How many essays do you write for Vanderbilt University in 2026-27?

One supplement, plus the Common App personal statement. Some applicants write more, depending on the college or program.

What ACT score do you need for Vanderbilt University?

The middle 50% of enrolled students scored 34-35 on the ACT, with a composite of 35 at the median. There is no cutoff: a quarter of the enrolled class scored below 34. Reported by Vanderbilt University to the US Department of Education, College Scorecard release of 2026-09-17.

What GPA do you need for Vanderbilt University?

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 Vanderbilt University is either reading that college's own Common Data Set or estimating. What the reported data does say is that Vanderbilt University admits 5.9% 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 Vanderbilt University?

Vanderbilt University admits 5.9% of the people who apply, which is about 1 in 17 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.

Vanderbilt University supplemental essays

Vanderbilt University asks for one supplemental essay in 2026-27, plus more depending on your college or program. Common App, Coalition App. Personal statement required (250-650 words).

Early Decision closes November 1, 2026, Early Decision II closes January 1, 2027 and Regular Decision closes January 1, 2027. Every Vanderbilt University 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.

Every essay it asks for, with a status, in the free essay manager.

Deadlines

Vanderbilt University application deadlines
Round	Date
Early Decision	November 1, 2026
Early Decision II	January 1, 2027
Regular Decision	January 1, 2027

Checked against admissions.vanderbilt.edu/apply/personal-essay-and-short-answer-prompts. Confirm on the college’s own page before you submit.

Every college’s early deadlines, side by side

The essays, 2026-27

Required · approximately 250 words (College Transitions adds "300 word maximum, 200 word minimum"; Vanderbilt's own page states only "approximately 250 words")
Vanderbilt University’s motto, Crescere aude, is Latin for “dare to grow.” In your response, reflect on how one or more aspects of your identity, culture, or background has played a role in your personal growth, and how it will contribute to our campus community as you dare to grow at Vanderbilt.
Vanderbilt calls this the "Short Answer Question". It is required for BOTH first-year and transfer applicants. "Crescere aude" appears in italics (<em>) on Vanderbilt's page. This is Vanderbilt's ONLY general supplemental writing piece.
Get a free read on this essayPaste your draft, see the verdict before you pay.No draft yet? Pick a topic for this prompt
Required (only for applicants to Peabody College who select Elementary Education, Secondary Education, or Special Education) · not stated on Vanderbilt's page
What prior experience with and enthusiasm for the field of education will you bring to Vanderbilt? In your response, reflect on why you want to be an educator.
Vanderbilt prefaces the question with this context paragraph, which is part of the prompt block on the page: "Vanderbilt University’s Peabody College of Education and Human Development has a rich tradition of excellence in teacher education, preparing students to pursue a research-grounded, practice-intensive program leading to licensure. Students pursuing careers in education spend as much time in the classrooms and hallways of Nashville’s public schools as they do in seminar rooms on campus, observing and working in a variety of community and educational settings." The page then labels the next sentence "Question:". Most essay guides omit this prompt entirely.
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 Vanderbilt University checklist

One supplement, required. The first deadline, Early Decision, is November 1, 2026.

Common App personal statementRequired250-650 words
Supplement 1Required
One program-specific promptOnly if you apply to the college or program it names. All printed in full above.

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Not sure what a review is? What an AI college essay review can and cannot do, and what a college essay grader leaves out. What the read checks against Vanderbilt University’s own prompts is on the Vanderbilt University essay review page.

Getting into Vanderbilt University

Vanderbilt University admits 5.9% of applicants. The middle 50% of enrolled students scored 1500-1570 on the SAT and 34-35 on the ACT.

About 1 in 17 applicants are admitted, at a college of 7,208 undergraduates.

Vanderbilt University enrolled-student test score percentiles, US Department of Education College Scorecard, 2026-09-17
Enrolled students	25th	Median	75th
SAT total	1500	1540	1570
SAT reading and writing	730	750	770
SAT math	770	790	800
ACT composite	34	35	35

What SAT score do you need for Vanderbilt University?

A 1570 puts you in the top quarter of the students who enrolled, a 1540 at their midpoint, and a 1500 at the bottom quarter, meaning one in four enrolled students scored below it. The same three points on the ACT are 34, 35 and 35. 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 Vanderbilt University?: Vanderbilt University sets no minimum. Among students who enrolled, the middle 50% scored 1500-1570 on the SAT: a 1500 sits at the 25th percentile, 1540 at the median and 1570 at the 75th. A score at or above 1570 is a clear strength in the application; below 1500 it is the part of the file the rest has to make up for. These are the figures Vanderbilt University reports to the US Department of Education, released in the College Scorecard of 2026-09-17.
What ACT score do you need for Vanderbilt University?: The middle 50% of enrolled students scored 34-35 on the ACT, with a composite of 35 at the median. There is no cutoff: a quarter of the enrolled class scored below 34. Reported by Vanderbilt University to the US Department of Education, College Scorecard release of 2026-09-17.
What GPA do you need for Vanderbilt University?: 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 Vanderbilt University is either reading that college's own Common Data Set or estimating. What the reported data does say is that Vanderbilt University admits 5.9% 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 Vanderbilt University?: Vanderbilt University admits 5.9% of the people who apply, which is about 1 in 17 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 Vanderbilt University 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.

Vanderbilt University essay questions, answered

Does Vanderbilt University have supplemental essays?: Yes. Vanderbilt University asks for one supplemental essay in 2026-27, plus more depending on your college or program. Every prompt is printed in full on this page.
How many essays do you write for Vanderbilt University in 2026-27?: One supplement, plus the Common App personal statement. Some applicants write more, depending on the college or program.

Schools with similar admit rates

Vanderbilt University admits 5.9% of applicants. The colleges either side of it in our set by admit rate, most selective first, each with its own prompts and deadlines: Dartmouth College (5.4%), University of Pennsylvania (5.4%), Duke University (5.7%), Johns Hopkins University (6.4%), Colby College (7.1%), Pomona College (7.1%).