What is the lowest SAT score to get into Duke?
Admissions Summary
There's no absolute SAT requirement at Duke, but they really want to see at least a 1510 to have a chance at being considered.
Score for Acceptance
You should target scoring 1510 or above to be most competitive with other applicants. Duke regularly admits students with SAT scores down to 1468 on a 1600 scale. However, three quarter of admitted students score higher. If you score below a 1468, admission should be considered a reach.
You should also have a 4.13 GPA or higher. If your GPA is lower than this, you need to compensate with a higher SAT/ACT score. For a school as selective as Duke, you'll also need to impress them with the rest of your application. We'll cover those details next.
Duke University: Admission Criteria
With an acceptance rate of 10.80 percent, an average SAT range of 1470-1575, and Duke ACT Score 34-35 and a rough average GPA of 4 percent, Duke University filters out the best SAT performers making the admission criteria highly competitive for students.
Duke University has an acceptance rate of 6%. Half the applicants admitted to Duke University who submitted test scores have an SAT score between 1490 and 1570 or an ACT score of 34 and 35. However, one quarter of admitted applicants achieved scores above these ranges and one quarter scored below these ranges.
You must achieve nearly straight A's in all your classes to be competitive. You should also have taken a number of AP or IB classes to demonstrate that you can handle academic challenges. The lowest GPA Duke will accept is 1475 on the SAT or 98 on the ACT and Maintain a GPA of at least a 4.03.
Should I Retake the SAT with a 1200 Score? A 1200 is a great score and makes you a competitive applicant at a number of institutions. However, if you want to increase your score, either to become eligible or competitive at more selective institutions or for more merit aid, junior year is a great time for that.
With scores ranging from 400 to 1600 and more than 1.7 million students nationwide taking the SAT each year, the average score range is between 1000-1100. A score of 800 falls significantly below that national average and is about the 8th percentile of all test takers, which means that 92% received a higher score.
A score of 1490 is already quite high and may be sufficient for many colleges and universities. However, if you are confident that you can improve your score into the 1500s and believe that doing so aligns with your academic and career aspirations, then retaking the exam may be worth considering.
Why is Duke so hard to get into?
There are eight factors that Duke ranks as being “very important” to their admissions process: rigor of secondary school record, class rank, GPA, standardized test scores, application essays, recommendations, extracurricular activities, talent/ability, and character/personal qualities.
Is your high school GPA good enough for Duke? The average high school GPA for admitted students at Duke is 4.03 on a 4.0 scale. (You can calculate your high school a GPA here.) This is a very competitive GPA, and Duke is clearly accepting students at the top of their high school class.
The Duke Blue Devils maintain a fierce rivalry with the University of North Carolina—Chapel Hill Tar Heels and are best known for their outstanding men's basketball program, which is one of the top five most wins all-time college basketball programs in the country.
Application Review Process
We're guided initially by our assessment of five primary factors: The rigor of a candidate's academic program. Academic performance as measured by grades in academic courses. Letters of recommendation from two teachers and a counselor.
All Advanced Placement Exams completed with a score of 4 or 5 are recorded on a student's permanent Duke record. The classes may be used for placement into higher-level courses and to satisfy departmental major and minor requirements, as allowed by the individual departments.
Duke admissions is extremely selective with an acceptance rate of 6%. Students that get into Duke have an average SAT score between 1470-1570 or an average ACT score of 33-35.
For example, the mid-50% range at Duke is 1510-1570. If you scored a 1430, you will likely want to apply test-optional. If your score rests at or above the average (or median) score of students who entered the previous freshman class at this institution, then you should choose to send your exam results.
No, not officially. But Duke ranks higher than two official Ivy League schools in two ranking systems, and many other schools rank higher regarding the best school for value.
“Historically, Duke has never had a high number of D or F grades. C grades have a statistic, but they are still outliers compared to A and B grades. Meaning, the overwhelming majority of grades for Duke undergraduates fall into the B- to A+ range, and our collective [cumulative] GPAs also oscillate around 3.500 +/-.”
What kind of student does Duke look for?
Duke University is looking for well-rounded applicants who've excelled academically and have unique qualities or talents. They value challenging coursework, solid grades, and test scores (though always check their latest requirements).
Failing Grades
A grade of F or NC (See section Credit/No Credit grading system below) indicates that the student has failed to meet the requirements for the course. The grade is recorded on the student's record.
You can find official SAT practice tests and their scoring tables at the College Board. As you can see with the above SAT scoring chart, it's possible to get some questions wrong and still earn the max SAT score. Generally speaking, you can miss 1-2 questions on each section and still get a perfect 1600.
Is a 1300 a good SAT score? The average composite SAT score is 1059, and the highest possible score is 1600, putting 1300 above average and competitive. A 1300 SAT score allows you to apply competitively to a large number of schools, making it an objectively good score for most students.
Is 900 a good SAT score? A “good” SAT score is one that makes you a competitive candidate at a majority of colleges, including your ideal college. A 900 doesn't give you as many college options as we'd normally like students to have, so raising your score closer to that national average (1150-1100) is encouraged.
