Mount Holyoke College: A Parent's Guide to Admissions, Cost & Outcomes
Worcester, Massachusetts · Private nonprofit · Highly selective · CDS 2024-2025
Mount Holyoke College is a private institution located in Worcester, Massachusetts and one of the highly selective schools in the country. For the most recent reporting cycle, Mount Holyoke College admits roughly one in four applicants, with an overall admission rate of 21%. Admitted students typically post an average SAT of 1354 and an ACT composite around 30. The average net price after grants and scholarships is $36,868 per year, which is the figure most families actually pay rather than the published sticker price. For parents weighing whether Mount Holyoke College is realistic for their teenager, the most useful planning step is comparing your child's current GPA and most recent SAT or ACT against these admitted-student ranges — not the headline acceptance rate alone.
What GPA does my child need for Mount Holyoke College?
Most admitted students at Mount Holyoke College present unweighted GPAs in the 3.85–4.0 range with five or more AP or honors courses across high school. Parents tracking their child's GPA toward this tier of school can use Solyo's free calculator to see weighted, unweighted, and college-recalculated numbers side by side.
SAT and ACT scores Mount Holyoke College typically admits
The middle-50 SAT Math range is 620–700, with an EBRW midpoint near 670. The middle-50 ACT composite range is 28–32. A score at or above this school's 75th percentile materially improves your child's odds, particularly when paired with a rigorous course load.
| 25th percentile | — |
| 50th percentile | 1354 |
| 75th percentile | — |
| 25th percentile | 28 |
| 50th percentile | 30 |
| 75th percentile | 32 |
How much does Mount Holyoke College actually cost?
Published tuition is $60,850 for in-state students and $60,850 for out-of-state, before grants and scholarships. Room and board adds roughly $17,750 annually. After need-based and merit aid, the average family pays a net price of $36,868 per year — the number that actually matters for budgeting. Roughly 15% of students receive Pell Grants, a useful indicator of how much need-based aid the school distributes.
| Average net price (after aid) | $36,868 |
Application deadlines and early decision data for Mount Holyoke College
Other colleges in Massachusetts parents ask about
- Harvard University3% acceptance
- Massachusetts Institute of Technology5% acceptance
- Boston University11% acceptance
- Boston College16% acceptance
- Tufts University10% acceptance
- University of Massachusetts-Amherst85% acceptance
- University of Massachusetts-Boston58% acceptance
- Northeastern University6% acceptance
How parents track GPA toward selective schools like Mount Holyoke College
Solyo helps parents track grades pulled directly from school emails, calculate GPA the same way colleges like Mount Holyoke College recalculate it, and ask an AI college counselor specific questions about their teen's odds. The platform is built for parents — not students — and turns what's usually a fragmented planning process into a single dashboard.
Common questions parents ask about Mount Holyoke College
What GPA do I need for Mount Holyoke College?
Most admitted students at Mount Holyoke College present unweighted GPAs in the 3.85–4.0 range with five or more AP or honors courses across high school.
What SAT or ACT score does Mount Holyoke College typically admit?
The middle-50 SAT Math range is 620–700, with an EBRW midpoint near 670. The middle-50 ACT composite range is 28–32.
How much does Mount Holyoke College actually cost after financial aid?
The average net price at Mount Holyoke College after grants and scholarships is $36,868 per year. That figure is more useful for budgeting than the published sticker price, because it reflects what families actually pay after aid is applied.
Is Mount Holyoke College realistic for my child?
Compare your teen's current unweighted GPA and most recent SAT or ACT against the ranges above. If both numbers fall inside the school's middle-50, Mount Holyoke College is a target school. If both fall below the 25th-percentile mark, treat it as a reach and balance the application list accordingly.
Data sourced from the 2024-2025 Common Data Set submitted by Mount Holyoke College, and the U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard. Solyo extracts admissions data from official Common Data Set publications and refreshes it annually.