Brown University
Brown publishes 5.6% (Class of 2030). Early Decision applicants got in at 16%; everyone else at 4.2%.
Acceptance rate
What Brown's 5.6% is made of
The published rate averages groups with very different odds. These are the splits Brown reports itself.
By application round
Class of 2030 (Fall 2026 entering first-year class)
Read the full decomposition →Early Decision advantage
16% of 5,406 ED applicants were admitted (890), against 4.2% for everyone else.
Class of 2030 · as of August 2026
See where Brown ranks →Part of Real Acceptance Rates, our series decomposing published rates from each school's own Common Data Set.
Testing
Required for 2026-27
- Policy
Brown reinstated required SAT/ACT testing starting with the Class of 2029 cycle (announced March 2024) and continues to require it for 2026-27 (SAT or ACT, except in rare cases where tests are inaccessible).
- SAT middle 50%
- 1510–1580sum of section 25th–75th percentiles
- ACT middle 50%
- 34–35
- Average HS GPA
- Not published by the school
Applying
Deadlines, essays and AI policy
- Early deadlines
- Nov 1, 2026 (ED)
- Regular decision
- Jan 5, 2027Source
- Supplemental essays
- 4 required
4 required essays: Open Curriculum approach (150-250 words), personal-background/contribution essay (150-250 words), 'teach a class on X' (100-150 words), and a joy/meaning essay (100-150 words). PLME and Brown|RISD Dual Degree applicants must submit additional program-specific essays beyond these 4.
- AI use in essays
Prohibited — applies to All application content (essays, short-answer questions, and other submitted materials) for undergraduate admission
“the use of artificial intelligence by an applicant is not permitted under any circumstances in conjunction with application content... an applicant may use artificial intelligence to assist with spelling and grammar review... the content of all essays, short-answer questions and any other material submitted by an applicant must be the work of that individual.”
Full cycle calendar: Application Deadlines.
At a glance
Size and cost
- Undergraduate enrollment
- 7,226
- Tuition (out-of-state)
- $71,412
- Category
- Ivy League
- Admissions site
- www.brown.edu
Dewey Smart
Dewey students who got into Brown
Mentors who got into Brown
Our mentors who go to Brown, or just graduated from it.
What should this school mean for your list?
A published rate is one input. Working out what it means alongside the rest of your list is the part that actually changes an application. Free 25-minute call, no commitment.
Sources
- Brown test policy (2026-27)
- Brown deadlines
- Brown AI-use policy
- Brown admissions pages
- Brown admissions pages
- Acceptance rate, test-score percentiles, enrollment and tuition: U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard, pulled 2026-08-19.
Test policy and deadlines last verified 2026-08-17.
Is this school right for your student?
Talk through Brown with an advisor.
Tell us about your student and we'll tell you whether Brown is a reach, a target or a likely, and what would change that.
Book my free consult
