Reed College
Reed College is a small private liberal arts college in Portland, Oregon, known for an unusually rigorous, discussion-driven academic culture: a required year-long Humanities 110 course, a mandatory senior thesis, and one of the highest rates of graduates going on to earn PhDs of any undergraduate college. Reed admitted about 29% of roughly 9,600 applicants for its most recent class, and its enrolled first-years averaged a 4.00 high school GPA in classes that run about 8 students to every faculty member. The college is test-blind, so it will not look at SAT or ACT scores even if you send them, and instead weighs the rigor of your record, your grades, and your writing far more heavily. Reed meets 100% of demonstrated financial need and enrolls a national student body, with roughly 85% of its domestic first-years coming from outside Oregon.
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Reed admissions statistics
Acceptance rate
Total applicants, admitted students, and enrolled students for the most recent admission cycle.
Early decision
Reed offers binding Early Decision. Applying early can meaningfully change your odds — but ED commits you to enroll if admitted.
Standardized tests
Reed is test-free — SAT and ACT scores are not considered in admissions.
SAT / ACT scores are not used
Reed does not review SAT or ACT scores for admission, even if you submit them. Applicants are evaluated on GPA, coursework, essays, and activities instead.
Reed supplemental essays — 2026-2027 cycle
For one week at the end of January, Reed students upend the traditional classroom hierarchy and teach classes about any topic they love, academic or otherwise. This week is known as Paideia after the Greek term signifying “education” – the complete education of mind, body and spirit. What would you teach that would contribute to the Reed community? (200 words minimum, 500 words maximum)
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Class rank
Where Reed's enrolled first-years placed in their high school graduating class.
Based on the 30% of enrolled students who reported a class rank. Reed does not publish an average GPA.
Admissions factors
How Reed weighs each part of your application.
Rigor of High School Record
Academic GPA
Standardized Test Scores
Application Essay
Recommendations
Extracurricular Activities
Character / Personal Qualities
Talent / Ability
First Generation
Level of Applicant's Interest
Class Rank
Volunteer Work
Work Experience
Geographical Residence
State Residency
Alumni Relation
Racial / Ethnic Status
Religious Affiliation
Cost of attendance
Estimated full-time annual cost from Reed's Common Data Set.
Private universities charge the same tuition regardless of state residency.
Financial aid
Need-based aid statistics for full-time first-year students.
Frequently asked questions about Reed admissions
Reasonably hard, and harder than the acceptance rate alone suggests. Reed admitted about 29% of roughly 9,600 applicants in its most recent cycle, but the pool is heavily self-selecting toward students who want an intense, academically focused experience. Enrolled first-years averaged a 4.00 high school GPA, and Reed weighs the rigor of your course load, your grades, and your writing as the most important parts of the application.
No. Reed is test-blind, which means it will not consider SAT or ACT scores in admission even if you submit them. Your application instead rests on your transcript, the rigor of your courses, your essays, and your recommendations. International applicants whose schooling was not in English are still encouraged to submit an English-proficiency test such as TOEFL or IELTS.
Aim for a transcript near the top of your class. Reed's enrolled first-years averaged a 4.00 high school GPA, and about 51% ranked in the top tenth of their graduating class among the minority who reported a rank. There is no formal cutoff, but because Reed is test-blind, your grades and the rigor of your course load carry even more weight than they would at a school that also reviews test scores.
Reed is known for an intense, intellectually serious academic culture. Every first-year takes the same year-long Humanities 110 course, every senior writes a thesis, and the college sends an unusually high share of graduates on to earn PhDs, especially in the sciences and humanities. Classes stay small, at roughly 8 students per faculty member, and the biological and social sciences are among the most-conferred degrees.
Yes to both. Reed offers two binding Early Decision rounds (ED I and ED II) for students who are certain Reed is their first choice, plus a nonbinding, non-restrictive Early Action option. Early Action lets you apply early and hear back sooner without committing, while Early Decision is a binding agreement to enroll if you are admitted.
Tuition and required fees run about $74,270 for the year, with food and housing adding roughly $18,470 more. Reed meets 100% of demonstrated financial need: about 64% of first-years receive need-based grant aid, and the average aid package for students with need is around $61,086.
The biological sciences lead at about 17% of bachelor's degrees, followed closely by the social sciences at 16% and English at 11%. Psychology, foreign languages and literature, and the visual and performing arts round out the most common fields. Reed is strong across the sciences and humanities alike, which shows up in its high rate of graduates pursuing doctoral study.
Yes, a great deal. Reed rates the application essay as a very important factor, on the same level as your GPA and the rigor of your transcript, and above interviews or recommendations. Because Reed is test-blind and draws applicants who genuinely want its discussion-based classes, your writing is one of the clearest ways to show you fit that culture.
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Popular majors
Bachelor's degrees awarded in the past year by academic major.
Student-faculty ratio
The number of students for every one faculty member, indicating the average level of access students have to instructional staff.
Campus life
On-campus housing and Greek life participation rates.
Enrollment by gender
Student diversity
Racial and ethnic breakdown of enrolled undergraduate students.
Source: Reed College Common Data Set 2025-2026. Figures transcribed 2026-06-10. Esslo aggregates publicly reported data and is not affiliated with Reed. Banner photo by Another Believer, via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 3.0). Cite this page as: Esslo College Explorer, “Reed College admissions statistics, transcribed from the 2025-2026 Common Data Set,” https://www.esslo.org/colleges/reed-college (retrieved 2026-06-10).