Studying computer science

Getting Into Computer Science: Acceptance Rates at Top Universities

By Berian Reed SEO consultant at BR Digital. Read computer science at Manchester.

Search for a university’s acceptance rate and you get one number. Apply to study computer science there and that number may not describe your odds at all. Published rates cover every applicant in every subject, from classics to chemical engineering, and CS has spent a decade as one of the most oversubscribed subjects in American higher education. Whether the headline figure understates the difficulty for you depends entirely on how each university admits.

This page collects the most recent verifiable rates for the top US computer science universities we profile, with the admission cycle each covers. All of them are university-wide figures. Where a CS-specific mechanism exists, the notes say so.

University	Overall acceptance rate	Computer science note
Caltech	2.6% (autumn 2024)	One small institute-wide pool; SAT or ACT required again
Stanford	3.6% (autumn 2024)	Admits to the university; majors declared later
Harvard	4.2% (Class of 2029)	Admits to the College, not to a major
MIT	4.6% (Class of 2029)	Admits to the institute; no separate CS gate
Princeton	4.6% (autumn 2024)	CS available through both AB and BSE degrees
Cornell	8.4% (autumn 2024)	Apply to a college; CS sits in two of them
UC Berkeley	11% (autumn 2025)	CS is direct-admit; switching in later is restricted
Carnegie Mellon	11.1% (autumn 2025)	Apply to the School of Computer Science itself

Each rate comes from the university’s Common Data Set or its own admissions reporting, and the year in brackets is the entry cycle it covers.

Two ways top universities admit for CS

The table splits into two camps. In the first, you are admitted to the institution and pick your subject afterwards. MIT states plainly that it admits people, not majors: get in, and Course 6 is open to you. Harvard works the same way, with concentrations declared after arrival, as do Stanford, Princeton and Caltech. For these universities the headline rate genuinely is your rate, brutal as it already is.

In the second camp, the major is the gate. Carnegie Mellon’s colleges admit separately, so an application to the School of Computer Science competes only against other SCS applicants, and the university’s 11.1 per cent headline averages pools with very different depths. CMU does not break the figure out by school in its Common Data Set, so treat any SCS-specific percentage you see elsewhere with caution. Berkeley goes further: since 2023 its Computer Science major has been direct-admit through the College of Computing, Data Science and Society, and students admitted to a different Berkeley college must pass a comprehensive review to switch in. Cornell sits between the camps. You apply to one of its colleges rather than to the university, and CS is taught in two of them, Arts and Sciences and Engineering.

What the numbers mean for strategy

First, never read an overall rate as a CS rate. At direct-admit universities the computing pool is deeper than average, so the true bar is higher than the headline; at admit-to-university institutions the rate is accurate but leaves no second chances at the major stage.

Second, the second camp rewards honesty on the application form. At Berkeley, naming CS up front is the difference between a guaranteed seat in the major and a competitive internal review later. At Cornell, choosing between its two CS-hosting colleges changes the requirements around the major more than the major itself.

Third, scores still matter where they are accepted. MIT’s admitted middle 50 per cent scored 780 to 800 on SAT maths and 740 to 780 on reading and writing. Cornell’s enrolled first-years ran 1510 to 1560 on the composite, Carnegie Mellon’s 1500 to 1560. Caltech has made the SAT or ACT compulsory again and rates scores as very important in selection. Berkeley, by contrast, is test-blind and leans on grades: its admitted students carried weighted GPAs of 4.31 to 4.65 in the middle range.

How the UK differs

British universities do not really have acceptance rates in the American sense. You apply to a course, not an institution, so selectivity is published per subject, and offers are conditional on final exam grades rather than a completed transcript. Oxford’s computer science degrees, for instance, made offers to roughly one applicant in eleven for 2024 entry, with a compulsory admissions test before interview. That is a different game with different tactics. Our guides to the best UK computer science universities and UK entry requirements cover it properly.

Frequently asked

Is computer science harder to get into than the university overall?

Often, yes, but it depends on how the university admits. Where you apply to a CS school or major directly, as at Carnegie Mellon or UC Berkeley, the computing pool is more competitive than the headline rate suggests. Where admission is to the university as a whole, as at MIT or Harvard, there is one rate for everyone.

What acceptance rate should CS applicants actually look at?

The university-wide rate, but read alongside the admission mechanics. A published rate almost always covers every subject. Check whether CS is a direct-admit major, whether a separate school handles it, and whether students who enter elsewhere can still declare it later.

What GPA and SAT scores do top computer science programmes expect?

At the most selective US universities, admitted students cluster near the top of every scale. MIT's middle 50 per cent scored 780 to 800 on SAT maths, Cornell's enrolled students had SAT composites of 1510 to 1560, and UC Berkeley's admitted class carried weighted GPAs of 4.31 to 4.65. Berkeley itself is test-blind.

What is the difference between direct-admit and declaring CS later?

Direct-admit means you are accepted into the CS major or school from day one, as at Carnegie Mellon or Berkeley's College of Computing, Data Science and Society. Elsewhere you are admitted to the university and declare a major later. Direct-admit is harder up front but removes the risk of being shut out of the major once enrolled.

Do Oxford and Cambridge use acceptance rates the same way?

No. UK universities publish offer rates per course, not a university-wide figure, because you apply to one subject from the start. Oxford's computer science degrees made offers to roughly one applicant in eleven for 2024 entry, and applicants sit an admissions test before interview.

Sources

Last reviewed: 14 July 2026.