Davidson College supplemental essays
Davidson College asks for two supplemental essays in 2026-27. Common App. Personal statement required (250-650 words).
That is two supplements plus the Common App personal statement: three pieces of writing in all. Early Decision closes November 15, 2026, Early Decision II closes January 4, 2027 and Regular Decision closes January 11, 2027. The prompts carry this limit: 250-300 words. Every Davidson College prompt is printed on this page in full, with its word limit and who has to answer it, checked against the college’s own admissions page.
Deadlines
| Round | Date |
|---|---|
| Early Decision | November 15, 2026 |
| Early Decision II | January 4, 2027 |
| Regular Decision | January 11, 2027 |
Checked against www.davidson.edu/admission-and-financial-aid/apply/first-year-applicants. Confirm on the college’s own page before you submit.
The essays, 2026-27
Required · 250-300 words
There are just under 4,000 four-year colleges and universities in the United States. Being as specific as possible, what interests you most about Davidson College?
Get a free read on this essayPaste your draft, see the verdict before you pay.No draft yet? Pick a topic for this promptRequired · 250-300 words
Davidson encourages students to explore curiosities in and out of the classroom. What is a topic, activity or idea that excites you? Tell us why. Examples may include hobbies, books, interactions, music, podcasts, movies, etc.
Get a free read on this essayPaste your draft, see the verdict before you pay.No draft yet? Pick a topic for this prompt
Your Davidson College checklist
Two supplements, all required. The first deadline, Early Decision, is November 15, 2026.
- Common App personal statementRequired250-650 words
- Supplements 1 and 2Required250-300 words each
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Getting into Davidson College
Davidson College admits 13.4% of applicants. The middle 50% of enrolled students scored 1400-1530 on the SAT and 31-34 on the ACT.
About 1 in 7 applicants are admitted, at a college of 1,867 undergraduates.
| Enrolled students | 25th | Median | 75th |
|---|---|---|---|
| SAT total | 1400 | 1460 | 1530 |
| SAT reading and writing | 695 | 720 | 750 |
| SAT math | 705 | 740 | 780 |
| ACT composite | 31 | 33 | 34 |
What SAT score do you need for Davidson College?
A 1530 puts you in the top quarter of the students who enrolled, a 1460 at their midpoint, and a 1400 at the bottom quarter, meaning one in four enrolled students scored below it. The same three points on the ACT are 31, 33 and 34. A quarter of an enrolled class scoring under the 25th percentile is not a rounding error, so a score below the range is a reason to strengthen the rest of the application rather than a reason not to apply.
US Department of Education, College Scorecard (2026-09-17). Percentiles describe students who enrolled, not everyone admitted. SAT totals are the reading and math bands added together, which is how every source in this market reports them and is an approximation of about 10 to 20 points, because the two sections are correlated.
- What SAT score do you need for Davidson College?
- Davidson College sets no minimum. Among students who enrolled, the middle 50% scored 1400-1530 on the SAT: a 1400 sits at the 25th percentile, 1460 at the median and 1530 at the 75th. A score at or above 1530 is a clear strength in the application; below 1400 it is the part of the file the rest has to make up for. These are the figures Davidson College reports to the US Department of Education, released in the College Scorecard of 2026-09-17.
- What ACT score do you need for Davidson College?
- The middle 50% of enrolled students scored 31-34 on the ACT, with a composite of 33 at the median. There is no cutoff: a quarter of the enrolled class scored below 31. Reported by Davidson College to the US Department of Education, College Scorecard release of 2026-09-17.
- What GPA do you need for Davidson College?
- The honest answer is that the federal data behind this page does not contain one. Colleges report their admit rate and their enrolled students' test scores to the Department of Education; they do not report a GPA distribution, so any site quoting an exact average GPA for Davidson College is either reading that college's own Common Data Set or estimating. What the reported data does say is that Davidson College admits 13.4% of applicants, and the more selective a college is, the closer to the top of the class its admitted students sit and the more the strength of your course load counts alongside the number itself.
- How hard is it to get into Davidson College?
- Davidson College admits 13.4% of the people who apply, which is about 1 in 7 applicants. At that rate no set of numbers makes admission likely, a perfect one included, because the college turns away far more qualified applicants than it takes. Strong grades and scores get the application read; the essays, the recommendations and what you have actually done decide it from there.
What Davidson College costs after grant aid, by family income, from the same federal data.
Sort your whole college list into reaches, targets and likelies, or find colleges that fit your GPA and test scores. Both are free and neither needs an account.
Davidson College essay questions, answered
- Does Davidson College have supplemental essays?
- Yes. Davidson College asks for two supplemental essays in 2026-27. Every prompt is printed in full on this page. Word limits: 250-300 words.
- How many essays do you write for Davidson College in 2026-27?
- Two supplements, plus the Common App personal statement.
Schools with similar admit rates
Davidson College admits 13.4% of applicants. The colleges either side of it in our set by admit rate, most selective first, each with its own prompts and deadlines: Haverford College (12.4%), Harvey Mudd College (12.7%), Bates College (13.3%), Hamilton College (13.6%), Colgate University (13.9%), Washington and Lee University (14.0%).