How To Get Into Wellesley : Average SAT Scores

You want to be like Hillary Rodham Clinton, Madeleine Albright, Diane Sawyer, Madame Chiang Kai-Shek, Nora Ephron, and Desiree Rogers, right? These are just a few of the well-known Wellesley College graduates.

Wellesley was established in 1870 and is today regarded as one of the best liberal arts universities in the nation. A part of the Seven Sisters and continues to be a women’s college. Each year, women from more than 80 different nations enroll in this prominent university in Wellesley, Massachusetts, to complete their higher education.

If you also want to enter this prestigious college, you must comprehend the ins and outs of the admissions process. The minimum Wellesley SAT score and ACT score and what Wellesley is searching for in its applicants.

How to Get into Wellesley? 

In the 2020–2021 admissions cycle, 1,343 out of the 6,581 applicants were accepted, yielding a 20.4% acceptance percentage. At the same time, the acceptance percentage for Early Decision was 40%.

Besides Wellesley’s low acceptance percentage, your admission prospects depend on your particular profile. In addition to receiving free advice on enhancing your profile, you can also use the college board admissions calculator to define your chances of admittance better.

Average Academic Background of Selected Wellesley Students’

GPA

The typical GPA of admitted students is not made public by Wellesley. However, it would help if you tried to enroll in the most difficult classes your school offers and earn A’s in all subjects.

SAT/ACT Score

The average 50% range of the first-year class at Wellesley, 68% of whom submitted their SAT results, was 1350–1520. However, with 41% of respondents providing their ACT scores, the average 50% range was 31–34.

Typical Wellesley SAT Scores

Wellesley College’s typical SAT score is 1369.

The Wellesley SAT scores of half of the accepted students range from 1360 to 1530. More than 25% of accepted students had SAT scores of 1530 or higher. The SAT score among the lowest 25% of accepted students is less than 1360.

For admission to Wellesley College, your SAT score must be at least 1360. Even with an SAT score below 1360, you may still be in, but your application must be exceptional.

The typical Wellesley SAT score for the Math and Reading and Writing sections ranges from 670 to 770 and 690 to 760.

New SAT Score	25th Percentile	Midpoint	75th Percentile
Reading and Writing Score	690	730	760
Math Score	670	730	770
Cumulative SAT Score	1360	1460	1530

Typical Wellesley ACT Scores

Wellesley College’s typical ACT score is 33.

The ACT scores of 50% of the accepted students to Wellesley College range from 27 to 33. The top 25% of accepted students have an ACT score of at least 33.

If the rest of your application is strong and your ACT score is 33, you have a solid chance of getting into Wellesley College. The ACT score of the lowest 25% of accepted students is less than 27.

Your ACT score must be at least 27 to have a chance of being admitted to Wellesley College. Math ACT scores for Wellesley College often range from 27 to 32, and reading and writing ACT scores typically range from 30 to 33.

New ACT Score	25th Percentile	Midpoint	75th Percentile
Reading Score	31	33	34
Writing Score	8	9	10
Math Score	27	30	32
Cumulative ACT Score	27	30	33

Class Rank

85.13% of students who submitted their class rank were in the top 10% of their high school graduating classes, and 100% were among the top 25%.

What does Wellesley Actively Look For?

According to Lauralyn Lin of CollegeVine, “Wellesley students are typically ambitious, passionate, and considerate people who care profoundly about their surroundings, like to stay connected, and are ready to bring about change or make some form of influence on the world.” “As a result, you should show character and enthusiasm, emphasize community outreach and advocacy, and construct a narrative of being committed, ambitious, and likely to achieve big achievements for the individuals and issues you care about.”

Students with strong opinions and the ability to listen to others are sought after by Wellesley. It seeks those willing to take chances and want to fit in. After all, connections are the foundation of the college.

Wellesley employs a comprehensive admissions process, similar to other extremely selective schools, taking into account both quantitative and qualitative components of applications to truly comprehend the applicant and their capacity to give back to the community.

Anna Young, an assistant director of admission, explains, “I think about a student’s identity when I read their application. What intrigues you about her? Is she curious or daring? Does she look for difficulty? Does she want to take chances? Will she contribute to our community in a meaningful way? What will she contribute to our neighborhood? What is her tale? 

Even though there is no set high school preparation schedule for students, the majority of students have mastered four years of college preparatory work, including History, Writing, Foreign Language, Literature, Math, and Science.  

