Acceptance rate is the first number most applicants look for and the least reliable one they will find. The reason is simple: business schools have almost entirely stopped publishing it. Across the 16 programs compared here — including Harvard, Stanford, Booth, Kellogg and Haas — not a single one states an acceptance rate on its own class-profile page. Chicago Booth publishes applications received (5,876) but not offers made; Harvard publishes 9,409 applications and 943 enrolled but no admit count; Stanford publishes applicants and enrolled students but, again, no admits.
That leaves every widely circulated MBA acceptance rate as a third-party figure, generally traced back to US News survey data compiled by outlets such as Poets&Quants. Those numbers are useful, and we cite them below, but they are estimates and should be read as such. Only Duke Fuqua has both underlying numbers in the public record — 4,032 applications and 969 admits — making it the one genuinely verifiable rate on this page.
So we have built this comparison to show both layers: the estimated acceptance rate, clearly labelled, and the class-profile medians that schools do publish and that tell you far more about your actual chances.
MBA acceptance rates and class profiles compared
Sorted from most to least selective. Figures are for the class entering Fall 2025 (Class of 2027) unless noted. Scores marked "Focus" use the GMAT Focus 205–805 scale; "classic" uses the older 200–800 scale. Entries marked [est] are third-party estimates, not school-published figures.
| School | Acceptance rate | GMAT | GPA | Class size | Avg work exp. | % international |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Stanford GSB | 6.8% [est] | Avg 689 Focus / 738 classic | 3.76 avg | 434 | 5.3 yrs | 38% |
| Harvard Business School | 11.2% [est] | Median 685 Focus / 730 classic | 3.76 avg | 943 | 4.9 yrs | 37% |
| MIT Sloan | 19% [est] | Median 675 Focus / 720 classic | 3.69 median | 450 | 5 yrs | 42% |
| UC Berkeley Haas | 21.4% [est] | Median 675 Focus / 730 classic | 3.67 avg | 273 | 5.6 yrs | 44% |
| Duke Fuqua | 24% [est] | Avg 722 classic (middle 80%: 680–770) | Middle 80%: 3.16–3.91 | 426 | 5.8 yrs | 35% |
| CMU Tepper | 24.3% [est] | Avg 659 / median 655 Focus | 3.33 avg | 144 | 5.2 yrs | 38% |
| Chicago Booth | 27.3% [est] | Avg 670 / median 675 Focus | 3.6 avg | 635 | 5 yrs | 37% |
| Kellogg (Full-Time) | 28.1% [est] | Avg 687 Focus / 733 legacy | 3.68 avg | 534 | 5.1 yrs | 37% |
| Yale SOM | 28.5% [est] | Median 675 Focus / 740 classic | 3.69 median | 367 | 5 yrs | 41% |
| Cornell Johnson | 29.3% [est] | Median 710 classic | 3.4 median | 276 | 5.3 yrs | 42% |
| Michigan Ross | 30% [est] | Avg 681 Focus / 731 classic | 3.43 avg | 379 | 5.8 yrs | 40% |
| UVA Darden | 30.7% [est] | Avg 671 / median 665 Focus | 3.54 avg | 361 | 5.67 yrs | 30% |
| UT Austin McCombs | 32.7% [est] | Median 655 Focus | 3.53 median | 235 | 6 yrs | 31% |
| Rice Jones | 34.2% [est] | Avg 693 classic | 3.4 avg | 137 | 5.7 yrs | 34% |
| Kellogg Evening & Weekend | n/a | Median 635 Focus (≈690 legacy) | 3.6 median | Not published | 6 yrs median | Not published |
| SDA Bocconi (Milan) | n/a | Not published | Not published | 129 | 6 yrs | ~81% non-Italian |
Swipe the table sideways to see all columns.
Sources are linked in each cell. Rate estimates come predominantly from Poets&Quants’ compilation of acceptance rates, yield and applications across the top 100 US MBA programs; class-profile figures come from each school’s own admissions page, linked in the per-school sections below.
