Loyola University Chicago SAT Scores, GPA, and ACT (2026)

Loyola University Chicago is a private nonprofit university in Chicago, IL, with 11,737 undergraduates, and the Loyola University Chicago SAT scores picture is friendlier than its big city reputation might suggest. The middle 50 of admitted students runs from 1170 to 1360, with an average around 1297, per 2024-2025 data. The acceptance rate sits at 81.6%. Put that in applicant terms: out of every 100 students who apply, about 82 get an offer. Fewer than 1 in 5 are turned away. That is not a lottery school. It is a school where a reasonable application, backed by a solid score, usually works.

The section splits tell you where the bar actually sits. Reading and Writing runs 600 to 690 for the middle 50, while Math runs 570 to 670, a gap of 30 points at both ends. Loyola leans verbal, which is unusual enough to shape your prep order.

Loyola also reports as test optional for the 2024-2025 cycle, and that policy changes your strategy more than any single number here. Optional means the choice to submit is yours, so a score in or above the 1170 to 1360 band is worth sending, and a score below it can simply stay home. A high acceptance rate plus an optional policy makes the SAT a lever you control rather than a gate you must clear.

Read the middle 50 as 3 zones. Below 1170, you are in the bottom quarter of admitted students, and since Loyola lets you choose whether to test, that score does more harm than good on an application. Inside 1170 to 1360, you look like a typical admit, and pairing that score with a 3.0 to 3.5 GPA keeps your application consistent, which is what readers at a school admitting 81.6% of applicants are checking for. Above 1360, you are in the top quarter, and the question shifts from getting in to standing out for honors programs and merit consideration. At a school this open, a high score buys advantages after admission, not just the admission itself.

Section by section, Reading and Writing sets the higher bar. Its 25th percentile is 600, while Math's is 570. A student scoring 620 in each section clears Math comfortably but only barely clears Reading and Writing, so verbal prep deserves the first block of your study time here. For students weighing the ACT instead, the middle 50 there runs 27 to 32, and the same 3 zone logic applies.

Admitted students at Loyola University Chicago typically present an unweighted GPA around 3.0 to 3.5. That is a workable band, but the number alone is not the whole story. An A in AP Biology and an A in a light elective do not carry the same weight, and admissions readers know the difference. Grades earned in rigorous courses count as much as the GPA itself. Two students with identical 3.3 averages can look very different once a reader sees what each one actually took.

If your GPA sits at the lower edge of that band, a strong SAT is the fastest offset available to you. Transcripts take years to change and most of yours is already written by the time you apply. A test score can move in a few months of focused work. At a school with an optional testing policy like Loyola, submitting a number above the 1297 average puts a second strong data point next to a middling transcript, and choosing to send it signals confidence on its own. A 3.1 with a 1320 reads better than a 3.1 alone.

Set 2 concrete targets. Scoring at or above 1170, the 25th percentile, keeps you in range for Loyola University Chicago; below that line, 3 out of 4 admitted students scored higher than you. Scoring at or above 1360, the 75th percentile, puts you ahead of 3 out of 4 admits and strengthens your case for competitive programs. Between those, aim past the 1297 average, because when submitting is a choice, only a score above the typical admit is worth the send.

Section targets matter too. Get Reading and Writing to at least 600 and Math to at least 570 to match the 25th percentiles, and remember the verbal side asks for 30 more points at every benchmark. If you are starting from a practice score near 1100, the 25th percentile is one focused push away and the 75th is a realistic goal for a full prep cycle. Our score plans break a 1360 goal into weekly section targets. Start by taking a 20 question diagnostic today so you know exactly how far each section sits from those numbers.