How to Apply

Application Deadline: November 15

Early Decision is a great option for students who are ready to make a personal and financial commitment to Bryn Mawr. These application plans are binding and students admitted under Early Decision are required to enroll at Bryn Mawr. While this is great for students who have a solid understanding of our community and their family’s financial aid eligibility, it is not the best option for everyone. If you are still unsure where you belong in the fall or if you want to compare multiple financial aid packages, you should consider applying Regular Decision.

Application Deadline: January 1

Early Decision is a great option for students who are ready to make a personal and financial commitment to Bryn Mawr. These application plans are binding and students admitted under Early Decision are required to enroll at Bryn Mawr. While this is great for students who have a solid understanding of our community and their family’s financial aid eligibility, it is not the best option for everyone. If you are still unsure where you belong in the fall or if you want to compare multiple financial aid packages, you should consider applying Regular Decision.

Application Deadline: January 15

Regular Decision is a great option for students who don’t have a clear first-choice college or who may need to compare different financial aid packages.

Application Deadline: March 1

Bryn Mawr welcomes students who have started their college journey at another institution to apply for fall admission each year.

If you are applying for financial aid, your application is due at the same time as your admissions application. Questions about applying for aid? Check out our application instructions or contact our office at finaid@brynmawr.edu.

While interviews are not required*, we strongly encourage you to interview if you can. Interviews help us learn more about you beyond your transcript and your essays. It’s also a great time to ask questions about Bryn Mawr from a member of the community.

Interviews must be completed by the deadline under which you are applying.

*We reserve the right to require an interview for students who are homeschooled, graduating early, or attending cyber school.

Early Decision I applicants can expect to receive an admissions decision in late December, while Early Decision II applicants will receive a decision in mid-February. Regular Decision applicants will receive their admissions decisions in mid-March.

Transfer and McBride Scholar applicants will receive an admissions decision in mid-April.

Yes, we are standardized test-optional for all applicants. If you're an international applicant, you'll still need to submit English proficiency results. Be sure to review our testing policy for all the details.

No.* While we do not require interviews, we do strongly recommend them as they can be a great opportunity to share more about yourself beyond your application materials and learn more about Bryn Mawr.

*We reserve the right to require an interview for students who attend homeschool or cyber school, or are graduating early.

You must apply for aid from the College as a first-year student to be considered for institutional grant assistance during any of your four years at the College. You may apply and will be considered for federal aid, including the Federal Direct Loan Program, every year whether or not you applied for institutional aid as a first-year student. To be considered for aid from the College as a first-year student, your response to the Financial Aid Intent question on the Common Application must be “Yes." 

Students admitted to Bryn Mawr College as first-time undergraduate students are automatically considered for the Bryn Mawr Merit Scholarship; no additional application is required. Applicants are evaluated using Bryn Mawr’s holistic admission review process, which takes numerous factors into consideration including but not limited to academic coursework and performance, involvement in school and community, leadership qualities, letters of recommendation, quality and content of writing, and potential to contribute in meaningful ways to the Bryn Mawr community.

Students may receive a Bryn Mawr Merit Scholarship even with no demonstrated financial need. Merit scholarships may be awarded to U.S. citizens and permanent residents. Awards range from $35,000-$45,000 per year. Scholarships are non-negotiable and only awarded at the time of admission. Merit scholarships are awarded for a maximum of eight semesters and renewable provided that the student is enrolled full-time at Bryn Mawr.

Nearly 78 percent of our students receive some type of financial aid. Bryn Mawr is committed to meeting 100 percent of demonstrated need. Visit the Financial Aid website to learn more about the College’s funding policies.

Yes. Bryn Mawr College awards need-based financial aid to international students which may consist of grants, loans, and campus employment. The College meets the full demonstrated need for all admitted students and there is a great deal of competition for these funds. Learn more about financial aid.

No. Bryn Mawr College is need-sensitive. This means that the amount of aid a student requests of the College may affect the admission decision. This is because Bryn Mawr has a limited pool of resources, yet is also committed to meeting full demonstrated need for all admitted students. Once admissibility is determined, funds are distributed until the financial aid budget has been depleted. If there are places remaining in the class, a student's request for aid may determine if she is admitted or not.

Bryn Mawr College does not discriminate on the basis of national origin or citizenship in our admissions process. In addition, Bryn Mawr makes admissions decisions from a global perspective and does not separate the pool into “international” and “domestic” for the purposes of making those decisions. While the College has practiced need-sensitive admission for all applicants since 1995, Bryn Mawr also meets full demonstrated financial need for all students who are eligible, including undocumented students. Learn more about admissions and financial aid resources for Undocu+ students.

Yes. The Bryn Mawr supplement is an additional component to the Common Application. The core of the supplement is the essay which will help the Admissions Committee learn more about your interest in the College--it also provides another opportunity for you to showcase your writing skills. The Bryn Mawr supplement can be found on the Common Application website.

We recommend that prospective students think carefully about Early Decision. Early Decision at Bryn Mawr is binding, which means that if admitted, you must enroll at the College. Students applying Early should consider Bryn Mawr as their first and only college choice. In addition, students admitted under an Early Decision plan are required to withdraw applications from other colleges and universities.

No. We can consider your application with a minimum of 1 full-time term (or 4 individual courses) of completed college-level work.