College Profiles/ Swarthmore College
College Profile · Fall 2027 Entry
Swarthmore College Admissions: Acceptance Rate, Cost, Financial Aid and Deadlines
Swarthmore, PA · 1,695 undergraduates. Everything families need to apply to Swarthmore College for fall 2027, verified against the school’s own Common Data Set, cost of attendance and admissions pages, with ConnectPrep’s strategic read.
By Jeremy Fine, Founder of ConnectPrep
Updated October 11, 2026 · Data verified against official sources
✓ Every figure cited
Quick answer
Swarthmore College admitted 7.4% of 13,029 first-year applicants.[1] The 2026-2027 cost of attendance is $95,770.[1] For fall 2027 entry, deadlines are Early Decision I Nov 15, Early Decision II Jan 4, Regular Decision Jan 4.[2]
7.4%
Overall admit rate[1]
33 to 35
Middle 50% ACT[3]
$95,770
Cost of attendance, 2026-2027[1]
$2.7B
Endowment, FY2025[1]
92.3%
Six-year graduation rate[3]
Swarthmore College at a Glance
- Location
- Swarthmore, PA
- Type
- Private nonprofit
- Student to faculty ratio
- 8:1[1]
- Endowment
- $2.7 billion (FY2025)[1]
- SAT/ACT, fall 2027
- Optional[2]
- Application
- Common App, Coalition (Scoir), QuestBridge[2]
- First-year retention
- 94.0%[3]
The ConnectPrep Take on Swarthmore College
The ConnectPrep take
Swarthmore is a liberal arts college with engineering, and about 66 percent of students take part in undergraduate research or independent creative projects. The applicant who fits already does intellectual work for its own sake. Swarthmore admitted 969 of 13,029 applicants, a 7.4% rate. Your student can commit through ED I on Nov 15 or ED II on Jan 4, the same day as Regular Decision. Testing is optional, and federal data puts the middle 50% at 740 to 770 in reading and writing and 750 to 790 in math, so we advise submitting at 755 and 770 or above. Admission is need-blind for U.S. applicants, and aid meets full need without loans. The mistake we see is waiting too long to request an optional alumni interview; last cycle, requests closed Nov 28.
What to do this fall
- Request a virtual alumni interview early; last cycle, requests closed Nov 28, well before the Jan 4 deadline.
- Use ED II on Jan 4 as a binding second chance after an early result elsewhere.
- Submit the CSS Profile, FAFSA and IDOC by Nov 15 for ED I so aid news arrives with the decision.
- Show sustained research or creative work, and add an optional creative supplement only if it is strong.
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Swarthmore College Admissions Statistics
| Applicant pool |
Applied |
Admitted |
Admit rate |
| All first-year applicants[1] |
13,029 |
969 |
7.4% |
- Yield, the share of admitted students who enrolled, was 45.9%.[1]
Testing and academic profile
| Academic profile of enrolled first-years |
Middle 50% or share |
| SAT Evidence-Based Reading and Writing[3] |
740 to 770 |
| SAT Math[3] |
750 to 790 |
| ACT composite[3] |
33 to 35 |
Test score ranges on this page come from the U.S. Department of Education’s College Scorecard, which reports an earlier entering class than the school’s newest Common Data Set.[3]
ConnectPrep score target
Aim for 770 in Reading and Writing and 790 in Math, the 75th percentile for each section here, or 35 on the ACT. A higher score is always better, and the test can be retaken. Not there yet? Take a free practice test and we will build the plan to close the gap.
What Swarthmore College looks for
In its own words: Swarthmore describes its admissions review as need-blind, meaning it does not consider a student's ability to pay, and it lets students choose whether their SAT or ACT scores are considered.[4]
Swarthmore College Application Deadlines 2026-2027
| Round |
Deadline |
Decision |
| Early Decision I |
Nov 15 |
mid-Dec (ED I); mid-Feb (ED II) |
| Early Decision II |
Jan 4 |
|
| Regular Decision |
Jan 4 |
by Apr 1 |
Insider deadlines families miss
These scholarship, honors, program, interview and aid deadlines come from Swarthmore College’s own pages. Anything tagged Before RD is due before the Regular Decision deadline.
| Program or rule |
Deadline |
What to know |
Virtual alumni interview requests
Before RD |
late Nov (requests close) |
Date from 2025-26 page: requests for virtual alumni interviews closed Nov 28, 2025, well before the Jan 4 RD deadline. Interviews are optional; check the interview portal for this cycle's cutoff.[5] |
| Financial aid (CSS Profile, FAFSA, IDOC) |
Nov 1 (QuestBridge); Nov 15 (ED I); Jan 4 (ED II, RD) |
Meeting these dates gets the aid decision with the admission decision. Full tax returns with schedules plus W-2s/1099s go through IDOC.[6] |
| Creative supplements |
See note |
Optional supplements in creative writing, dance, music, theater and visual arts submitted in the Swarthmore applicant portal; no deadline published on the page.[2] |
See how Swarthmore College compares with other colleges in the Mid-Atlantic deadlines database or the full 2026-2027 college application deadlines hub.
