Understanding the process: Admissions statistics

We love data at MIT. Reliable data, properly contextualized, can help people understand complex systems and make informed decisions. So, a few years ago, we began publishing our own admissions statistics, which went beyond the stats already contributed to the MIT’s standard Common Data Set.

Holistic admissions

It is important to understand that these numbers do not determine our admissions process, but they are the result of our process. In our holistic admissions process, we consider quantifications like test scores, but we also care deeply about factors like your match with MIT. Qualitative characteristics like these are much harder to quantify and are therefore not included in the tables below, despite their centrality to our process.

The most important thing to remember is that at MIT we admit people, not numbers. With that in mind, here are some numbers about the people we admit.

Admissions statistics for the Class of 2028

General

First-year applications	28,232
First-year admits	1,284
Percentage admitted	4.5%

Early Action

Early Action applicants	12,563
Early Action admits	661
Deferred to Regular Action	8,051
Deferred applicants admitted during Regular Action	206

Regular Action

Regular Action applicants	15,669
Total considered during Regular Action (including deferred students)	23,720
Regular Action admits (including deferred students)	614
Offered a place on the wait list	590

Wait list

Applicants offered a place on the wait list	590
Number admitted from the wait list	9

U.S. citizens/permanent residents

Applied	21,515
Admitted	1,155

International students

Applied	6,717
Admitted	129

Middle 50% score range of admitted students (25th and 75th percentiles)

Test	Range
SAT Math	[780, 800]
SAT ERW	[740, 780]
ACT Math	[35, 36]
ACT Reading	[34, 36]
ACT English	[35, 36]
ACT Science	[34, 36]
ACT Composite	[35, 36]