When people hear “small liberal arts college,” they often think of schools in the Northeast. But North Carolina, where the weather’s a little warmer and the food has a bit more soul, is home to a top liberal arts college: Davidson College is located just twenty minutes away from Charlotte and, with only 2,000 students, it’s quite a small school. That doesn’t mean it isn’t mighty, though: it’s ranked #13 in national liberal arts colleges by US News & World Report. If you’re reading this, you’re likely wondering if your son or daughter has what it takes to be a Wildcat. We’re going to get into the nitty-gritty of that, but first, let’s look at why Davidson is such a strong contender in higher education. 

About Davidson College

Davidson is perhaps best known for its strong, student-run Honor Code. The strongest instantiation of the Honor Code are the self-scheduled, unproctored final exams Davidson students take. Some of these exams are take-home, timed, and closed-book, all done under a student’s honor. If belongings or money are lost, there are campus-wide announcements that seek to reunite found belongings with the people who lost them. As Davidson President Henry Louis Smith put it in 1904, “Davidson frankly avows her belief that Character is more important than Education, that Sincerity, Honor, and Purity are more valuable than Knowledge… true breadth of culture is found in the harmonious development of body, mind, and moral nature.”

Davidson’s campus is suburban and located just a short walk from Lake Norman. Virtually all of Davidson’s students live on campus all four years, so the school community is strong and tight-knit. For a small college, Davidson offers an impressive 37 majors across the humanities, social sciences, and sciences.

The acceptance rate for Davidson’s Class of 2029 was a mere 12.6%, making it what we at Ivy Coach consider a very competitive school to get into. Let’s learn what separates that small percentage of students who get into Davidson from other applicants. 

Davidson College Admissions Requirements

You probably won’t be shocked that a strong GPA, high test scores, and stand-out extracurricular achievements are the backbone of any strong application. But you should also know that these three things alone won’t get you into Davidson, or into any school for that matter. Admissions officers at Davidson consider each student in context and are also looking to fill out their student bodies in certain ways. In short, admissions is a fluid, dynamic, ever-shifting landscape, and there’s no template for a successful application to Davidson. That being said, let’s look at the features that unite Davidson admits and distinguish them from those who didn’t get in. 

What Kind of GPA Is Necessary To Get Into Davidson?

The following is the GPA breakdown of the members of Davidson’s Class of 2028, as reported in Davidson’s 2024-25 Common Data Set (the only Common Data Set Davidson has publicly available):

GPA	Percentage of Davidson College Class of 2028
4.0	40.55%
3.75-3.99	32.82%
3.5-3.74	21.04%
3.25-3.49	5.21%
3.0-3.24	0.19%
2.5-2.99	0.19%
2.0-2.49	0%
1.0-1.99	0%

So, last year, 40.55% of students who enrolled in Davidson’s Class of 2028 boasted a 4.0 GPA, 32.82% had a GPA between 3.75 and 4.0, and 21.04% had a GPA between 3.5 and 3.75. It sure sounds like academic rigor is super important to Davidson admissions officers, although we can’t be sure whether Davidson is reporting weighted or unweighted figures here. This little difference can have huge implications for the actual merit of its student body.

Regardless, GPA alone is not a reliable indicator of admission chances at Davidson College. Even the former elite college admissions officers at Ivy Coach can’t make accurate predictions based solely on GPA, much to the chagrin of certain parents during our complimentary consultations, who would like to know whether their child can get into Davidson by touting their GPA and GPA alone.

What Kind of GPA Is Necessary To Get Into Davidson College?

The average SAT score for Davidson’s Class of 2028 was 1460, and the average ACT score was 33. During that admissions cycle, less than ½ of applicants submitted their test scores. Even with that, we at Ivy Coach believe that not sending your standardized testing scores can only ever hurt your chances at admissions, even to supposedly test-optional schools. 

What Classes Do Students Need to Take to Get Into Davidson College?

Davidson lists the following academic preparation as the minimum course preparation for all applicants:

• Four units of English
• Three units of mathematics
• The second level of a language other than English (may include American Sign Language)
• Two units of science
• Two units of history and/or social studies

Of course, we would never recommend merely two or three years of preparation in any subject. We at Ivy Coach know that highly selective colleges like Davidson want to see students excelling in each core subject (English, history, math, science, and foreign language) all four years of high school. In fact, they expect to see five years for foreign language since most students begin their first level of foreign language in eighth grade.

What Kinds of Extracurriculars Does Davidson College Like To See?

We’re going to play MythBusters for a moment: highly selective colleges are not looking for well-rounded students. That is an urban legend, a false prophet! What schools are looking for are well-rounded student bodies comprised of uniquely talented students, each contributing some different achievement to the greater whole. 

Think about it for a second: a “well-rounded” student plays on the football team, is part of the ensemble in the school musical, contributes a couple of hours to the robotics team, and is a member of Model UN. But their time, energy, and attention are spread so thin between these endeavors that they’re always benched during games because they never can catch the ball, they’re put in the back during dance numbers because they don’t have the time to rehearse at home like the other thespians do, they have no idea how to actually build a robot, and they show up to Model UN conferences unprepared because they were too busy being mediocre at all their other activities to excel at this one. 

Now think of the singularly talented kid: they’re so deft with diplomacy, have practiced and researched for so many hundreds of hours, that they get to represent the United States or the United Kingdom at every Model UN conference they go to, and they win “Best Delegate” awards at these conferences. They’ve even been invited to speak at the actual UN. Maybe they take theatre classes on the side, but this is only in service of furthering their elocution skills within the context of diplomacy, learning how to project every word and enunciate every consonant, as any good public speaker does. 

Which student would you admit? The one who is a member of a bunch of unrelated activities, or the one who’s got the background and know-how to become a real-world diplomat one day, the same one you can, in years from now, invite to be Commencement Speaker?

We rest our case. 

Davidson College Application Requirements

Davidson College accepts the Common App or Coalition App. They ask for one letter of recommendation from a counselor and two from teachers. Finally, they ask applicants to respond to the following two questions: 

• There are just under 3,000 4-year colleges and universities in the United States. Being as specific as possible, what interests you most about Davidson College? (250-300 words)
• Davidson encourages students to explore curiosities in and out of the classroom. What is a topic, activity or idea that excites you? Tell us why. Examples may include hobbies, books, interactions, music, podcasts, movies, etc. (250-300 words)

Who Should Students Ask For Letters of Recommendation For Davidson College? 

Davidson College applicants should ask two junior year teachers in core subjects. Obviously, the applicant should have a good relationship with the teacher or at least have performed well in their class. In addition, at least one of the recommender’s subject area should be related to the student’s hook: if a student’s singular hook is studying fruit fly DNA, it wouldn’t make sense if their recommenders were their History and English teachers. 

Does Davidson College Require an Interview? 

Davidson College does not require an interview, and, in fact, they don’t even offer one!

What Are Davidson College’s Application Deadlines? 

Early Action and Early Decision I applications to Davidson are due November 1. Early Decision II applications are due January 5.  Regular Decision applications are due January 12. 

How Ivy Coach Helps Students Get Into Davidson College

If you’re interested in discerning if your child has a shot of getting into Davidson College, we recommend setting up Ivy Coach’s Strategy Session. Not only will you find out if your child has a chance of getting into Davidson College, but you’ll receive a game plan of how your child can optimize their admission to the best school possible.