University of Chicago Acceptance Rate for Class of 2026
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How hards is it to get into U Chicago?
GPA Requirements
Standardized Tests Requirements
Course Requirements
What is UChicago Looking For?
Acing Your Essay
How to Stand Out to U Chicago?
The University of Chicago, more commonly known as UChicago by its students, is one of the top universities in the world. Though not an Ivy League university, UChicago is what we call “Ivy-adjacent;” the school ranks 12th in the nation, which is higher than some Ivies. It’s an intellectual powerhouse that focuses on rigorous inquiry and a unique undergraduate core curriculum. And the campus is located in Hyde Park, Illinois, a neighborhood of Chicago that is considered one of the best (and even coolest!) places to live.
Acceptance standards for UChicago are very competitive. We spoke with Steve Han, former admissions officer at, and graduate of, the University of Chicago, for exclusive insights on what the school is looking for.
When he was an admissions expert at UChicago, Han interviewed senior applicants and read/made decisions on 3,000+ applications. As a Crimson strategist, he works one on one with students on their college application journey. Students who have worked with our strategists and other education experts have gained admission to top colleges at a rate of more than 4.5 times that of other applicants — an amazing success rate.
An Interview with Steve Han, U Chicago FAO & Crimson Senior Strategist
It is quite difficult to get into UChicago, and becoming more competitive every year. As with most select schools, the university receives far more qualified applicants than it is able to accept.
According to former UChicago admissions officer Han, your chances of getting into a select school like the University of Chicago greatly increase if:
For the class of 2026, the University of Chicago received 37,522 applications and only accepted 2,041 students — that’s an acceptance rate of 5.4%, making it one of the most selective universities in the country.
The table below provides a breakdown of UChicago's acceptance rate over three years. This and other data has been gathered from UChicago’s 2021-22 Common Data Set.
Class of 2024 | Class of 2025 | Class of 2026 | |
---|---|---|---|
Total First-Year Applicants | 34,372 | 37,974 | 37,522 |
Admitted Applicants | 2,511 | 2,450 | 2,041 |
Overall Admission Rate | 7.3% | 6.5% | 5.4% |
UChicago has always been at the forefront of innovative admissions strategies. In 2024, they introduced a new admissions option called the Summer Student Early Notification (SSEN), adding to its already diverse array of early application plans.
The UChicago Summer Student Early Notification (SSEN) option is a recent addition to the university's admissions process. Starting in fall 2024, students who complete any UChicago Pre-College Summer Session Program are eligible to apply through the SSEN option in their final year of high school. This option allows students to apply early and receive a binding decision from UChicago within three weeks of applying.
Eligibility Criteria:
The SSEN option aims to recognize and reward students who have demonstrated a commitment to UChicago through participation in their summer programs. This binding early notification plan not only benefits students by providing an early decision but also helps UChicago by increasing its yield rate.
Check out our blog post for more detailed insights and strategic advice on the SSEN program.
The average high school GPA of admitted students at UChicago is 4.33, which shows that many students came from schools with weighted GPAs.
Around 62% of students had a GPA of 4, about 25% had a GPA of 3.75-3.99, and about 9% had a GPA of 3.50-3.74 — indicating that students who were admitted typically earned mostly A grades with perhaps a few Bs in high school.
UChicago is test-optional and has a “no harm” test policy, meaning you’re not required to take the SAT or ACT in order to apply, but if you do test and score well it can help you.
For the class of 2025, 49% of applicants submitted their SAT scores and 35% submitted an ACT score.
Students who were accepted at the University of Chicago had remarkably high scores on standardized tests, with the majority ranking among the top 1–5% of all test takers in the U.S.
25th Percentile | 75th Percentile | |
---|---|---|
EBRW | 740 | 780 |
Math | 770 | 800 |
Total | 1510 | 1560 |
25th Percentile | 75th Percentile | |
---|---|---|
English | 34 | 36 |
Math | 31 | 35 |
Total | 33 | 35 |
Even though UChicago is test-optional, Han suggests that you go ahead and take the tests and see how you score, then decide whether your scores will help you.
