Applying for Admission

To apply for admission as a first-year student, please use the Common Application available at commonapp.org, or Coalition Application available at coalitionapp.org. For your application to be complete, you must submit the following:

• Common Application or Coalition Application, including the nonrefundable $40 application fee or fee waiver request.

• All supporting materials, which include:

  • Questions specific to Bucknell University;

  • The personal essay (no supplementary essay is required);

  • Secondary School Report and school counselor evaluation;

  • Official transcript from each high school attended;

  • At least one teacher recommendation, preferably from a core subject; and

  • The Mid-Year Report, when available.

• SAT or ACT scores, if the applicant chooses to include them on the application (SAT Subject tests and SAT/ACT writing sections are not required). Applicants may self-report SAT/ACT scores on their Common or Coalition Application for admissions consideration. If an applicant is offered admission and enrolls, an official copy of the SAT/ACT scores will be required.

• ​In the academic year 2019-2020, Bucknell began a five-year test-optional pilot program so students are not required to submit SAT or ACT scores as part of their application. Please note that home-schooled students, international citizens and recruited athletes are required to submit SAT or ACT scores. However, all students who choose to enroll at Bucknell will be required to submit SAT or ACT scores before they begin their first year. These scores will only be used in the assessment of the test-optional program and will not impact the admission decision already made. Note: If you have never taken the SAT or ACT and do not have scores available, you will not be required to submit a score upon enrollment. Also please note that, for the 2021-22 application cycles, home-schooled, international and recruited athletic applicants may choose to be test-optional because of challenges applicants may face in taking standardized testing during the COVID-19 pandemic. This policy change will be re-evaluated at the end of the 2021-22 application cycle.

• Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL), International English Language Testing System (IELTS), Pearson Language Tests (PTE), or Duolingo English Test (DET) if English is not your first language or if it was not the primary language of instruction for at least three years of your secondary school education.

• Early Decision applicants must submit the Common Application or Coalition Application Early Decision Agreement form, including all required signatures (applicants, parent/guardian and school counselor).​

• CSS PROFILE and Free Application for Financial Aid (FAFSA), if you are applying for financial aid.
• All international applicants must submit a certified bank statement with either the International Student Financial Aid Application (ISFAA) if applying for financial aid, or the Confidential Statement of Finances (CSF) if not applying for financial aid. NOTE: Canadian citizens applying for financial aid must submit both the CSS PROFILE and the ISFAA.

If you are applying as a transfer student, you must submit:

• Common Application or Coalition Application for transfer students, including the nonrefundable $40 application fee or fee waiver request.

• All supporting materials, which include:

  • Questions specific to Bucknell University;

  • The personal essay (no supplementary essay is required);

  • Common Application College Instructor Academic Evaluation for Transfers or Coalition Application Recommendation;

  • Common Application Transfer College Report or Coalition Application Transfer Report;

  • Common Application Transfer Mid-Term Report or Coalition Application College Curriculum Report;

  • Official transcript for each college attended;

  • Official secondary school transcript;

  • SAT or ACT scores (optional). Students who choose to submit test scores may self-report them on their Common or Coalition Application for admissions consideration. If an applicant is offered admission and enrolls, an official copy of the SAT/ACT scores will be required; and

  • Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL), International English Language Testing System (IELTS), Pearson Language Tests (PTE), or Duolingo English Test (DET) scores if English is not your first language or if it was not the primary language of instruction for at least three years of your secondary school education.
• CSS PROFILE and Free Application for Financial Aid (FAFSA), if you are applying for financial aid.

If you applied previously to Bucknell, the application fee may be waived and the official secondary school report may be retrieved.