Bates College
What Bates College's own numbers say, from its Common Data Set 2025-26.
See your odds at Bates College →All 7 insights at Bates College PRO
International applicants face 4.7× tougher odds at Bates College.
3.2% of international applicants are admitted, against 15% overall.
Bates College's ED number is inflated.
34% of Early Decision applicants get in, but that pool includes recruited athletes and legacies, admitted at far higher rates. Without them, our estimate is about 27%. Everyone else: 13%.
At Bates College, women get in 1.3× as often.
Women are admitted at 17%, men at 13%.
Bates College's waitlist is a long shot: 4.9%.
39 of 795 students who stayed on the list got in.
At most 21% of Bates College's first-years sent an SAT or ACT.
13% sent an SAT and 8% an ACT (some sent both), so most enrolled without a score. SAT middle 50% among those who sent: 1325–1510.
65% of Bates College's class is filled in Early Decision.
That leaves about 175 seats for 8,711 applicants outside ED.
Bates College meets 100% of need.
The average need-based grant is $59,701 a year, against tuition of $73,760.
8 more things the data says PRO
- After ED, 175 of 493 seats were left for 8,711 other applicants: about one seat for every 50.
- ED applicants were admitted at 34%, against 12.8% for everyone else: 2.6 times the rate.
- Only 13% of enrolled first-years sent an SAT score, so its SAT range describes a minority of the class.
- Early Decision filled about 65% of the 2025-26 first-year class, more than 67% of similar colleges.
- It reports meeting 100% of financial need for first-years who have need.
- 795 students stayed on the waitlist and 39 were admitted from it (4.9%).
- Men were admitted at a lower rate: 16.8% for women against 12.8% for men.
- Applications rose 26% from 2018-19 to 2025-26 (7,685 to 9,660).
What students say PRO
From students' own posts on Reddit and admissions forums: self-reported, unverified, never used in your odds.
- Of 16 admits who named a round, 14 applied Regular Decision and 2 Early Action.
- About 8 admits did research or a field-related internship, such as labs, museum fieldwork or an environmental project.
- About 7 admits did debate, mock trial or Model UN, several as captain or president.
- About 5 admits were serious athletes, with swim, volleyball or golf captaincies.
- About 5 admits were published or serious writers, with books, literary magazines or health writing.
- Students report Bates waitlist offers swing from none to a small share of the list, and advise a short letter naming Bates as first choice.
- Students found the roughly 250-word essay tight and said it asked them to tie in professors, classes and programs.
- Families report Bates aid offers lower than hoped, though one appeal reportedly cut a family's gap by about $7,000.
Every number, year by year: Bates College on Open College Data. Something wrong? Suggest a correction.