Transylvania SAT Scores, GPA, and ACT (2026)

Roughly 87 of every 100 students who apply to Transylvania University earn a spot, since the school admits 86.6% of applicants. That open door shapes how you should read Transylvania SAT scores. The middle 50 percent of admitted students land between 1120 and 1380 on the SAT, and the average sits at 1287. So half of enrolled students scored inside that 260 point spread, a quarter came in below 1120, and a quarter cleared 1380.

Transylvania is a small private nonprofit school in Lexington, Kentucky, with about 1,005 students total. At that size your file gets read by people, not sorted by a machine, and a score anywhere near 1287 reads as squarely on target. The section splits tell you where the weight sits. Reading and Writing runs 580 to 690 for the middle half, while Math runs 540 to 690. A score above 1380 puts you in the top quarter of the class and can pull merit aid into the picture. Because the admit rate is high, you do not need a perfect number here. You need a score that clears the 25th percentile and a transcript that backs it up. The rest of this page shows where your own score would stand and how to move it.

Read your score against the 1120 to 1380 band. A total below 1120 puts you under the 25th percentile. It does not close the door here, given the 86.6% admit rate, but it leans harder on your grades and the rest of your file to carry the case. A score between 1120 and 1380 lands you inside the middle half, right where most enrolled students sit, and near the 1287 average you are on comfortable footing. Above 1380 places you in the top quarter of admitted students.

The section numbers show which test sets the higher bar. Reading and Writing has a floor of 580 for the middle half, while Math starts lower at 540. Both top out at 690. So the verbal side asks a bit more of you at the low end. If you are stronger in Math, aim to hold that 690 ceiling and pull your Reading and Writing up toward 580 or better to stay balanced across the class.

Transylvania does not publish a single grade point cutoff, but based on how many students it admits, most enrolled students present an unweighted GPA around 3.0 to 3.5. Treat that as a working band, not a bright line. Plenty of admitted students sit inside it, and a few land on either edge.

The number on your transcript matters, and so does what you took to earn it. Grades in honors, AP, or dual credit courses carry as much weight as the GPA itself, because they show you can handle college level work. A B in a hard class often reads better than an A in an easy one. If your GPA sits near the low end of that 3.0 to 3.5 band, a strong SAT is the fastest way to offset it. A score at or above the 1287 average gives an admissions reader a concrete reason to look past a softer transcript. The two numbers work together, so lift the one you can move fastest right now.

Set your targets against the two percentile marks. A 1120 total, or 580 Reading and Writing and 540 Math, keeps you inside the admitted range. Clear 1380, with both sections pushing toward 690, and you sit in the top quarter, the zone where merit aid gets more likely. A practical goal for most applicants is the 1287 average or a little above, since that reads as a safe, on target number at a school admitting 86.6% of applicants.

Start by learning your real starting point. A short diagnostic shows your current Reading and Writing and Math splits, so you know which section to work first. From there, one of our score plans maps the weeks between now and your test date into specific practice. Your next step: take the diagnostic this week, then set a target at or above 1287 and build backward from your test date.