Matched perfectly with our DreamBig.Dream Realistic! career development program, this workbook will help you get all the essential pieces of the Notre Dame puzzle in place, so that you can achieve your goal of getting into ND.
For Notre Dame students, the first year is all about finding your fit. In order to find that fit and make the most of your time at ND, you have to be in it for the long haul. Notre Dame’s size and student-to-teacher ratio allow Notre Dame to be one of the more intimate universities in the nation. In addition to class sizes that are smaller than most universities, Notre Dame provides its student body with a unique sense of community through a number of programs such as athletics and performing arts.
Are you a student applying to get into Notre Dame with fewer than 1500 on your SAT or ACT? If yes, then this is your guide on how to get into Notre Dame. This book contains all the secrets and tips that can help you score well on the test. Written by an expert in this field who gained admission into Notre Dame, it has clear instructions of how to prepare for the test, what to do when taking the test and after taking it so as to increase your chances of getting accepted by ND.
Notre Dame is one of the top universities in the United States, and applications are extremely competitive. This guide reveals how to get accepted into this prestigious university.
The University of Notre Dame acceptance rate for first-year students was 14.5 percent in 2010. This meant that for every 100 students who applied to Notre Dame, about 50 got in. Applying to Notre Dame is relatively simple, but figuring out the best way to apply can be complicated.
If you’re trying to get into the University of Notre Dame, you’ve come to the right place! I know, because I was in your shoes. I was a first generation college applicant from a low-income family and didn’t know anything about college applications (like most people). But don’t feel bad, you’re not alone. The great thing about that is everyone was a first generation college student at some point in time.
What are the Secrets to Getting Into Notre Dame? I’m about to tell you.
Notre Dame has always been a university for high-achieving students. In 1986, the home of the Fighting Irish admitted 43% of applicants. This group, the Class of 1990, sported an average SAT score of 1200; 75% earned a place in the top 10% of their high school cohort. By the turn of the new millennium, Notre Dame’s acceptance rate fell to 35%; by 2010, it was 28%; and by 2022, it had reached an all-time low of 13%.
Given that the process of gaining acceptance into Notre Dame becomes increasingly challenging with each passing year, this blog will tell you everything you need to know about:
- Notre Dame’s Class of 2026 acceptance rate
- Notre Dame’s REA acceptance rate
- SAT, ACT, and class rank of accepted applicants
- Admissions trends from the Class of 2026
- The demographics of current Notre Dame undergraduates
- Yield rate
- How Notre Dame’s admissions officers evaluate candidates
- Tips for applying to Notre Dame
- Notre Dame supplemental essays
- How to assess whether applying to Notre Dame is even worth the $75 application fee
Notre Dame: Acceptance Rate – Class of 2026
The Fighting Irish received 26,504 applications for its 2022-23 freshman class and accepted 3,412 students for an acceptance rate of 13%, lower than the 15% acceptance rate for the Class of 2025 or the 19% mark for the Class of 2024.
Notre Dame: Restrictive Early Action (REA) Acceptance Rate
Out of 9,687 REA applications received, 17% were accepted, 17% were deferred, and 66% were rejected. This acceptance rate of 17% was significantly higher than the acceptance rate in the regular round.
Notre Dame Admissions – SAT, ACT, and Class Rank
Among the enrolled Class of 2024, the middle-50% SAT range was 1410-1550 and the ACT range was 32-35. In terms of class rank, 91% of freshmen ranked in the top decile of their high school class, while 97% finished in the top quartile.
Admissions Trends & Notes – (Class of 2026)
- 14% of Class of 2026 admits are legacy students; up from 12% two years ago.
- 33% of admitted 2022-23 freshmen applied without an SAT or ACT score.
- There were 2,198 high schools represented in the admitted student pool.
- The admitted Class of 2026 was made up of individuals from all 50 states and 95 countries around the globe.
- 41% of accepted students identified as students of color.
Who Actually Gets Into Notre Dame?
Let’s look at the demographics of current undergraduates:
Geographically, students accepted into the Class of 2026 included the following breakdown:
- Northeast: 21%
- Southeast: 15%
- Midwest: 12%
- Midwest-Plains: 17%
- West/Southwest: 23%
- Outside the United States: 12%
As with all selective colleges, those from lower-populated, more remote areas of the country (e.g. Wyoming, South Dakota, Idaho) enjoy a boost to their admissions prospects.
Looking at ethnic identity, the breakdown of the accepted Class of 2026 was as follows:
- Asian American: 11%
- Hispanic: 15%
- African American: 14%
- Native American: 1%
The greatest number of total international students are citizens of:
- China
- Mexico
- Brazil
- Canada
- India
- South Korea
The breakdown by gender of all current undergraduate students reveals slightly more men than women, a rarity in today’s postsecondary landscape (outside of engineering-heavy schools).
- Male: 52%
- Female: 48%
The admitted Class of 2026 hailed from the following types of high schools:
- Public: 47%
- Catholic: 33%
- Private/Charter: 19%
The Majority of People Who Get Accepted Choose to Attend
The yield rate — the percentage of accepted students who elect to enroll, divided by the total number of students who are admitted — was 58% last year. For comparison, schools like Stanford, Harvard were over 80%, and the University of Chicago, MIT, and Yale all sported 70%+ yield rates. Notre Dame finished ahead of elite private institutions such as Vanderbilt (40%), Rice (39%), and Carnegie Mellon (42%).
How Notre Dame Rates Applicants
There are only two factors that Notre Dame ranks as being “very important” to their admissions process: rigor of secondary school record and character/personal qualities. Rating as “important” are: class rank, GPA, essays, recommendations, extracurricular activities, talent/ability, first-generation status, legacy status, and volunteer experience. They “consider” an applicant’s religious affiliation, racial/ethnic status, work experience, standardized test scores, and level of demonstrated interest.
In the words of Notre Dame admissions officers themselves: “The most competitive applicants to Notre Dame are well-rounded, so we take a well-rounded, or holistic, view of students’ applications. That holistic review means that admissions counselors at Notre Dame evaluate both the academic and non-academic components of the application.”
The holistic review conducted by the university also dives into a student’s unique circumstances. The “context of a student’s application is also incredibly important to the admissions process at Notre Dame. The context revolves around where the student goes to high school and what opportunities are available to a student. Context means not comparing different schools and different applicants from those different schools, however.”
