What Do US Colleges Really Look For in Admissions? A Factor-by-Factor Count of the 18 Admission Factors in the Common Data Set (C7) at 53 Universities: How Course Rigor, GPA, Essays, Test Scores, Interviews and Legacy Are Rated, and How Domestic and International Applicants (Including Students in China) Can Use It
In section C7 of the Common Data Set, each US university rates 18 admission factors as very important, important, considered or not considered. We checked the original C7 tables of 53 universities: 49 rate the rigor of the secondary school record as very important and 44 rate academic GPA as very important; 30 consider standardized test scores and 6 do not; 27 do not consider interviews and 22 do not consider alumni relations. This guide explains how to read and use C7.
What do US colleges really look for? Universities answer this themselves. Each year's Common Data Set (CDS) includes a table, C7, on the relative importance of each academic and nonacademic factor in first-time, first-year admission decisions. The university rates each of 18 factors as very important, important, considered or not considered.
In November 2026 we read and checked the original C7 tables of 53 US universities (50 are the 2025-2026 edition, Carnegie Mellon is 2026-2027, and Grinnell and Colorado College only have 2024-2025). The counts are below. Each university's full C7 table and a link to its original report are on its page on this site, under "What the university weighs in first-year admissions"; the list of universities is at the end.
1. What C7 is and how to read it
- What the CDS is: the Common Data Set is a collaboration between data providers in higher education and publishers such as the College Board, aimed at standard data items and definitions so that students get more accurate information (Common Data Set Initiative). Universities fill in the same template, so their answers can be compared.
- Who fills it in: each university completes and publishes its own C7. It is the university's stated admission policy, not a third-party estimate.
- Who it applies to: C7 covers all first-year applicants. It is not a separate policy for international students, who should also check each university's international pages.
- The four levels are relative: the table has four levels and no numeric definition of each. Within one university you can compare which factors matter more; across universities, the same "very important" does not necessarily carry the same weight.
- Blanks: a few universities left a row unmarked. We record these as "not marked" and do not guess.
2. Counts across 53 universities
The table shows how many universities give each factor each rating (every row adds up to 53):
| Factor | Very important | Important | Considered | Not considered | Not marked |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rigor of secondary school record | 49 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Class rank | 18 | 11 | 13 | 11 | 0 |
| Academic GPA | 44 | 5 | 4 | 0 | 0 |
| Standardized test scores | 7 | 10 | 30 | 6 | 0 |
| Application essay | 32 | 18 | 2 | 1 | 0 |
| Recommendation(s) | 28 | 16 | 3 | 6 | 0 |
| Interview | 0 | 4 | 21 | 27 | 1 |
| Extracurricular activities | 22 | 23 | 7 | 1 | 0 |
| Talent/ability | 16 | 19 | 17 | 1 | 0 |
| Character/personal qualities | 32 | 15 | 5 | 1 | 0 |
| First generation | 0 | 7 | 43 | 2 | 1 |
| Alumni/ae relation | 0 | 0 | 31 | 22 | 0 |
| Geographical residence | 0 | 1 | 48 | 4 | 0 |
| State residency | 2 | 2 | 29 | 20 | 0 |
| Religious affiliation/commitment | 0 | 0 | 4 | 49 | 0 |
| Volunteer work | 2 | 11 | 39 | 1 | 0 |
| Work experience | 1 | 8 | 43 | 1 | 0 |
| Level of applicant's interest | 1 | 1 | 23 | 28 | 0 |
3. What the table shows
1. Course rigor and GPA are at the top almost everywhere. Of the 53, 49 rate the rigor of the secondary school record as very important and 44 rate academic GPA as very important; no university rates either as not considered. The courses you take in high school and your grades in them are the most consistent foundation for admission.
2. Essays, character, recommendations and activities come next. The application essay and character/personal qualities are each rated very important by 32 universities, recommendations by 28, and extracurricular activities by 22 (with 23 more rating them important). There are exceptions: Penn State rates both the essay and recommendations as not considered, and 6 universities in total rate recommendations as not considered.
