Case Western Reserve University

Case Western is selective but not in the single-digit range: it admitted about 35% of applicants in the most recent cycle, offering admission to roughly 13,890 of more than 39,000 applicants and enrolling about 1,663 first-years. Admissions are holistic, with the rigor of your course load, class rank, academic GPA, and extracurricular activities all weighed as very important factors.

Enrolled first-year students at Case Western report an average high school GPA of about 3.78, and the class skews toward the top of its cohort — among the 17% who reported a class rank, roughly 70% were in the top tenth of their graduating class and 93% were in the top quarter. There is no hard cutoff, but rigor of course load, class rank, and academic GPA are all weighed as very important factors.

Yes — a 1490 sits right at the median for enrolled students. The middle 50% of first-years scored between 1440 and 1530 on the SAT (32–34 on the ACT), so a 1490 is solidly competitive, just above the 50th percentile. About 90% of enrolled students who submitted the SAT scored 1400 or higher.

No. Case Western is test-optional, so you may apply without submitting scores, and standardized test scores are only “considered” in the review rather than weighed heavily. Among enrolled students who did submit, the middle 50% scored 1440–1530 on the SAT and 32–34 on the ACT.

Early Decision is a binding option worth considering if Case Western is your clear first choice. For the Fall 2025 class, the ED round drew 1,053 applications and admitted 263 — an admit rate around 25%, lower than the 35% overall rate, since the ED pool is smaller and more committed. Case Western also offers a non-binding, non-restrictive Early Action plan, and it meets 100% of demonstrated need for first-years, so financial fit can still be evaluated.

Tuition and required fees run about $70,000 per year, with the total cost of attendance higher once on-campus housing and food (around $19,500) and books (about $1,200) are added. Case Western meets 100% of demonstrated financial need for first-year students, and about 56% receive aid, with an average need-based package near $63,400.

Case Western is strongest in STEM and pre-health fields. Engineering is the single most-conferred area at about 23% of bachelor's degrees, followed by the biological and life sciences at 16% — together nearly 40% of all degrees — with computer science (8%) also prominent. With a 10:1 student-faculty ratio, a 93% first-year retention rate, and an 87% six-year graduation rate, it pairs research depth with strong student outcomes.