Key differences on Getting in

1
Ohio State's yield is 9 pts higher than U. Pittsburgh's
Yield rate
2
Ohio State's SAT midpoint is 30 points higher than U. Pittsburgh's
SAT midpoint
3
U. Pittsburgh admits 58% vs. 61% at Ohio State
Acceptance rate

Admissions

Getting in, fall 2024

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

The funnel

Acceptance rate

U. Pittsburgh58%Most selective

Ohio State61%

Applicants

U. Pittsburgh60.9K

Ohio State72.8KMost

Admitted

U. Pittsburgh35.4K

Ohio State44.1KMost

Yield rate

U. Pittsburgh13%

Ohio State22%Highest

Quad's selectivity

U. PittsburghVery selective
Ohio StateVery selective

Men and women

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

Women admitted

U. Pittsburgh60%

Ohio State62%

Men admitted

U. Pittsburgh56%

Ohio State60%

Test scores

SAT total,

U. Pittsburgh

1280–1450

Ohio State

1310–1480

Axis runs 1200–1600. The dark tick marks the national median midpoint.

ACT composite,

U. Pittsburgh

29–33

Ohio State

28–32

Axis runs 24–36. The dark tick marks the national median midpoint.

Submitted SAT

U. Pittsburgh40%

Ohio State17%

Submitted ACT

U. Pittsburgh8%

Ohio State31%

Test policy

U. PittsburghTest-optional
Ohio StateTest-optional

How they read a record

U. Pittsburgh
and GPA are both very important; class rank and tests are both considered. This college reports (average 4.06), so its GPA figures can't show how crowded unweighted GPAs are.
Ohio State
GPA, the high school record, class rank, and a college-prep program are required.

What they look at

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

All admissions numbers in the table

Sources:IPEDS Admissions survey, Fall 2024;University of Pittsburgh-Pittsburgh Campus Common Data Set 2025–26, Fall 2025;University of Pittsburgh-Pittsburgh Campus Common Data Set 2025–26, Entered fall 2024;College Scorecard, most recent release;College Scorecard, Entered fall 2023About 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