3. Test scores vary the most. 30 rate standardized test scores as considered, 10 as important, 7 as very important (Amherst, Babson, Caltech, Dartmouth, Emory, Rice, Washington University in St. Louis) and 6 as not considered (Pitzer, Reed, UCLA, UC San Diego, UC Irvine, the University of Washington). Within the University of California, UC Berkeley rates them as considered while the Los Angeles, San Diego and Irvine campuses rate them as not considered; C7 says only "standardized test scores" and does not say which tests it covers. UC states that it will not consider SAT or ACT scores when making admissions decisions (UC: filling out the application). Always follow the target university's own testing policy.
4. Most universities do not use interviews. 27 rate the interview as not considered, 21 as considered and 4 as important; none rate it very important, and Washington University in St. Louis left this row unmarked.
5. No university rates alumni relations as important. 31 consider it and 22 do not. Claremont McKenna's original table says "yes 2025 no 2026" in this row, meaning it is no longer considered from 2026; this site records it as not considered.
6. Most universities do not count demonstrated interest. The level of applicant's interest is not considered at 28 and considered at 23; only Pitzer rates it very important and Bates important.
7. Other background factors are mostly "considered". First generation is considered at 43 and important at 7; geographical residence is considered at 48; state residency is considered at 29 and not considered at 20, with Georgia Tech and the University of Washington rating it very important and UC San Diego and Bates rating it important; religious affiliation is not considered at 49. None of the 53 tables we read includes a racial/ethnic status row.
4. How domestic and international applicants (including students in China) can use C7
- All applicants: open the "What the university weighs" section on each target university's page and focus your preparation on the factors rated very important and important. Where a university rates something as not considered (at many universities, interviews and demonstrated interest), there is no need to spend a lot of extra time on it.
- Domestic applicants: state residency is considered at some universities, and requirements and places may differ for in-state and out-of-state applicants; check each university's website.
- International applicants: C7 applies to all applicants. English test scores, international documents and financial statements are not in this table; check each university's international pages.
- Students in China: C7 does not say how universities interpret course rigor or GPA on a Chinese high school transcript; follow each university's website and admissions office. Course rigor and GPA, the two most consistent factors, are a good place to start.
Frequently asked questions
What do US universities consider most important in admissions?
In the Common Data Set C7 tables of the 53 universities we checked, 49 rate the rigor of the secondary school record as very important and 44 rate academic GPA as very important; the application essay and character/personal qualities are each rated very important by 32, and recommendations by 28.
Do US universities still consider SAT/ACT and other standardized test scores?
Of the 53 universities, 30 rate standardized test scores as considered, 10 as important, 7 as very important and 6 as not considered, the widest spread of any factor. C7 does not say which tests it covers, and UC states that it will not consider SAT or ACT scores when making admissions decisions. Follow each target university's own testing policy.
Do US universities consider interviews, alumni relations and demonstrated interest?
Of the 53 universities, 27 rate the interview as not considered, 21 as considered and 4 as important; alumni relations are considered at 31 and not considered at 22, with none rating them important; the level of applicant's interest is not considered at 28 and considered at 23, with only Pitzer rating it very important and Bates important.
Does Common Data Set C7 apply to international students?
C7 lists the admission factors a university reports for all first-year applicants; it is not a separate policy for international students. English test scores, international documents and financial statements are not in this table, so international applicants and students in China should also check each university's international pages.
References
Common Data Set Initiative; UC: filling out the application; each university's original Common Data Set (section C7), linked from its page on this site. The 53 universities counted: Amherst College, Babson College, Barnard College, Bates College, Boston University, Bowdoin College, California Institute of Technology, Carleton College, Carnegie Mellon University, Claremont McKenna College, Colgate University, Colorado College, Columbia University, Cornell University, Dartmouth College, Davidson College, Denison University, Duke University, Emory University, Georgia Institute of Technology, Grinnell College, Hamilton College, Harvard University, Harvey Mudd College, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Middlebury College, New York University, Northwestern University, Pennsylvania State University, Pitzer College, Purdue University, Reed College, Rice University, Skidmore College, Swarthmore College, Tufts University, University of California, Berkeley, University of California, Los Angeles, University of California, San Diego, University of California, Irvine, University of Chicago, University of Florida, University of Michigan-Ann Arbor, University of Richmond, University of Southern California, University of Washington, Vanderbilt University, Vassar College, Villanova University, Washington University in St. Louis, Washington and Lee University, Wellesley College, Yale University. Data checked in November 2026; universities update their CDS each year, so follow the latest edition.