“It’s just another data point for us to make a decision about you,” he says. “Less data points are not going to hurt you, but more data points are going to help you if they’re in your favor. Look at what the rest of your application is saying. If there are areas of weakness, maybe test scores would help.”
So, take the standardized tests — and take them early rather than later. This way, if you’re unhappy with your scores, you’ll still have time to focus on areas of weakness, get tutoring help, practice, and take the tests again.
Students who’ve been admitted to The University of Chicago have typically taken a challenging and rigorous high school curriculum. The university values demanding coursework, as it shows intellectual curiosity, dedication to academic excellence, and ability to thrive in challenging learning environments.
UChicago doesn’t require specific courses — because it expects that during high school you are going to seek out the most challenging learning available to you in your field of interest.
If your focus is math, you will want to take the most advanced math classes available to you at your school or even look outside your school. This may include courses in statistics, data science, algebra, trigonometry, calculus, and other advanced math classes.
Even non-STEM students can expect that admissions officers will be looking at your course difficulty level.
When it comes to foreign languages, you’ll want to have achieved fourth-year level proficiency.
How this Economics Student got into UChicago
The University of Chicago is looking for academic rigor, intellectual curiosity, and an exuberance for learning that shows up in everything you do. By seeking out students who show an innate love of learning, the university is building a community of passionate individuals who are capable of critical thinking and eager to engage in rigorous academic pursuits.
Showing academic rigor is important, because first and foremost, you are applying to be a student, says Han. The rigor of your high school coursework can signify what your personal contribution to the campus environment would be and whether you would thrive there.
But the University of Chicago is also looking for something beyond pure grades and scores. Here are four more things that need to stand out on your application:
With 62.45% of the Class of 2026 at UChicago having a GPA of 4.0, it is evident that the university values high academic achievement as an indicator of an applicant's potential for success.
But the admissions team at UChicago is looking for something beyond this. They want to know if you have a true love of learning.
Admissions officers will look at not only what courses you are taking in class and in school but also outside of school.
And you’ll want to maximize AP courses. Although AP courses are not required to get into UChicago, taking them is a way to demonstrate the rigor of your studies.
For students whose high schools don’t offer AP courses, there are online programs that do. Crimson Global Academy (CGA) is accredited by the College Board to offer the Advanced Placement (AP) curriculum.
Because UChicago is building a student body that is academically accomplished and genuinely invested in learning and personal development, admissions officers are looking for students who demonstrate passion and curiosity in their pursuits.
Your passion and commitment can also be revealed through extracurriculars, whether it’s mastering a musical instrument, participating in competitions, working to better your community, or showing leadership.
He is strongly in favor of pursuing what Crimson Education calls a capstone project, or passion project.
For example, if your passion is coding, he suggests, think of how you can use coding for good, like teaching coding for free to students who don’t otherwise have access to it.
One of his students used her coding experience to teach cyber security lessons to older people at nursing homes, showing them how to lock their phone as well as how to tell when things are spam or scams. That’s using personal talent for the greater good.
As a university renowned for intellectual rigor, UChicago expects students to be able to think analytically. The school uses Socratic learning — a method developed by the Greek philosopher Socrates that promotes critical thinking. Typically, a teacher poses thought-provoking questions and students engage by asking their own questions, of themselves and one another, probing to get at underlying beliefs that may or may not be true.
Having one’s underlying thought process continually challenged isn’t for everyone. Sitting with uncertainty and not being handed “the facts'' can be discomforting for some. So can having to poke holes in the thinking of others. The university is looking for students who approach this kind of intellectual give and take with gusto.
On your application, the place to show critical thinking is in your essays.
Another thing that UChicago admissions officers are considering is how you would fit into the campus culture. Will you resonate with UChicago's unique values and scholarly environment, where students can develop, learn, and positively challenge one another?
Socratic learning is a dialogue among students, where the “answer” typically isn’t immediately identifiable. Does it energize you to work through complexity, to have your thinking challenged by others, and to challenge others’ thinking?
