Ivy League / Common Data Set
Ivy League Admit GPA Medians
Updated 15 May 2026
Ivy League admit GPAs concentrate above 3.9 unweighted per Common Data Set reports. CDS Section C7, which reports the high school GPA distribution of admitted students, shows that 90% or more of admits at every Ivy fall in the 3.75-4.0 band. Each Ivy is sourced individually below; verify the current cycle directly with the school's published CDS.
What the Common Data Set tells us
The Common Data Set is a voluntary disclosure standard maintained by College Board, Peterson's, and US News for higher education institutions. CDS Section C reports admissions data: C7 covers the high school GPA distribution of admitted students; C9 covers test score percentiles; C12 covers acceptance rate and yield. Most US universities publish their CDS annually on their institutional research website.
For the Ivy League, the C7 distribution is the most useful GPA datum because the schools do not publish a single median admit GPA. Instead, C7 reports the share of admits in each GPA band (3.75-4.0, 3.50-3.74, 3.25-3.49, etc.). At every Ivy, the 3.75-4.0 band contains the substantial majority of admits.
Ivy admit GPA reference table
| Ivy | CDS-reported admit GPA | Admit rate |
|---|---|---|
| Harvard University | 3.95+ unweighted typical | 3.4% |
| Yale University | 3.95+ unweighted typical | 4.5% |
| Princeton University | 3.95+ unweighted typical | 5.7% |
| Columbia University | 3.95+ unweighted typical | 3.9% |
| University of Pennsylvania | 3.90+ unweighted typical | 5.9% |
| Cornell University | 3.85+ unweighted typical | 7.9% |
| Brown University | 3.90+ unweighted typical | 5.4% |
| Dartmouth College | 3.90+ unweighted typical | 6.4% |
Sourced from each school's published Common Data Set, most recent available cycle. Each Ivy publishes its CDS at its institutional research office or admissions office website. Verify current cycle directly.
Recalculated GPA vs reported GPA
Ivy admissions readers do not use the GPA value printed on the applicant's transcript directly. Each school recalculates the GPA using an internal rubric. The recalculation typically strips electives (PE, art, study hall) and other non-academic courses, normalises weighting systems across districts, and applies course-rigour adjustments. The recalculated GPA may be materially different from the transcript GPA in either direction.
For an applicant with mostly regular-track courses and a high unweighted GPA, the recalculation can yield a lower effective figure because the rigour signal is missing. For an applicant with mostly AP / IB courses and a slightly lower unweighted GPA (because AP courses are graded harder), the recalculation can yield a higher effective figure because the rigour signal is strong.
The published CDS C7 figure is the recalculated GPA where the school reports it that way, or the unweighted GPA in the form the school chose to report. The Ivies are not uniform in how they report; some report unweighted only, some report both unweighted and weighted. Always check the CDS notes for the specific school.
Holistic review caveat
Every Ivy uses holistic review. This means the GPA, however calculated, is one factor among many: essays, letters of recommendation, extracurricular leadership, demonstrated interest, demographic context, and individual circumstances all contribute. The published CDS C7 figure tells you what admitted students presented as GPA, not what GPA value would have guaranteed their admission. Many applicants with 4.0 unweighted GPAs are rejected each cycle at every Ivy; many applicants with sub-3.9 GPAs are admitted with strong compensating factors.
The functional implication for applicants: a 3.9+ unweighted GPA places the applicant in the academically competitive pool at the Ivy tier. It does not guarantee admission. It is necessary, not sufficient. Conversely, a sub-3.9 GPA does not automatically disqualify an applicant; it does mean the rest of the application has to carry more weight. The most common rejected-applicant profile at the Ivy tier is a 4.0 GPA with strong test scores but unremarkable extracurriculars or unmemorable essays; the most common admitted-with-lower-GPA profile is a strong personal narrative, distinctive achievements, or significant institutional priority (recruited athlete, first-generation, geographic balance).
Differences across the Ivy League
The Ivies are similar in admit-GPA concentration but differ in some structural details. Cornell has the largest admit rate (around 8%) and the most internal variation across its constituent colleges (Engineering, ILR, CALS, Architecture, A&S each have somewhat different admit profiles). Penn has school-by-school variation as well: Wharton admit GPA medians sit higher than College of Arts and Sciences in some cycles. Dartmouth has the smallest cohort and reports the most concentrated admit-GPA distribution. Yale and Stanford (often grouped with the Ivies in "HYPSM" conversations even though Stanford is not formally Ivy) are the most selective at the GPA level.
The strategic implication for applicants: targeting the Ivy with the largest internal variation that matches your strengths can improve outcome odds. Cornell's Industrial and Labor Relations school admits different applicants than Cornell's College of Engineering; choosing the right college within Cornell can matter as much as choosing among Ivies.
Beyond the Ivy
Several non-Ivy institutions have similar or higher admit-GPA medians: Stanford, MIT, Caltech, the University of Chicago, Duke, Northwestern, Johns Hopkins, Vanderbilt, Rice. These schools are often grouped with the Ivies as "Top 20" for admissions difficulty. Their admit GPA distributions are functionally similar to the Ivies': 90%+ of admits in the 3.75-4.0 band per CDS C7.
For the analogous public-school tier, see the top public flagships page. For the liberal-arts-college equivalent, see the top LAC admit GPA page. Each tier has different admit GPA dynamics and different recalculation conventions.
Educational reference. Not admissions advice. Verify each school's current Common Data Set directly at the school's institutional research office.