How to Use the Georgetown Common Data Set

If you’re looking for a way to level up your Georgetown application, then the Georgetown Common Data Set will be your new best friend. The data set contains all kinds of valuable admissions and enrollment information.

In this post, we guide you through the major sections and tell you how to put the data into action.

Let’s start with the Georgetown application review process.

How Georgetown Evaluates Applicants — based on CDS data

When you apply to Georgetown, there are a few things admissions officers will be looking for. Most importantly, they’ll want to see that you’ve been academically successful. They assess academic success by looking at the level of courses you’ve taken, the grades you’ve earned, and the test scores you’ve received.

But academic success on its own won’t get you into Georgetown. They also want to see that you’ve excelled in your extracurriculars and made an impact on those around you. Your personal character and individual talent should be apparent. Finally, admissions officers will expect to see well-written and deeply meaningful application essays.

One unique thing to note about Georgetown’s application process is the importance of admissions interviews. Many other schools list admission interviews in the “considered” category, but not Georgetown. For Georgetown, those admissions interviews aren’t just important—they’re required!

Does Georgetown track demonstrated interest?

No. Georgetown does not track demonstrated interest. It’s one of the admissions factors that they don’t take into consideration at all, so don’t worry about opening every single Georgetown email or doing a million virtual visits. Gather the information that you need to write a good application, and then spend the rest of your time on your essays.

Does Georgetown care about standardized test scores?

Yes, Georgetown reports that standardized test scores are very important to their application evaluation process. And you can see just how important those test scores are by looking at the number of enrolled first-year students who submitted scores: 64% sent in an SAT score, and 38% sent in an ACT score. Georgetown isn’t test-optional, so you won’t have much of a choice. But it’s good to know how important they are regardless.

Does Georgetown care about essays?

Yup. Georgetown considers essays to be a very important part of your application—just as important as your GPA, course rigor, and personal character. In fact, your essays are the best place for Georgetown admissions officers to get to know you and learn about your personal strengths, talents, and character. Since Georgetown places a lot of weight on your application essays, you’ll want to write them strategically. If you’re not sure where to start your essay writing process, check out our college essay writing guide and Georgetown supplemental essay guide.

What GPA do I need to get into Georgetown?

While some universities report GPA data, Georgetown’s Common Data Set does not. But you can still learn a lot about the GPAs of admitted students by looking at data about class rank.

Of the enrolled first-year students who reported class rank, 99% ranked in the top half of their high school graduating classes, 97% were in the top quarter, and 85% ranked in the top tenth. Only 1% were in the bottom half of their classes.

This class rank data won’t tell you the specific GPA you should be aiming for, but it’s safe to assume that the 85% who ranked in the top tenth of their classes had perfect or near-perfect GPAs. It’s also safe to assume that if your school does class rank, you should aim to be at least in the top half to get into Georgetown.

Georgetown Acceptance Rate

Georgetown received 27,629 applications and admitted 3,311 students, making for a nearly 12% acceptance rate. At 12%, Georgetown ranks alongside schools like USC and Tufts in terms of admissions difficulty. Of the 3,311 students who were admitted, 1,585 decided to enroll.

Georgetown Early Decision Acceptance Rate

Georgetown does not offer an Early Decision application plan. But you can apply Early Action. The Georgetown admissions office reports that there is no statistical advantage to applying Early Action versus Regular Decision, though you will hear your admissions decision sooner if you apply early.

What’s the right application option for you?

When it comes to deciding between an Early Action or Regular Decision application, the choice is up to you. The major benefit of applying Early Action is that you get your admissions decision early, so you have more time to make your decision if you are admitted. The Georgetown admissions office states that applicants who aren’t admitted in the Early Action round are deferred to be reviewed again in the spring, so you might be able to get two reads if your application isn’t successful on the first pass.

While there may not be a drastic statistical advantage to applying Early Action, you may prefer to hear back sooner. But the cost for hearing back sooner is that you have to have your application materials ready nearly two months before the RD deadline. If you think that you can write the same quality application for the EA deadline as the RD deadline, there isn’t any harm in applying early. But if you need more time, then you should consider prioritizing a quality application over an early one.

Most popular majors at Georgetown

One of the main ways you can build your school list is by looking for schools that excel in the academic field you hope to major in. Looking at the most popular majors at an institution can help you determine what schools are best for which majors.

While there isn’t major-specific data in the Georgetown Common Data Set, they do report the number of degrees students earned in each field. Let’s take a look at the data in the chart below.

Located in Washington, D.C., it’s no wonder that Georgetown’s most popular majors are in the social sciences and business. Together, they make up 58.6% of all degrees awarded. That’s a lot! Other popular majors include interdisciplinary studies, biological and life sciences, and health professions.

Notice how computer and information sciences are still on this list, but they’re at the very bottom. Computer science degrees accounted for only 2% of degrees awarded. That means Georgetown may be one of the few schools where you’ll face more competition with a political science major than a computer science major.

As when applying to any school, you’ll have to balance the competition of a particular program with your own application strengths.

What should you do with all this information?

For many students, attending Georgetown can unlock a world of connections and possibilities. If you want to be one of the 12% who are admitted, it’s important to think about how your application aligns with what Georgetown admissions officers are looking for—especially if you’re applying to a more popular major.

With 99% of students ranking in the top half of their high school classes, you’ll need to be on your A-game when it comes to academics. When writing your Georgetown application, use your extracurricular section to draw out your strengths and personal narrative. And your essays, when written well, will tie everything together with a big, red bow.

Ready to get started? Look to our How to Get into Georgetown guide to begin crafting your Georgetown application strategy.