The big picture: why this matters now

Two trends have been colliding over the past few cycles:

• Competition tightened again at top MBA programs as applications rebounded.
• Undergraduate GPAs became less informative at many elite universities as grades concentrated at the top.

This creates a practical admissions problem: how do you fairly compare candidates from different universities, countries, grading scales, and grading cultures?

Top 10 MBA admit-rate trend (2020–2024)

The table below aggregates the Top 10 U.S. MBA programs (as commonly defined in major rankings) and shows how the total applicant pool, admits, and acceptance rate moved over the last five cycles.

Cycle year	Applications	Admits	Acceptance rate	Yield	Enrolled
2024	73,707	17,382	23.6%	48.7%	8,465
2023	64,591	17,943	27.8%	48.4%	8,691
2022	64,646	14,354	22.2%	49.0%	7,033
2021	67,355	12,393	18.4%	50.2%	6,223
2020	71,084	15,875	22.3%	51.1%	8,112

Interpretation The cycle-to-cycle mix changes, but the pattern is clear: acceptance rates can swing several percentage points, and “easier vs harder to get in” is not a static story.

M7 acceptance rates (latest cycle)

Here are the most recent M7 acceptance rates published in a consolidated format (with the prior year shown in parentheses). If you’re aiming at the very top, this is the competitive reality.

School	Acceptance rate (latest)
Harvard Business School	11.2% (13.2%)
Stanford GSB	6.8% (8.4%)
Wharton (UPenn)	20.5% (24.8%)
Columbia Business School	20.9% (22.4%)
Chicago Booth	28.7% (32.6%)
Northwestern Kellogg	28.6% (33.3%)
MIT Sloan	14.1% (17.8%)
M7 total / average	18.7% (21.8%)

Note “Latest” refers to the most recently reported cycle in the source table. Always verify school-level policies and stats against the program site and the newest class profile.

Ivy League business schools: GMAT/GRE policies

Many applicants ask: “Do Ivy League schools still use GMAT?” In practice, most top MBA programs accept GMAT or GRE (and sometimes Executive Assessment). Some programs also offer limited test waivers.

School	Program	Policy (high level)	Official info
Harvard	HBS MBA	Accepts GMAT or GRE	HBS application process
UPenn	Wharton MBA	GMAT or GRE required	Wharton application guide
Columbia	CBS MBA	GMAT / GRE (and other options) accepted	CBS requirements
Yale	Yale SOM MBA	Accepts GMAT or GRE	Yale SOM guide
Dartmouth	Tuck MBA	GMAT/GRE required; waivers exist in limited cases	Tuck admissions FAQs
Cornell	Johnson MBA	Accepts GMAT or GRE (waiver options exist)	Johnson requirements

Grade inflation: Harvard + Yale numbers

Grade inflation is a loaded term, but the underlying data is straightforward: a growing share of grades sit in the top band, which makes GPA less discriminating as a ranking tool.

Harvard

• 79% of grades were in the A-range in the 2020–21 academic year.
• The mean grade reported was 3.80 (4.0 scale) for 2020–21.

Yale

• Yale College’s mean GPA was reported as 3.70 for 2022–23.
• 78.97% of grades were A or A- in 2022–23.

The thesis: GMAT is “behind” grade inflation — and that can help you

Here’s the practical way to frame it (without overclaiming):

• GPA is contextual. A 3.7 can mean different things across institutions, majors, and countries.
• GMAT is standardized. It offers a cross-school comparison point and is harder to “inflate.”
• In a compressed-GPA world, GMAT can differentiate faster. A strong score can be a clear, legible proof of academic readiness — especially for candidates with non-US grading scales or uneven transcripts.

A practical applicant playbook

If your GPA is strong

• Use GMAT to confirm academic readiness and remove doubt.
• Spend most energy on impact + leadership narrative (work, projects, achievements).

If your GPA is “okay” (or from a tough grading system)

• A high GMAT is your fastest lever to reduce academic risk perception.
• Pair the score with evidence: quant coursework, certifications, or work that uses analytics.

If your GPA is low

• Don’t hide it—explain it briefly, then overwhelm it with proof (GMAT + trajectory + results).
• Focus on “why now”: what changed, why you’ll perform differently in the program.

Sources

This article summarizes publicly available reporting and program pages.

• Top 10 trend table (2016–2024): Poets&Quants — MBA admission trends at the Top 10 U.S. business schools
• M7 acceptance-rate table: Poets&Quants — The M7 by the numbers (2025 edition)
• Harvard grade distribution reporting: The Harvard Crimson — grade distribution discussion (A-range share & mean GPA)
• Yale grade distribution reporting (quoted summary): beSpacific — Yale faculty report summary (A/A- share & mean GPA)
• Ivy League MBA test requirements:
  • Harvard Business School
  • Stanford GSB
  • Wharton
  • Columbia Business School
  • Yale SOM
  • Dartmouth Tuck
  • Cornell Johnson
• Princeton Master in Finance selectivity + tests accepted: Princeton BCF — Apply for the Master in Finance

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