Swarthmore College Cost and Financial Aid
| Cost and aid |
Figure |
| Cost of attendance (2026-2027)[1] |
$95,770 |
| Tuition[1] |
$72,722 |
| Average total financial aid package[1] |
$75,268 |
| Average share of need met[1] |
100.0% |
Tuition figure includes books; total also covers housing ($11,676), food ($10,890) and the student activity fee ($482).[1]
- Swarthmore College states that it meets 100% of demonstrated financial need.[1]
- Aid packages are loan-free.[1]
- International students: Swarthmore's need-blind admission applies to U.S. citizens, permanent residents, eligible non-citizens and undocumented students who graduated from a U.S. high school.[4]
What families actually pay: net price by income
Net price is the full cost of attendance minus the average grants and scholarships for first-year students receiving aid, by family income. It comes from federal data, which runs a year or two behind the school’s current cost figures.[3]
| Family income |
Average net price per year |
| $0 to $30,000 |
$7,690 |
| $30,001 to $48,000 |
$4,951 |
| $48,001 to $75,000 |
$11,444 |
| $75,001 to $110,000 |
$22,443 |
| Over $110,000 |
$47,544 |
| All aided students |
$23,149 |
Academics and Majors at Swarthmore College
Signature programs
Engineering within a liberal arts college
Swarthmore describes itself as a private, nonsectarian liberal arts college with engineering.[1]
Tri-College Consortium
Students can take courses at Bryn Mawr and Haverford Colleges and cross-register at the University of Pennsylvania.[1]
Undergraduate research
About 66 percent of students take part in undergraduate research or independent creative projects, and 21.3 percent of graduates go on to complete a doctoral program.[1]
No-loan aid
Financial aid decisions meet 100 percent of determined need for admitted students without loans.[1]
Choosing a major and getting in
Swarthmore admits students to the college as a whole, and students choose among more than 40 courses of study, including engineering, with more than 600 courses offered on campus each year plus Tri-College and Penn cross-registration.[1]
Special admission paths
- Need-blind admission for U.S. citizens, permanent residents, eligible non-citizens and undocumented U.S. high school graduates.[4]
- Test-optional application.[4]
Swarthmore College Retention and Graduation Rates
| Outcome |
Figure |
| First-year students who returned for sophomore year[3] |
94.0% |
| Graduated within six years[3] |
92.3% |
| Median earnings 10 years after starting college[3] |
$80,257 |
| Median federal loan debt of graduates[3] |
$17,500 |
| Undergraduates receiving Pell Grants[3] |
19% |
Make Swarthmore College a realistic goal
ConnectPrep builds the full plan: the right round, a score target and test schedule, essays that sound like your student, and every scholarship and program deadline on one calendar. Start with a free consultation or a free practice test.
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Swarthmore College FAQs
What is the Swarthmore College acceptance rate?
Swarthmore College admitted 7.4% of first-year applicants (969 of 13,029).
When are the Swarthmore College application deadlines for 2026-27?
For students entering in fall 2027: Early Decision I Nov 15; Early Decision II Jan 4; Regular Decision Jan 4. 1 scholarship, honors or program deadlines come before Regular Decision; see the insider deadlines table on this page.
How much does Swarthmore College cost?
The 2026-2027 cost of attendance is $95,770. The school states it meets 100% of demonstrated need.
What does Swarthmore cost for a family earning under $75,000?
Federal data shows an average net price of $11,444 for families earning $48,001 to $75,000 and $4,951 for families earning $30,001 to $48,000. Swarthmore meets 100% of need without loans, with an average aid package of $75,268. The 2026-2027 cost of attendance before aid is $95,770.
Is Swarthmore test optional?
Yes. Students choose whether their SAT or ACT scores are considered. Enrolling students who applied without scores may be asked to submit them, but only for research and placement. Federal data shows a middle 50% ACT of 33 to 35, so a score of 34 or above is worth sending.
About the author
Jeremy Fine
Jeremy Fine founded ConnectPrep in 2013 and brings more than 20 years of experience in education, spanning test preparation, college advising and academic program management. He holds a BA from Washington University in St. Louis and an MPA from the University of Pittsburgh.
ConnectPrep is based in Westport, Connecticut, and works with students from kindergarten through graduate school, in person and online. Meet the team.
This profile is an independent ConnectPrep resource and is not affiliated with or endorsed by Swarthmore College. Figures come from the sources listed above as published when checked in October 2026; the Common Data Set year is noted where used. Policies and costs change, so confirm with the school before applying.