Why almost no school publishes its acceptance rate
Selectivity functions as a marketing asset. A falling acceptance rate signals rising demand; a rising one suggests the opposite, which is precisely why the number tends to disappear from admissions pages during softer application cycles. Schools have little incentive to hand journalists a year-over-year comparison they cannot control.
What schools publish instead — median GMAT, median GPA, class size, work experience, international share — is harder to spin and considerably more actionable. If your GMAT Focus score and GPA both sit at or above a school’s medians, that school is a realistic target regardless of whether its acceptance rate is 19% or 34%.
Acceptance rate is a poor measure of difficulty
Compare two schools on this list. Yale SOM reports a median classic-scale GMAT of 740, the highest figure here, with an estimated acceptance rate around 28.5%. MIT Sloan is estimated at roughly 19% — substantially more selective on paper — yet its median GMAT Focus score of 675 is no higher than Haas or Yale.
The rate moves for reasons that have nothing to do with the academic bar: class size, application volume, yield management, and how aggressively a school waitlists. A large class with heavy application volume can post a low rate while admitting a broader range of profiles than a small program with a modest applicant pool.
What actually moves your odds
Within the band of applicants who clear a school’s academic threshold — and at these schools most applicants do — differentiation comes from positioning: a coherent career narrative, essays that answer "why this person, why now," and recommenders who corroborate specifics rather than adjectives. That is where an admissions strategy earns its keep, and it is the part of the application you still fully control after your score is set.
How to read GMAT Focus scores against these medians
Most schools now report both scales, which creates real confusion. Several schools on this list pair a median GMAT Focus 675 with a classic 730 — but the two scales are not linearly related, and the offset narrows considerably at lower scores. Do not apply a flat conversion. Our GMAT Focus score calculator and full percentile chart converts a specific score and shows its percentile on both scales, and our GRE-to-GMAT-Focus conversion guide covers the equivalent question for GRE takers.
One practical note on the table above: where a school reports an average rather than a median, the figure is usually a point or two lower, because a small number of low scores pull an average down more than a median. Compare like with like where you can.
School-by-school detail
Each entry lists the estimated acceptance rate, the school’s own published class profile, and what stands out about the program’s admissions posture.
Stanford GSB
Acceptance rate: 6.8% — estimated from published data, not disclosed by the school itself.
Class profile: GMAT Avg 689 Focus / 738 classic; GPA 3.76 avg; class size 434; 5.3 yrs average work experience; 38% international (school class profile).
The most selective MBA program in the United States. Stanford publishes 7,259 applicants and 434 enrolled students but never releases the number of offers made.
Harvard Business School
Acceptance rate: 11.2% — estimated from published data, not disclosed by the school itself.
Class profile: GMAT Median 685 Focus / 730 classic; GPA 3.76 avg; class size 943; 4.9 yrs average work experience; 37% international (school class profile).
HBS runs the largest class on this list at 943 students, from 9,409 applications. Its median work experience is the lowest here, at 4.9 years.
MIT Sloan
Acceptance rate: 19% — estimated from published data, not disclosed by the school itself.
Class profile: GMAT Median 675 Focus / 720 classic; GPA 3.69 median; class size 450; 5 yrs average work experience; 42% international (school class profile).
Sloan is the most selective school here outside HBS and Stanford. Its median GMAT Focus score of 675 sits below Kellogg and Stanford, so selectivity here is not purely score-driven.
UC Berkeley Haas
Acceptance rate: 21.4% — estimated from published data, not disclosed by the school itself.
Class profile: GMAT Median 675 Focus / 730 classic; GPA 3.67 avg; class size 273; 5.6 yrs average work experience; 44% international (school class profile).
Haas has the highest share of international students on this list at 44%, in one of the smaller classes at 273 students.
Duke Fuqua
Acceptance rate: 24% — estimated from published data, not disclosed by the school itself.
