Bates College
Lewiston, Maine
- Private nonprofit
- City
- 1,760 undergrads
- Admit rate
- 13%Source: College Scorecard
- Average net price
- $27,390per year, after grantsSource: College Scorecard
- Graduation rate
- 89%within 6 yearsSource: College Scorecard
- Median earnings
- $98,37310 years after startingSource: College Scorecard
What's special
Bates has a four-week Short Term from late April through May, when students take just one class.
Bates guarantees on-campus housing to all students for all four years.
Source: Frequently Asked Questions | Admission - Bates College
Getting in
- Admit rate
- 13%About 1 in 10 applicants get in.Source: College Scorecard
- Test policy
- Test-optionalScores are considered if you send them, but not required.Source: College Scorecard
- SAT (middle 50%)
- 1420–1530Reading + math, enrolled first-years who sent scoresSource: College Scorecard
- ACT (middle 50%)
- 31–34Composite, enrolled first-years who sent scoresSource: College Scorecard
From Bates College's own report
These numbers come from the school's Common Data Set for 2025–26, a standard report colleges publish about their applicants and first-year students. Open the report.
- Admit rate in this report
- 15%1,433 admitted of 9,660 first-year applicants
- Early decision admit rate
- 34%318 admitted of 949. Early decision is binding: you commit to attend if admitted.
- Off the wait list
- 5%39 admitted of 795 who stayed on the wait list (2,103 were offered a spot)
- ACT, middle 50%
- 31–34First-years who sent scores
Early applicants often include recruited athletes and students who knew this was their first choice, so a higher early rate doesn't mean applying early raises any one student's odds by that much.
What the admissions office says it weighs
Very important
- How challenging your classes were
- GPA
- Class rank
- Essay
- Recommendations
- Activities
- A talent or ability
- Character and personal qualities
Important
- Being first in your family to go to college
- Where you live
- Living in the state
- Showing interest in the school
Considered
- Test scores
- Interview
- Family who went there (legacy)
- Volunteer work
- Work experience
Not considered
- Religious affiliation
Where you'd stand
Enter your numbers to see where they'd fall among Bates College's first-year students. This isn't a prediction: it shows how you compare with students who enrolled, using the sources linked below.
Leave out anything you don't have. Your numbers stay in this browser and fill in on other school pages. See my list
Sources: Bates College Common Data Set 2025–26; College Scorecard. Test ranges describe enrolled students who sent scores.
What it really costs
Most families pay less than the sticker price. Net price is what's left after grants and scholarships.
- Average net price
- $27,390full-time first-years who got grant aidSource: College Scorecard
- Total cost of attendance
- $87,520sticker price incl. housing, per yearSource: College Scorecard
- Tuition
- $70,146Source: College Scorecard
After you enroll
- Graduation rate
- 89%first-time, full-time students finishing within 6 yearsSource: College Scorecard
- Came back for year two
- 91%full-time first-year studentsSource: College Scorecard
- Median earnings
- $98,37310 years after starting, for students who got federal aidSource: College Scorecard
- Median debt at graduation
- $12,250federal loans, students who finishedSource: College Scorecard
Students
- Undergraduates
- 1,760Source: College Scorecard
- Receive Pell grants
- 14%a sign of economic diversitySource: College Scorecard
- First-generation students
- 15%parents didn't go beyond high schoolSource: College Scorecard
Similar schools
Similar, and easier to get into
- University of New England Biddeford, ME — admits 92%
- Kenyon College Gambier, OH — admits 31%
- Macalester College Saint Paul, MN — admits 29%
- Muhlenberg College Allentown, PA — admits 72%
Also worth a look
- Hamilton College Clinton, NY — admits 14%
- Washington and Lee University Lexington, VA — admits 14%
- Colorado College Colorado Springs, CO — admits 18%
- Claremont McKenna College Claremont, CA — admits 10%
- Carleton College Northfield, MN — admits 20%
- Haverford College Haverford, PA — admits 12%
Where these numbers come from
Every number on this page comes from the U.S. Department of Education's College Scorecard page for Bates College, which draws on what the school reports to the federal government and on federal student aid and tax records. We last pulled the data on November 4, 2026. Different measures cover different years; here's how each one works.
Spot something wrong? Report a data error.