Macalester College GPA requirements & acceptance rate
Average GPA, acceptance rate and SAT/ACT ranges for Macalester College, all from its own Common Data Set 2025-26, plus a quick estimate of your chances.
What are my chances at Macalester College?
Enter your unweighted GPA to see an estimate.
What GPA do you need to get into Macalester College?
Macalester College’s own Common Data Set (2025-26) does not report an average high school GPA (item C12 is blank), so there is no official average to target and none is shown here. Use the acceptance rate and test-score ranges below as your guide, and focus on a rigorous course load and strong grades. Source: Macalester College Common Data Set 2025-26.
Macalester College acceptance rate
Macalester College’s Common Data Set 2025-26 (item C1) reports 8,819 first-time, first-year applicants for fall 2025 and 2,481 admitted, an acceptance rate of 28%. That makes Macalester College selective — competitive. GPA is only one piece: Macalester College also weighs the rigor of your courses, essays, recommendations and activities, and test scores where it considers them.
Macalester College SAT and ACT scores
The middle 50% of Macalester College’s enrolled first-year students who submitted scores had SAT 1350–1480 and ACT 29.75–33 (25th to 75th percentile, Common Data Set 2025-26, item C9). A score at or above the 75th percentile puts you in the top quarter of enrolled students who reported one.
| Test | 25th | 50th | 75th | Submitted |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| SAT composite | 1350 | 1420 | 1480 | 35% |
| ACT composite | 29.75 | 31 | 33 | 24% |
Macalester College admissions at a glance
| First-year applicants (fall 2025) | 8,819 |
| Admitted | 2,481 |
| Acceptance rate | 28% |
| Average high school GPA | Not reported |
| Submitted a GPA | — |
| SAT composite, 25th–75th | 1350–1480 |
| ACT composite, 25th–75th | 29.75–33 |
| Common Data Set year | 2025-26 |
Source: Macalester College Common Data Set 2025-26 · Macalester College’s Common Data Set page, items C1 (applicants and admits), C9 (SAT/ACT) and C12 (GPA), read October 2026. Every figure on this page comes from the college’s own Common Data Set; none is from a third-party website.
Estimate your odds
The estimator above starts from Macalester College’s acceptance rate and moves it up or down with your GPA and SAT. It is a rough guide, not a prediction: it does not see your essays, course rigor or major. To plan the grades you need, try the college GPA calculator and the target GPA planner.
How to strengthen your application
Beyond the GPA range, focus on what you can still move: take the most challenging courses your school offers, keep your grades trending upward, prepare for the SAT or ACT if Macalester College considers them, and write essays that show genuine fit.