Class profile: GMAT Avg 722 classic (middle 80%: 680–770); GPA Middle 80%: 3.16–3.91; class size 426; 5.8 yrs average work experience; 35% international (school class profile).
Fuqua is the only school on this list where both underlying numbers are public — 4,032 applications and 969 admits — so its rate is the one figure here that is genuinely verifiable.
CMU Tepper
Acceptance rate: 24.3% — estimated from published data, not disclosed by the school itself.
Class profile: GMAT Avg 659 / median 655 Focus; GPA 3.33 avg; class size 144; 5.2 yrs average work experience; 38% international (school class profile).
Tepper has both the lowest average GPA (3.33) and one of the smallest classes (144) here — a quant-heavy program where GMAT performance tends to carry more weight than undergraduate GPA.
Chicago Booth
Acceptance rate: 27.3% — estimated from published data, not disclosed by the school itself.
Class profile: GMAT Avg 670 / median 675 Focus; GPA 3.6 avg; class size 635; 5 yrs average work experience; 37% international (school class profile).
Booth publishes 5,876 applications but no admit count. Note the class-size discrepancy: 635 full-time MBAs on Booth’s own page versus 695 enrolled in the US News-derived table.
Kellogg (Full-Time)
Acceptance rate: 28.1% — estimated from published data, not disclosed by the school itself.
Class profile: GMAT Avg 687 Focus / 733 legacy; GPA 3.68 avg; class size 534; 5.1 yrs average work experience; 37% international (school class profile).
Kellogg posts the highest average GMAT Focus score on this list at 687 — above both HBS’s and Stanford’s medians — despite an acceptance rate near 28%.
Yale SOM
Acceptance rate: 28.5% — estimated from published data, not disclosed by the school itself.
Class profile: GMAT Median 675 Focus / 740 classic; GPA 3.69 median; class size 367; 5 yrs average work experience; 41% international (school class profile).
Yale’s median classic-scale GMAT of 740 is the highest on this list, which shows how misleading acceptance rate alone can be as a difficulty signal.
Cornell Johnson
Acceptance rate: 29.3% — estimated from published data, not disclosed by the school itself.
Class profile: GMAT Median 710 classic; GPA 3.4 median; class size 276; 5.3 yrs average work experience; 42% international (school class profile).
Johnson combines a relatively accessible median GPA of 3.4 with a high international share of 42%. Cornell reports only the classic 200–800 scale.
Michigan Ross
Acceptance rate: 30% — estimated from published data, not disclosed by the school itself.
Class profile: GMAT Avg 681 Focus / 731 classic; GPA 3.43 avg; class size 379; 5.8 yrs average work experience; 40% international (school class profile).
Ross shrank its class to 379 while raising scores. Its own site still displayed Class of 2026 data when we checked, so the figures here come from reporting on the newer class.
UVA Darden
Acceptance rate: 30.7% — estimated from published data, not disclosed by the school itself.
Class profile: GMAT Avg 671 / median 665 Focus; GPA 3.54 avg; class size 361; 5.67 yrs average work experience; 30% international (school class profile).
Darden has the lowest international share on this list at 30%, making it one of the more domestically weighted top-tier classes.
UT Austin McCombs
Acceptance rate: 32.7% — estimated from published data, not disclosed by the school itself.
Class profile: GMAT Median 655 Focus; GPA 3.53 median; class size 235; 6 yrs average work experience; 31% international (school class profile).
McCombs reports the joint-highest average work experience here at 6 years, alongside the most accessible median GMAT Focus score at 655.
Rice Jones
Acceptance rate: 34.2% — estimated from published data, not disclosed by the school itself.
Class profile: GMAT Avg 693 classic; GPA 3.4 avg; class size 137; 5.7 yrs average work experience; 34% international (school class profile).
The least selective school on this list and the smallest US class at 137 students. Rice reports on the classic scale only.
Kellogg Evening & Weekend
Acceptance rate: not published or reliably estimated anywhere.
