Bowdoin SAT Scores and GPA

What are Bowdoin's average SAT scores and GPA? In this guide, we'll discuss what scores are needed for you to get admitted into Bowdoin. You'll also get to calculate your own chances with our admissions calculator.

Location: Brunswick, ME

This school is also known as: Bowdoin College

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Bowdoin Admissions Statistics

There are three critical numbers when considering your admissions chances: SAT scores, GPA, and acceptance rate. All these combine to tell you what you scores are required to get into Bowdoin College.


Average SAT: 1422

The average SAT score composite at Bowdoin is a 1422.

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Bowdoin SAT Score Analysis

The 25th percentile New SAT score is 1470, and the 75th percentile SAT score is 1530.

In other words, a 1470 places you below average, while a 1530 will move you up to above average. There's no absolute SAT requirement at Bowdoin, but they really want to see at least a 1470 to have a chance at being considered.

Here's the breakdown of SAT scores by section:

SectionAverage25th Percentile75th Percentile
Math713750790
Reading + Writing710730760
Composite142214701530

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Average GPA: 3.96

The average GPA at Bowdoin is 3.96. This makes Bowdoin Extremely Competitive for GPAs.

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(Most schools use a weighted GPA out of 4.0, though some report an unweighted GPA. This school did not officially report its average GPA, but we've estimated it here using data from over 1,000 schools.)

With a GPA of 3.96, Bowdoin requires you to be at the top of your class. You'll need nearly straight A's in all your classes to compete with other applicants. You should also have taken plenty of AP or IB classes to show your ability to excel in academic challenge.

If you're a junior or senior, your GPA is hard to change from this point on. If your GPA is at or below the school average of 3.96, you'll need a higher SAT score to compensate and show that you're prepared to take on college academics. This will help you compete effectively with other applicants.



Admissions Rate: 8%

The acceptance rate at Bowdoin is 8%. In other words, of 100 students who apply, only 8 are admitted.

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This means the school is very selective. Scores are vital to getting past their first round of filters. After that, you will need to impress them beyond just your academic scores.



Final Admissions Verdict

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Because this school is extremely selective, getting a high SAT score and GPA is vital to having a chance at getting in. If you don't pass their SAT and GPA requirements, they'll likely reject you without much consideration.

To be safe, you should aim for the 75th percentile, with a 1530 SAT and a 3.96 GPA or higher to be above average.

This is only part of the challenge - after this, you'll need to impress them beyond your academic scores, with your accomplishments and extracurriculars. But if you apply with a 1422 SAT or below, you unfortunately have a small chance of getting in.


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Admissions Calculator

What are your chances of admission at Bowdoin College?
Chances of admission with these scores:

Here's our custom admissions calculator. Plug in your numbers to see what your chances of getting in are.

Pick your test: SAT ACT

SAT Score
Your GPA

Note: Your admission decision relies not only on your GPA and SAT/ACT scores, but also on your coursework difficulty, extracurriculars, letters of recommendation, and personal statements. This tool provides only a simplistic estimate of your chances of admission. Instead of treating this tool as a crystal ball, we recommend you consider the big picture of what your chance means:
  • 80-100%: Safety school: Strong chance of getting in
  • 50-80%: More likely than not getting in
  • 20-50%: Lower but still good chance of getting in
  • 5-20%: Reach school: Unlikely to get in, but still have a shot
  • 0-5%: Hard reach school: Very difficult to get in
We recommend you apply to schools across a range of chances. Applying to some safety schools will guarantee you have a college to go to, while applying to some reach schools will give you a shot at getting into the school at the top of your range.
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Other Schools For You

If you're interested in Bowdoin, you'll probably be interested in these schools as well. We've divided them into 3 categories depending on how hard they are to get into, relative to Bowdoin.


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Reach Schools: Harder to Get Into

These schools are have higher average SAT scores than Bowdoin. If you improve your SAT score, you'll be competitive for these schools.

School Name Location SAT Avg ACT Avg
University of Notre Dame Notre Dame, IN 1500 34
Georgetown University Washington, DC 1480 33
Hamilton College Clinton, NY 1480 33
Colgate University Hamilton, NY 1477 32
University of Michigan Ann Arbor, MI 1470 33
Middlebury College Middlebury, VT 1466 33.5
Case Western Reserve University Cleveland, OH 1465 33

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Same Level: Equally Hard to Get Into

If you're competitive for Bowdoin, these schools will offer you a similar chance of admission.

School Name Location SAT Avg ACT Avg
Villanova University Villanova, PA 1440 33
Binghamton University Binghamton, NY 1430 31
Lehigh University Bethlehem, PA 1430 32
Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute Troy, NY 1428 32
Boston University Boston, MA 1418 32
University of California, Berkeley Berkeley, CA 1415 31
University of Washington Seattle, WA 1410 32

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Safety Schools: Easier to Get Into

If you're currently competitive for Bowdoin, you should have no problem getting into these schools. If Bowdoin is currently out of your reach, you might already be competitive for these schools.

School Name Location SAT Avg ACT Avg
American University Washington, DC 1368 30
University of Massachusetts Amherst Amherst, MA 1358 30
Rochester Institute of Technology Rochester, NY 1352 31
United States Military Academy West Point, NY 1331 30
Drexel University Philadelphia, PA 1330 30
University of Connecticut Storrs, CT 1315 29
Syracuse University Syracuse, NY 1310 29

Data on this page is sourced from Peterson's Databases © 2024 (Peterson's LLC. All rights reserved.) as well as additional publicly available sources.


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