Cleveland Institute of Art Admission Requirements and Statistics

[updated for 2024-2025 admission data]

How hard is CIA to get into?

This page provides the latest information on Cleveland Institute of Art (CIA)'s admission process, acceptance rate, and student profile. CIA's acceptance rate is 61.35% for 2024-2025 admission. A total of 978 students applied and 600 were admitted to the school. Its acceptance rate is relatively high, making it somewhat easy to get into CIA.

To apply to CIA, personal statement (or essay) is required to submit and recommendations is not required but considered. The SAT and ACT score is not required, but considered for admission. In addition, english proficiency test score is also considered (required).

  • The median SAT score is 1150 and the ACT score is 26 at CIA.
  • CIA's yield rate is 19.83%, which is moderately lower by 6.69 percentage points (approximately 25.2% lower) compared to similar colleges with acceptance rates between 60% and 70% (average yield: 26.52%). You can compare colleges with similar acceptance rates to CIA at colleges with acceptance rates between 60% and 70%.
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Admission Statistics

For the academic year 2024-25, CIA's acceptance rate is 61.35% and the yield (also known as enrollment rate) is 19.83%. 261 men and 717 women applied to CIA and 115 men and 485 women students were accepted.

Among them, 21 men and 98 women were enrolled in CIA. You can explore the CIA's admission rates and SAT score trends over the past decade, including year-by-year data and analysis, by visiting Admission Trends page.

Acceptance Rate and Admission Statistics at CIA
TotalMenWomenAnother GenderGender Unknown
Applicants97826171700
Admitted60011548500
Enrolled119219800
Acceptance Rate 61.35%44.06%67.64%--
Yield 19.83%18.26%20.21%--

Data source: IPEDS (Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System) (Last update: December 11, 2024)

Cleveland Institute of Art 2025 Acceptance Rate By Gender chart

Median SAT and ACT Score

For the academic year 2025, 20 students (17% of enrolled students) submitted SAT scores and 15 students (13% of enrolled students) submitted ACT scores as part of the admission process at CIA.

The median SAT score for admitted students is 1,150, including 620 in SAT Evidence-Based Reading and Writing (EBRW) and 530 in SAT Math. The 75th percentile SAT EBRW score is 660 and the 25th percentile is 500. For SAT Math, the 75th percentile score is 620 and the 25th percentile is 480.

The median ACT composite score is 26, with a 75th percentile score of 29 and a 25th percentile score of 23 at CIA. The median ACT Math score is 23 and the median ACT English score is 26.

How competitive is CIA's score?

The SAT and ACT scores at Cleveland Institute of Art are similar to the average score compared to similar colleges (SAT: 1,216, ACT: 25 - private (not-for-profit) school of art, music, and design).

2025 SAT and ACT Scores at CIA
25th Percentile50th Percentile (Median)75th Percentile
SAT Total9801,1501,280
SAT Evidence-Based Reading and Writing500620660
SAT Math480530620
ACT Composite232629
ACT Math202329
ACT English232631

Data source: IPEDS (Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System) (Last update: December 11, 2024)

Cleveland Institute of Art 2025 SAT and ACT Score Chart

Application Requirements

It requires to submit High School GPA, High School Record (or Transcript), Formal Demonstration of Competencies, 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 CIA. The english proficiency test is required .

The next table summarizes the application requirements to apply Cleveland Institute of Art.

For more admission information such as minimum GPA and deadlines, see its online application page .

CIA Admission Requirements
High School GPARequired
High School RankNot Considered
High School Record (or Transcript)Required
Completion of College Preparatory ProgramNot Considered
RecommendationsConsidered, if submitted
Formal Demonstration of CompetenciesRequired
SAT / ACTConsidered, if submitted
English Proficiency TestRequired
Other Test (Wonderlic,WISC-III,etc)Not Considered
Work experienceNot Considered
Personal statement or essayRequired
Legacy statusNot Considered

General Admissions Information

The following provides general admission information for applying to CIA:

CIA Admission Frequently Asked Questions

CIA is relatively easy to get into, with an acceptance rate of 61.35%.
CIA recommends submitting SAT or ACT scores, but they are not strictly required for admission. The average SAT score required for admission to CIA is 1,150, and the average ACT score is 26. Meeting or exceeding these scores will improve your chances of admission.
Yes, CIA requires applicants to submit a personal essay or statement as part of the application.
CIA recommends submitting a recommendation letter, but it is not strictly required.
CIA does not require an application fee for undergraduate or graduate admission.
Yes, CIA requires applicants to submit high school GPA, high school record or transcript as part of the admission process.
Yes, CIA requires international applicants to submit an English proficiency test (like TOEFL or IELTS) as part of the application.

The institutional SAT code for CIA is 1152 and 4-digit ACT code is 3243.

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