Key differences on Getting in

1
U. Chicago's yield is 42 pts higher than Carnegie Mellon's
Yield rate
2
U. Chicago is 2.5× more selective than Carnegie Mellon
Acceptance rate
3
Carnegie Mellon's SAT midpoint is 5 points higher than U. Chicago's
SAT midpoint

Admissions

Getting in, fall 2024

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

The funnel

Acceptance rate

Carnegie Mellon11%

U. Chicago4.5%Most selective

Applicants

Carnegie Mellon34.9K

U. Chicago43.6KMost

Admitted

Carnegie Mellon3.9KMost

U. Chicago2K

Yield rate

Carnegie Mellon47%

U. Chicago88%Highest

Quad's selectivity

Carnegie MellonUltra selective
U. ChicagoUltra selective

Men and women

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

Women admitted

Carnegie Mellon15%

U. Chicago3.7%

Men admitted

Carnegie Mellon9.8%

U. Chicago5.6%

Test scores

SAT total,

Carnegie Mellon

1500–1560

U. Chicago

1500–1560

Axis runs 1400–1600. The dark tick marks the national median midpoint.

ACT composite,

Carnegie Mellon

34–36

U. Chicago

34–35

Axis runs 30–36. The dark tick marks the national median midpoint.

Submitted SAT

Carnegie Mellon66%

U. Chicago57%

Submitted ACT

Carnegie Mellon18%

U. Chicago25%

Test policy

Carnegie MellonTest-optional
U. ChicagoTest-optional

How they read a record

Carnegie Mellon
, GPA, and class rank are all very important; tests are considered. 86% of first-years who sent test scores had a 3.75 or higher, so and rarely sets an applicant apart; the courses behind it carry more of the weight.
U. Chicago
is very important; GPA, class rank, and tests are all considered. This college reports (average 4.54), so its GPA figures can't show how crowded unweighted GPAs are.

What they look at

Factor	Carnegie Mellon	U. Chicago
High school GPA	Very important	Considered
High school record	Required	Required
Class rank	Very important	Considered
College-prep program	Considered	Required
Recommendations	Important	Very important
Essay	Important	Very important
Legacy status	Not considered	Considered
Work experience	Considered	Considered
Demonstration of competencies	Considered	Considered
English proficiency test	Required	Considered
Other tests	Not considered	Not considered

All admissions numbers in the table

Sources:Carnegie Mellon University (Fall 2025), Fall 2025;IPEDS Admissions survey, Fall 2024;College Scorecard, Entered fall 2023;College Scorecard, most recent release;University of Chicago Common Data Set 2025–26, Fall 2025;University of Chicago Common Data Set 2025–26, Fall 2027 applicants;University of Chicago 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