Application Evaluation Process at Wellesley

These elements are regarded as “extremely important” in the admissions procedure, following Wellesley’s 2020-2021 Common Data Set:

• Academic GPA 
• Discipline Record of Secondary School discipline
• Recommendations (if any)
• Characteristics of personal traits

“Important Elements”:

• Class rank
• Extracurricular activities
• Application Essay
• Talent/Athletic ability

“Considered Elements”:

• Standardized test scores
• Interview
• Alumni/ae relation
• First generation
• State residency
• Geographical residence
• Racial/ethnic status
• Work experience
• Volunteer work
• The interest level of the applicant

“Not Considered Elements”:

• Religious commitment/affiliation

Ways to Improve Your Candidacy of Being Accepted at Wellesley

1. Opt for the most challenging classes that are offered while maintaining at least a high GPA

Although the average GPA of accepted candidates is not made public, Wellesley unquestionably seeks applicants with outstanding academic records. Before considering qualitative aspects, many institutions with this level of selection employ the Academic Index, which includes measures like GPA and test results, to ensure you satisfy the minimum requirements.

To prove that you can handle the requirements of Wellesley’s coursework, you should also enroll in a challenging curriculum. That includes AP or IB classes and honors courses if offered to you.

Check out some recommendations for raising your GPA if your GPA is lower and you’re still in your first year of high school. The ideal approach to raise your Academic Index is to obtain a higher exam result because it will be more challenging to improve your GPA if you are a junior or senior.

2. Target 1520 SAT and 34 ACT scores.

Wellesley is temporarily test-optional due to COVID-19. However, experts advise taking the exam if you can do so without risk because students who submit their scores are more likely to get accepted than those who don’t. Therefore, if your scores are at or above the 25th percentile for accepted students at Wellesley, you should submit them (1350 SAT and 31 ACT).

3. Develop one or more Level 1-2 extracurricular activities (identify your “spike”).

Jordan Peterson, the Wellesley College associate director of admission, asks these questions from its applicants, “Who are you beyond the classroom?” Describe all the fascinating activities you are engaged in! Be specific about the time you dedicate there and what you contribute, whether for family obligations, jobs, clubs, athletics, or volunteer activities. If you write “Art Group,” we won’t know if you sketch once a week to relax or if you lobbied your school board for money to start the club. Therefore, make sure they understand your meaning by explaining it to them properly.

The admissions process gives a lot of significance to your activities. Think of your extracurricular activities in the four tiers, with Tier 1 the most outstanding and rare type and Tier 4 the most common.

You should at least aim for one to two Tier 1-2 activities and a good number of Tier 3–4 activities. Most of your choices should be clustered around one of two specializations to show that you’ve identified a passion you want to pursue in college.

4. Create Interesting Essays

Essays give your candidacy a voice that would not otherwise be heard in the rest of it. 

Wellesley proposes the following guidelines for essay writing:

• Set realistic goals for yourself, keeping in mind that you don’t need “exceptional” experience to produce a great essay.
• Get feedback on multiple draughts that you write.
• Praise yourself internally.

5. Use Early Decision

The overall admissions rate for Wellesley is 20.4%. The ED acceptance rate is at 40%. Given the roughly twice the admit rate, it is obvious that early submission can boost your prospects of admission even when adjusting for profile strength.

However, it’s vital to remember the restrictions of applying ED, such as the fact that the choice is final and binding. If you get admitted using this strategy, you must enroll in classes at Wellesley.

6. Obtain credible recommendations from teachers

At Wellesley, the importance of teacher recommendations in the admissions process is highly valued. Thus, you must carefully consider the teachers you want to approach to complete your appraisal form. Have they become acquainted with you? Have they noticed your progress? Do they have any feedback on your way of learning?

7. Describe your varied background.

Wellesley looks for applicants from a variety of backgrounds. That includes students who are undocumented and DACA recipients, persons of various racial and cultural backgrounds, first-generation college students, and citizens of numerous nations.

The college also states that it will consider applicants’ gender identities when deciding whether to admit them. It includes candidates who were born female but now identify as male and those who were born male but “feel that they belong to the community of women.”

Applications for Wellesley

Deadlines: Important Dates

• Early Decision I: November 1
• Early Decision II: January 1
• Regular Decision: January 8

Application Criteria

• Common Application or Coalition Application
• Wellesley essay supplement
• Two recommendations from teachers
• School Report
• SAT or ACT score (currently optional because of Covid-19)

Elective items (only submit if they are pertinent to your application):

• Athletic supplement
• Arts, music, or theater portfolio

Conclusion

The acceptance rate reveals how demanding the school’s criteria are and how competitive it is.19.5% of applicants are accepted at Wellesley. That means only 20 out of every 100 applications are accepted. It demonstrates how selective the school is. It’s crucial to meet their GPA standards and the minimum Wellesley SAT score and ACT score requirements to surpass their initial filters and demonstrate your academic readiness.