Chestnut Hill, MA · private · 10,085 undergraduates
Boston College acceptance rate, SAT range and net price
Boston College accepted 13.4% of applicants for the class entering in fall 2026, and meets full need with almost no merit aid.
Net price per year at Boston College
$19,999
Reach · admit rate 13.4%
| Admit rate, Fall 2026 entering class (Class of 2030) | 13.4% (1 in 7) |
| Middle 50% of enrolled students (SAT) | 1,460 to 1,520 |
| Enrolled students scoring below you (approx.) | 1% |
| This site’s label | Reach |
| Sticker price 2026-27 | $100,314 |
| Paid by families with $75,001-$110,000 (2023-24) | $19,999 |
| Share of the sticker price | 20% |
Net price: average paid after grants by students on federal aid in that income band (2023-24), not a quote. The label is a fixed rule of this site (admit rate under 15% is a reach for everyone), not a prediction. Your exact price: Boston College net price calculator. How this is calculated.
Admissions: Boston College Office of Undergraduate Admission, First-Year Admission Profile, Class of 2030 Facts and Figures (enrolled marked '2026 Annual Census Data') · net price: College Scorecard, 2023-24 · figures checked · Built by Radif Partners · Method and data
- Admit rate, newest cycle
- 13.4%
- SAT middle 50%
- 1,460 to 1,520
- Sticker price 2026-27
- $100,314
- Net price, income $48k to $75k
- $13,112
Boston College's acceptance rate for the class entering in fall 2026 (Class of 2030) is 13.4%: 5,636 accepted out of 41,923 applications, according to its admissions profile. Its newest Common Data Set, for fall 2024, counted 34,779 applicants and 5,632 admits, so applications rose by roughly a fifth in two years while the number of offers barely moved. Testing is optional but encouraged; the middle 50% SAT of enrolled students who sent one was 1,460 to 1,520. The cost of attendance for 2026-27 is $100,314. Admission is need-blind for American students and BC meets their full demonstrated need, which shows in the federal figures: in 2023-24 families under $30,000 paid an average of $4,284 and families between $48,001 and $75,000 paid $13,112.
Applications up, offers flat
Boston College did something few universities do: its admissions office published the Class of 2030 counts before releasing the Common Data Set for the year before. That is why this page jumps from fall 2024 to fall 2026. The jump itself is the story: 41,923 applications against 34,779 two years earlier, for almost the same number of places. Early Decision carries a growing weight in that arithmetic. In fall 2024, BC admitted about a third of its Early Decision applicants, and those offers made up roughly a quarter of the class.
Need-blind, full need, and almost no merit money
BC does not look at an American applicant's aid request when deciding, and it promises to meet the full demonstrated need of every admitted U.S. student. The other side of that promise is that it gives almost no merit aid: the Presidential Scholarship, full tuition for a small group each year, is its only academic award. A family with high income and no need should therefore expect to pay close to the sticker price of $100,314, while a family with need can expect a price close to the federal averages: $7,304 between $30,001 and $48,000, $19,999 between $75,001 and $110,000.
Boston College: net price for your family income
Average net price, 2023-24
$13,112
| Income band | $48,001-$75,000 |
| Share of the 2023-24 cost | 15% |
Federal figure for first-year students on federal aid.
What the bill adds up to
The 2026-27 budget includes tuition of $75,070, fees and $19,870 for housing and food. Massachusetts law requires every student to have health coverage, so BC's plan is added unless the family's own insurance is accepted as a waiver. First-year aid packages may include a modest loan and a work-study job toward the family contribution; neither reduces the price.
Boston College: where your SAT score lands
Enrolled students scoring below you (approx.)
50%
| Middle 50% | 1,460 to 1,520 |
| Your score is | inside the middle 50% |
Fall 2024 entering class (Class of 2028), fallback: CDS 2025-2026 not published, CDS 2024-2025, C9, fall 2024 enrolled (711 SAT submitters, 366 ACT submitters). Normal curve fitted to the two published percentiles.
Testing: optional, but BC says scores help
BC is test-optional, yet it states that its own research finds scores add predictive value and encourages students who tested to send them. Only 30% of the enrolled class submitted an SAT, so the range is built from a minority. Families comparing Jesuit universities also look at Georgetown and Notre Dame; Boston University and Tufts are the local alternatives, with different aid thresholds.
From Boston College’s own documents
- For the Class of 2030 (fall 2026), Boston College received 41,923 applications and accepted 5,636 (13.4 percent); 2,400 enrolled. source
- Early Decision weighs heavily: for fall 2024, BC received 4,288 ED applications and admitted 1,434 of them, about a quarter of all 5,632 admits. source
- Because BC meets full demonstrated need, it offers almost no merit aid: the Presidential Scholarship, full tuition for 18 students a year, is its only academic merit scholarship. source
- Direct billed costs for entering students in 2026-27 are $97,014, and Massachusetts law requires health coverage: BC's plan costs $4,723 unless waived. source
- BC offers first-years a $3,500 loan and a $3,000 work-study opportunity to help fund the family contribution. source
- Testing is optional, but BC says its research shows scores add predictive value and encourages students who tested to submit; 352 students were admitted from the waiting list for fall 2024. source
Net price at Boston College by family income
| Family income | Average net price 2023-24 | Share of the 2023-24 cost |
|---|---|---|
| $0-$30,000 | $4,284 | 5% |
| $30,001-$48,000 | $7,304 | 8% |
| $48,001-$75,000 | $13,112 | 15% |
| $75,001-$110,000 | $19,999 | 22% |
| $110,001 and up | $60,308 | 67% |
| All aided students | $41,704 | 47% |
Cost of attendance at Boston College, 2026-27
| Item | Amount | |
|---|---|---|
| Tuition | $75,070 | |
| Fees | $2,074 | |
| Housing and food | $19,870 | |
| Books and supplies | $1,300 | |
| Personal | $2,000 | |
| Total | $100,314 |
Boston College admissions by cycle
| Entering class | Applicants | Admitted | Enrolled | Admit rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fall 2026 entering class (Class of 2030) | 41,923 | 5,636 | 2,400 | 13.4% |
| Fall 2024 entering class (Class of 2028), fallback: CDS 2025-2026 not published | 34,779 | 5,632 | 2,394 | 16.2% |
| Fall 2024 (federal IPEDS figure) | n/a | n/a | n/a | 16.4% |
SAT and ACT scores at Boston College
| Score | 25th percentile | Median | 75th percentile |
|---|---|---|---|
| SAT total (Fall 2024 entering class (Class of 2028), fallback: CDS 2025-2026 not published, CDS 2024-2025, C9, fall 2024 enrolled (711 SAT submitters, 366 ACT submitters)) | 1,460 | 1,500 | 1,520 |
| ACT composite (Fall 2024 entering class (Class of 2028), fallback: CDS 2025-2026 not published (CDS 2024-2025, C9, fall 2024 enrolled (711 SAT submitters, 366 ACT submitters))) | 33 | 34 | 35 |
| SAT sections, fall 2024 (Scorecard) | 710 + 730 | n/a | 760 + 780 |
Outcomes at Boston College
| Measure | Value | Period |
|---|---|---|
| Graduated within 6 years | 91% | fall 2018 entering cohort |
| Returned for a second year | 96% | fall 2023 entering cohort |
| Median earnings 10 years after entry | $103,937 | measured 2020-2021, 10 years after entry, 2022 dollars |
| Median federal debt of graduates | $19,000 | students who finished in 2019-20 and 2020-21 |
| Undergraduates | 10,085 | fall 2024 |
| Students with a Pell Grant | 13% | 2023-24 |