Quad
Western Colorado
U. South Dakota

Key differences on Getting in

  1. 1

    U. South Dakota's yield is 8 pts higher than Western Colorado's

    Yield rate
  2. 2

    Western Colorado's SAT midpoint is 38 points higher than U. South Dakota's

    SAT midpoint
  3. 3

    U. South Dakota admits 99% vs. 100% at Western Colorado

    Acceptance rate

Admissions

Getting in, fall 2024

Acceptance and yield, test score ranges, test policy, and what each college weighs.

The funnel

Acceptance rate
Western Colorado100%
U. South Dakota99%
Applicants
Western Colorado3.1K
U. South Dakota6.4K
Admitted
Western Colorado3.1K
U. South Dakota6.3K
Yield rate
Western Colorado11%
U. South Dakota19%

Quad's selectivity

  • Western ColoradoOpen
  • U. South DakotaOpen

Men and women

Acceptance rate for men and women who applied, where a college reports admissions by sex.

Women admitted
Western Colorado100%
U. South Dakota99%
Men admitted
Western Colorado100%
U. South Dakota98%

Test scores

SAT total,

Western Colorado
1163–1353
U. South Dakota
1125–1315

Axis runs 1000–1600. The dark tick marks the national median midpoint.

ACT composite,

Western Colorado
22–26
U. South Dakota
19–25

Axis runs 15–36. The dark tick marks the national median midpoint.

Submitted SAT
Western Colorado11%
U. South Dakota4%
Submitted ACT
Western Colorado8%
U. South Dakota58%

Test policy

  • Western ColoradoTest-optional
  • U. South DakotaTest-blind

How they read a record

  • Western Colorado

    GPA, the high school record, class rank, and a college-prep program are considered.

  • U. South Dakota

    The high school record and a college-prep program are required; GPA and class rank are considered. 38% of first-years had a 3.75 or higher.

What they look at

FactorWestern ColoradoU. South Dakota
High school GPA ConsideredConsidered
High school record ConsideredRequired
Class rank ConsideredConsidered
College-prep program ConsideredRequired
Recommendations ConsideredConsidered
Essay ConsideredNot considered
Legacy status ConsideredNot considered
Work experience ConsideredNot considered
Demonstration of competencies ConsideredNot considered
English proficiency test RequiredRequired
Other tests Not consideredNot considered
All admissions numbers in the table

Sources:IPEDS Admissions survey, Fall 2024;College Scorecard, Entered fall 2023;College Scorecard, most recent release;University of South Dakota (Fall 2025), Fall 2025;University of South Dakota Common Data Set 2025–26, Fall 2027 applicants;University of South Dakota Common Data Set 2025–26, Entered fall 2024About the data(retrieved 2026-10-12)

Figures are the newest each college has published; years can differ between colleges. Each value's ⓘ shows its source and year. Why