How to Get Into Johns Hopkins: Acceptance Rate and Strategies

Like many other elite private colleges, Johns Hopkins University has fared quite well in higher education’s selectivity arms race since the start of the present millennium. As the Baltimore Sun reported back in 1996, the school received an all-time record of 8,503 applicants for a spot in the Class of 2000; the Johns Hopkins acceptance rate was 40.5%. The dean of enrollment management at the time lamented that it was hard “because you want to take all of these kids.” Oh, if he only knew what the future had in store for the soon-to-be Ivy-equivalent JHU.

By 2009, only 26.7% of applicants got into Johns Hopkins. By 2018, the school had hit single digits and the following year, the acceptance rate hit a record low of 9.2% and attracted over 30,000 applicants. In 2022, that number fell to just 6.5%. So with all illusions of hitting cruise control and gliding into this private research powerhouse now shattered, it’s time to begin the hard work of preparing to apply to this highly-selective school that rejects more than nine out of every ten students who apply.

The intent of this article is to give those considering applying to Johns Hopkins University the following critical areas of knowledge:

• Johns Hopkins Early Decision acceptance rate – Class of 2027
• Johns Hopkins acceptance rate – Class of 2027
• SAT, ACT, GPA, and class rank of accepted Johns Hopkins applicants
• Admissions trends from the Class of 2027
• Johns Hopkins’ system for rating applicants
• A look at the demographics of Johns Hopkins undergraduates
• The percentage of accepted students that attend the university
• Tips for applying to Johns Hopkins
• Johns Hopkins Essay Advice
• How to assess whether applying to Johns Hopkins is even worth the $70 application fee (for you)

Many students applying to Johns Hopkins may also find the following blogs to be of interest:

How to Get Into:

• Cornell University
• Duke University
• Princeton University 

Let’s begin with an examination of the most recent admissions data.

Johns Hopkins: Early Decision Acceptance Rate 

JHU offers two ED options. The ED 1 deadline is November 1 and the ED II deadline is in early January. During the 2022-23 admissions cycle,  533 ED1 applicants were admitted from a pool of around 2,700 candidates. This equates to a Johns Hopkins Early Decision rate of 20%.

Johns Hopkins Acceptance Rate 

Out of 38,200+ applications submitted for a place in the 2023-24 freshman class; just 2,411 were accepted. This equates to an acceptance rate of 6.3%. This is lower in recent years as shown by a look at historical Johns Hopkins acceptance rates:

• Class of 2026: 6.5%
• 2025: 8%
  2024: 9%

Johns Hopkins Admissions – SAT, ACT, GPA, and Class Rank

The middle 50th percentile SAT score for enrolled members of the Class of 2026 was 1520-1560; on the ACT it was 34-35. Additionally, a stunning 99% of those attending placed in the top decile of their high school class. The mean unweighted GPA for freshmen entering the university in 2021-22 was a near-perfect 3.9.

Admissions Trends & Notes 

• Johns Hopkins will continue to be test-optional through the 2025-26 application year.
• 18% of the admitted Class of 2027 are first-generation college students.
• Admitted students hailed from 47 states and 39 countries around the globe.
• 93% of admitted Class of 2027 students held part-time jobs in high school.
• 55% of accepted students were members of their school’s student government.

How Johns Hopkins Rates Applicants

There are six factors that Johns Hopkins ranks as being “very important” to their admissions process: rigor of secondary school record, GPA, standardized test scores, the essay, recommendations, and character/personal qualities.  Class rank, extracurricular activities, and talent/ability are “important” to the admissions committee. Factors that are “considered” are volunteer work, first-generation status, state residency, geographic residence, legacy status, ethnicity, and paid work experience.

When conducting a holistic review, the admissions team wants to see evidence of:

1. Academic character: “How do you demonstrate your academic passions? What is important to you?”
2. Impact and Initiative: “We urge students to think about how they can make a difference through service, leadership, and innovation.”
3. Personal Contributions: “We’re looking for students who are eager to follow their interests at the college level and are enthusiastic about joining the campus community.”

Who Actually Gets Into Johns Hopkins?

Let’s look at the demographics of the Class of 2026.

Geographically, the current undergraduate student body is comprised of:

• Domestic students from all 50 states.
• International students from 51 nations.
• Students as close as 2.4 miles from campus and as far away as Indonesia.

Competition is harshest among those hailing from states with endless streams of qualified applicants (the entire Northeast & the West Coast). If you reside in a less populated state like Nebraska, South Dakota, or Montana, your location is more likely to provide a boost to your admissions chances.

Looking at ethnic identity, the breakdown for the freshmen entering in the fall of 2022 was as follows:

• White: 16%
• Asian American: 30%
• Hispanic: 21%
• African American: 16%
• American Indian: 2%
• International: 13%

The breakdown by gender is as follows:

• Male: 46%
• Female: 54%

Johns Hopkins’ Yield Rate

Johns Hopkins’s yield rate—the percentage of accepted students who elect to enroll, divided by the total number of students who are admitted is 54%. This number is almost 30 points lower than Harvard and Stanford but in the same ballpark as many other selective private universities. However, JHU sports a similar yield rate to schools like NYU, Rice, USC, and Carnegie Mellon.

Tips for Applying to Johns Hopkins

If you plan on joining the 38,000+ Hopkins hopefuls for the next admissions cycle, you should know the following:

• Johns Hopkins recently stopped offering alumni interviews. As a result, one of the best ways for admissions officers to get to know on a personal level is through your two required teacher recommendations. For tips on which teachers to target and how to ask, revisit our blog on the subject.
• Johns Hopkins does not consider “demonstrated interest” so you will not be judged on whether or not you made a campus visit, contacted an admissions officer, etc. However, given the school’s lower yield rate (compared to some other elite schools), it is never a bad idea to reach out to an admissions officer with a question, attend a virtual information session, or engage with the school on social media.
• Make sure to dedicate sufficient time and effort to the supplemental essay required by Johns Hopkins. In the 2022-23 cycle, the prompt was as follows:

1) Founded in the spirit of exploration and discovery, Johns Hopkins University encourages students to share their perspectives, develop their interests, and pursue new experiences. Use this space to share something you’d like the admissions committee to know about you (your interests, your background, your identity, or your community), and how it has shaped what you want to get out of your college experience at Hopkins. (300-400 words)

For tips on how to tackle the JHU essay check out our blog entitled Johns Hopkins University Essay Prompt & Tips.

Johns Hopkins Acceptance Rate – Final Thoughts 

If you bring strong academic and extracurricular credentials to the table, there is no harm in filling out a Johns Hopkins application, but—as with all highly-competitive colleges in 2023-24—even the best and brightest teens need to have an appropriate college list, containing a complement of “target” and “safety” schools. Those that will fare best in conquering this admissions gauntlet will boast a transcript of straight ‘A’s in an exceptionally rigorous program of classes, superior standardized test scores (when possible to take them given the pandemic), and at least one or two talents and passions outside of the classroom.