Class profile: GMAT Median 635 Focus (≈690 legacy); GPA 3.6 median; class size Not published; 6 yrs median average work experience; Not published international (school class profile).
Part-time programs are generally less selective than their full-time counterparts, and Kellogg’s median Focus score of 635 is 52 points below its full-time class. No acceptance rate is published or estimated anywhere for this program.
SDA Bocconi (Milan)
Acceptance rate: not published or reliably estimated anywhere.
Class profile: GMAT Not published; GPA Not published; class size 129; 6 yrs average work experience; ~81% non-Italian international (school class profile).
Europe’s admissions disclosure norms differ sharply from the US: Bocconi publishes neither test scores nor GPA nor an acceptance rate. The international figure is derived from its own geography chart (100% minus 19% Italy).
Notes, caveats and data quality
- No school self-reports a rate. All 16 omit it from their class-profile pages. Every rate above is third-party.
- Nothing is computed from official figures. Because no school discloses offers made, no rate here is calculated from a school’s own numbers.
- Cycle alignment was checked. The enrollment counts in the third-party table match each school’s own published class size — Yale 367, Kellogg 534, Tepper 144, McCombs 235, Cornell 276, Rice 137, Darden 361, Haas 273, Fuqua 426, HBS 943, Stanford 434, MIT 450 — confirming the rates refer to the same entering class.
- Entering-class outliers. Michigan Ross’s own page still showed Class of 2026 data when we checked, so its figures come from reporting on the newer class. Kellogg’s Evening & Weekend profile covers Fall 2024–Summer 2025 entrants, and Bocconi’s is the 2025–26 intake.
- Secondary class-profile values. MIT Sloan’s GMAT medians and GPA come from reporting because its official profile is JavaScript-only; Fuqua’s average GMAT and all Ross Class-of-2027 figures are likewise from reporting.
- Two unavailable rates. Kellogg Evening & Weekend and SDA Bocconi have no published or credibly estimated acceptance rate, so we show "n/a" rather than guess.
MBA acceptance rate FAQs
What is a good MBA acceptance rate to target?
Acceptance rate is a property of the school, not of you, so "targeting" one is the wrong frame. A 25% acceptance rate does not mean you have a 25% chance — self-selection means the applicant pool at every school on this list is already strong. A more useful test is where your GMAT and GPA fall relative to the class medians above: at or above both medians, the school is a realistic target; well below both, it is a reach.
Why do so few business schools publish their acceptance rates?
Selectivity is a marketing asset, and a rising acceptance rate reads as weakening demand. Of the 16 programs here, not one publishes an acceptance rate on its own class-profile page. Only Duke Fuqua has both underlying numbers in the public record. Schools do publish class medians, which are harder to spin and more useful to you.
Is a GMAT Focus 675 the same as a classic 730?
Roughly, at the top of the scale — several schools on this list report exactly that pairing, including Yale, Haas and MIT Sloan. The two scales are not linearly related, though, and the gap narrows at lower scores. Use our GMAT Focus score calculator and percentile chart to convert a specific score rather than applying a flat offset.
Does a lower acceptance rate mean the school is harder to get into?
Not reliably. Yale SOM reports a median classic GMAT of 740 — the highest on this list — with an acceptance rate near 28.5%, while MIT Sloan admits about 19% with a median Focus score of 675. Class size, applicant volume and yield all move the rate independently of academic bar.
How much does work experience matter?
Every school here clusters between 4.9 and 6 years, which tells you the band matters more than the exact number. HBS is lowest at 4.9 years and McCombs highest at 6. Applying with under three years generally means making an unusually strong case for accelerated progression.
Should I apply to a part-time MBA if my scores are lower?
It is a legitimate route: Kellogg’s Evening & Weekend median Focus score of 635 runs 52 points below its full-time class. The tradeoff is recruiting access, since part-time students often have reduced access to the full-time internship pipeline. Decide based on whether you are changing careers or advancing in your current one.