In addition, english proficiency test score is also considered (required).
For the academic year 2024-25, SCU's acceptance rate is 48.00% and the yield (also known as enrollment rate) is 17.69%. 8,928 men and 10,042 women applied to SCU and 3,975 men and 5,130 women students were accepted.
Among them, 805 men and 806 women were enrolled in SCU. You can explore the SCU's admission rates and SAT score trends over the past decade, including year-by-year data and analysis, by visiting Admission Trends page.
| Total | Men | Women | Another Gender | Gender Unknown | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Applicants | 18,970 | 8,928 | 10,042 | 0 | 0 |
| Admitted | 9,105 | 3,975 | 5,130 | 0 | 0 |
| Enrolled | 1,611 | 805 | 806 | 0 | 0 |
| Acceptance Rate | 48.00% | 44.52% | 51.09% | - | - |
| Yield | 17.69% | 20.25% | 15.71% | - | - |
Data source: IPEDS (Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System) (Last update: December 11, 2024)
For the academic year 2025, 385 students (24% of enrolled students) submitted SAT scores and 154 students (10% of enrolled students) submitted ACT scores as part of the admission process at SCU.
The median SAT score for admitted students is 1,420, including 700 in SAT Evidence-Based Reading and Writing (EBRW) and 720 in SAT Math. The 75th percentile SAT EBRW score is 730 and the 25th percentile is 670. For SAT Math, the 75th percentile score is 760 and the 25th percentile is 680.
The median ACT composite score is 32, with a 75th percentile score of 33 and a 25th percentile score of 31 at SCU.
The SAT and ACT scores at Santa Clara University are competitive and high compared to similar colleges (SAT: 1,177, ACT: 25 - private (not-for-profit) doctoral / research university).
| 25th Percentile | 50th Percentile (Median) | 75th Percentile | |
|---|---|---|---|
| SAT Total | 1,350 | 1,420 | 1,490 |
| SAT Evidence-Based Reading and Writing | 670 | 700 | 730 |
| SAT Math | 680 | 720 | 760 |
| ACT Composite | 31 | 32 | 33 |
| ACT Math | 29 | 31 | 33 |
| ACT English | - | - |
Data source: IPEDS (Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System) (Last update: December 11, 2024)
For the academic year 2024-25, total 1,611 first-year students enrolled in SCU. The proportion of full-time students is 99.63% and part-time students is 0.37%.
By gender, the proportion of men students is 49.97% and women students is 50.03%.
The following table shows the first-year students by gender and enrolled type at SCU.
| Total | Men | Women | Another Gender | Gender Unknown | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total | 1,611 | 805 | 806 | 0 | 0 |
| Full-time | 1,605 | 800 | 805 | 0 | 0 |
| Part-time | 6 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
Data source: IPEDS (Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System) (Last update: December 11, 2024)
It requires to submit High School GPA, High School Record (or Transcript), Completion of College Preparatory Program, Recommendations, English Proficiency Test, and Personal statement or essay to its applicants.
The SAT and ACT test score is not required, but considered in admission process at SCU. The english proficiency test is required .
The next table summarizes the application requirements to apply Santa Clara University.
For more admission information such as minimum GPA and deadlines, see its online application page .
| High School GPA | Required |
|---|---|
| High School Rank | Considered, if submitted |
| High School Record (or Transcript) | Required |
| Completion of College Preparatory Program | Required |
| Recommendations | Required |
| Formal Demonstration of Competencies | Not Considered |
| SAT / ACT | Considered, if submitted |
| English Proficiency Test | Required |
| Other Test (Wonderlic,WISC-III,etc) | Not Considered |
| Work experience | Not Considered |
| Personal statement or essay | Required |
| Legacy status | Not Considered |
The following provides general admission information for applying to SCU:
The institutional SAT code for SCU is 4851 and 4-digit ACT code is 0421.
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