If you thrive in this kind of learning environment, it could indicate a good fit.
So how do you show that?
Recommendation letters — typically written by teachers, counselors, or mentors — can provide valuable insights into your character, work ethic, and potential for success in a challenging academic environment. They offer an outside perspective on your strengths, accomplishments, and personal growth that may not otherwise be evident from your application.
Your essays provide an opportunity to show fit, beginning with the first thing you write: your personal statement.
Describe a time when you felt like you understood something very well, but then something happened that made you challenge your own beliefs. Write about what you believed then and what you believe now, and describe the thought process that got you here.
Another essay that provides an opportunity for you to show fit is your answer to the “why UChicago?” prompt. Some applicants might breeze right through and give a rote answer, not understanding how this question pertains to fit.
As an exercise of imagination, fast forward in your mind to a time in the future after you’ve been accepted at UChicago. You’re now living on campus, making friends, and attending classes. In your wildest dreams what is your day-to-day like? Who are your friends? What are you studying? What great things are you learning?
Share your thoughts and dreams for what your life would be like as a UChicago student. And make it very specific. “We like to know that you’ve thought it through and aren’t just copy-pasting another school’s ‘Why’ essay,” says Han.
If you’ve done the self-work to really understand your own “why” when writing your personal statement, that soul searching is going to pay off. Because your “why” goes hand in hand with “why UChicago.”
Why you and why UChicago? If you can tie the two together, you’ll be showing the admissions team the thing they most want to see.
UChicago is known for quirky essay prompts, so try to have fun with them. As essays are where you reveal the real you, approach your essay more as you would a creative writing assignment than an academic paper.
There’s no external metric of success to show Passion. You have to get creative and make your essay personal, which will also make it memorable.
Han loves coming across the unexpected in an essay — something that wouldn’t be revealed in just a list of your activities. His favorite UChicago essay was written by a stem-focused student, whose application showed a lot of research, math, and sciences.
Finally, when you’ve finished drafting your essay, Han offers a trick for making sure that you’ve represented the real you: imagine taking your name off the essay and dropping it on the floor at your school. Would your friends who pick it up and read it be able to tell who wrote it?
How Max Got into UChicago to study Literature and Physics
Now that you understand what it takes to get into the University of Chicago, let’s revisit four key ways to stand out among other applicants and greatly increase your chances of acceptance.
UChicago admissions officers want to see a love of learning for learning’s sake. They will view your entire application holistically — from the courses you took to your summer instruction to extracurriculars. Be sure that your application demonstrates that you’re a person who goes above and beyond to seek additional learning about the things you care about and that you don’t confine yourself to what's easiest to access around you.
Socratic learning involves lively discourse, debate, and critical thinking. Be sure that your application showcases that you're someone who can think analytically. Use your essays to show rather than tell about times in your classes when you actively participated to move a lesson forward.
UChicago has a reputation for quirkiness. Just understand that you don’t have to twist yourself into a pretzel to be unique. You are already unique in your passions, your curiosity, and the things you care about. Just reveal the real you.
Finally, show why you’re a good match with the school.
Navigating the intricate and competitive admissions process of the University of Chicago can be daunting. However, with insights from experts like Steve Han and the tailored support offered by Crimson Education, you can significantly increase your chances of acceptance. By focusing on demonstrating intellectual vitality, a passion for learning, and a strong cultural fit with UChicago, you can craft an application that stands out.
Crimson Education’s proven strategies and personalized guidance have helped countless students achieve their dreams of attending top-tier institutions, including UChicago. Our team of former admissions officers and experienced strategists is dedicated to helping you maximize every aspect of your application, from academic performance to extracurricular involvement and essay writing.
Ready to take the next step towards your UChicago dream? Book a free consultation with Crimson Education today to receive a comprehensive application profile analysis. Discover how our tailored support can help you achieve your college admission goals and set you on the path to success.
Book your free consultation now and start your journey to UChicago with Crimson Education.
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