College of Charleston Admissions Process

Every year, our admission decisions become harder because more and more top high school students designate the College as their number one choice. With such talented, creative and engaged students, it's no surprise that U.S. News & World Report ranked us No. 4 among southern master's-level public universities and named us an "Up and Coming School to Watch" in 2011. College of Charleston students arrive as world travelers, independent thinkers and proven leaders who have demonstrated a deep commitment to serving others.

When you apply, the College of Charleston admissions committee looks at many things in your application, including your academic preparation, GPA, rank in class, SAT/ACT scores, talents and leadership qualifications. We want you to do well here, so we will review your high school curriculum, GPA, rank and test scores first. Leadership, extra-curricular activities and other achievements are important, but are of secondary importance in our decision-making process.

Here is the mid-range student profile (where the middle 50 percent of our accepted students fall) for our primary admission factors for the Class of 2010. If you take a test more than once, we only consider the highest score of each section across all of your exams.

• A/B unweighted GPA average
• 1070-1230 SAT for in-state students (critical reading and math only). 1140-1280 SAT for out-of-state students (critical reading and math only).
• 23-27 ACT for in-state students. 25-29 ACT range for out-of-state students
• Class rank in the top 20 percent
• Consistent academic achievement in the A/B range
• Strong high school curriculum (above our required curriculum)