Vanderbilt University, ranked #15 by Forbes America’s Top College, is synonymous with academic excellence and a spirit of collaboration. With more than 7000 undergraduate students studying various disciplines and exploring their interests, the university boasts of nurturing the changemakers of tomorrow.
Vanderbilt alumni include “6 Nobel Laureates, 27 Rhodes Scholars, 1 Grammy Winner, and trailblazers across multiple fields.” With a world-class faculty, highly cited researchers, and award-winning historians and musicians to scientists and authors, Vanderbilt University offers a culture for innovation and discovery. Admission to this university is difficult given that the overall acceptance rate is in single digits.
This blog delves into the acceptance rates at Vanderbilt, exploring trends and factors influencing these rates and providing strategies to improve your chances of acceptance.
Changing Trends
For the class of 2028, Vanderbilt received a total of 5835 applications in their Early Decision rounds and had an admit rate of 15.2%. The regular decision application numbers were 41,336, and the university admitted 1,512, a mere 3.7%. The admission rate stood at 5.1% across cycles.
In contrast, the Regular Decision admissions plan for the Class of 2027 saw 41,501 applicants, out of which only 1,763 students were admitted—an admit rate of 4.2%. Regular Decision applications for the class of 2026 were 41,610, while the number of students admitted was 1,964 (4.7%), which indicates that the acceptance rates are on a steady decline, but their yield rate (number of students who enroll) has consistently increased.
Geographical Diversity
Vanderbilt’s students come from diverse regions. Students came from 48 states in the U.S., representing 59 citizenships. The international cohort comprised 13.4% of students, and there were 18% of first-generation students and 10.6% hailed from rural or small towns.
Standardized Tests
Vanderbilt continues to remain Test-Optional and exams will not be required for students applying to enter the university for fall 2025, 2026, and 2027 and Ivy league acceptance rate. However, students who wish to report their scores do so. We advise our students to submit all their scores to the university since Vanderbilt will superscore both the ACT and SAT.
Interestingly, if students submit both ACT and SAT scores, the university will consider the best score. As per the data released by the university, nearly 61.1% of students who were admitted had submitted their scores. This highlights that the majority of the students admitted had reported their scores.
A diverse student body
Vanderbilt’s Class of 2028 saw a 14% increase in its share of white students while witnessing a drop of 47% and 27% in its shares of Black and Latinx students, respectively. The share of Asian American and Pacific Islander students dropped by 3%, while that of students identifying as two or more races dropped by 10%.
Vanderbilt’s Factbook lists the number of male engineering students as 817 and female engineering students as 681—meaning men make up 55% of all undergraduates, both full-time and part-time, in the School of Engineering.
Competitiveness
Vanderbilt University has an extremely selective admission process, admitting students demonstrating academic rigor, leadership, commitment to the community, innovation in technology, or initiation of projects creating impact. Nearly 94% of the students admitted are in the top 10 percent of their graduating class with high SAT and ACT scores. They are academically accomplished. They shine through their extracurriculars and showcase experiences that are unique and meaningful events. In short, all admitted students have either received an honor or held significant leadership posts in their high school.
The admissions officer upholds the selectivity of the university but assures prospective students not to get intimidated. Since the university follows a holistic approach to evaluating students, there are innumerable ways that students can showcase these traits.
Vanderbilt believes that cost should not be a hurdle to education. Hence, every year the University provides substantial scholarship and financial aid to those who deserve.
As a prospective student, if you are planning to apply to any of the selective colleges in the U.S., it is important to start the process early.
Working with study abroad consultants, overseas education consultants, or, as more commonly known, college counselors, can help you plan and make those high school years count. We can help you with your college application process. Ivy Central offers exceptional focus to help you prepare for college admissions throughout the high school years. Start today!
