Once your QuestBridge Application is forwarded to Bates, Bates will email you with instructions to activate your Bates Portal. When you activate your portal, you will see a questionnaire form in your checklist. Please complete the questionnaire form as soon as possible.

Please have your school counselor send any available senior year grades by email to [email protected] as soon as possible so that your application can proceed through the evaluation process. Even if official grades for senior year are not yet available, please have your counselor send progress report grades to date for each of the classes you are taking this year.

Bates is a test optional college. Read more about Bates' Test Optional Policy to decide your test plan.

Students participating in the Match process need not submit official scores to Bates College. Students who have ranked Bates in the National College Match will receive access to a Bates specific application portal where they may request suppression or use of their standardized test scores through the Bates supplemental form.

Bates does not require official test score submission at the time of the application. For those submitting test scores, Bates accepts unofficial score reports, scores submitted through the application portal, reported on transcripts, or those provided through college counselors.

For students who are matched with Bates, and who chose to have their test scores used as part of their admissions application, Bates requires an official score report to be submitted after admission. Scores sent from the College Board or ACT, those listed on official transcripts, or those submitted by a school counselor will be considered official.

If you have questions about Bates’ test optional policy, please email [email protected].

Please select "Early Decision" or "Regular Decision" as your admission application type. This required field on the CSS Profile does not impact your aid eligibility at Bates. Fee waivers may be available from the College Board when you register for the CSS Profile.

If your parents are divorced or separated:

• Both of your biological/adoptive parent(s) will complete their own CSS Profile. Each parent will access the CSS Profile with different log-in credentials. The secondary household (non-custodial parent) will need to create a College Board account before providing their information. It's highly recommended that the student and primary household (custodial parent) start the CSS Profile first, as the secondary household cannot submit information until the student selects a school that requires the submission of secondary household information.
• If you do not have any contact with your secondary parent, then you may submit a request to waive the requirement of their financial information. Download the Noncustodial Parent Waiver Petition.

You and your parents (custodial and noncustodial) must submit copies of 2024 tax returns with all schedules and W-2 forms to the College Board’s Institutional Documentation Service (IDOC). If you or your parents did not file a 2024 income tax return, please complete a Non-Tax Filer Statement available on IDOC.

Please complete the FAFSA as soon as it is available and include Bates’ FAFSA school code as a recipient.

US Citizens and Eligible Noncitizens are required to complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA).

Finalists who do not match may apply Early Decision to Bates through either Early Decision I or Early Decision II.

Interested applicants must contact [email protected] immediately after December 1 to be considered. The deadline for Early Decision II is January 10. Students must complete the Bates’ Questbridge Application Supplemental Form and complete the Early Decision Agreement. Both forms will become available through the student's Bates-specific Application Portal after they have informed Bates of their decision to apply Early Decision. Early Decision is a binding commitment and students will receive an admissions decision in mid-December (Early Decision I) or early February (Early Decision II).

All Finalists who rank Bates for the Match, but did not match to a binding college will automatically have their applications moved into the Regular Decision process. After mid-December, log in to your Bates Application Portal to review your checklist and complete any missing items. If you no longer wish to be considered, you must contact the Admissions Office to withdraw your application (see Contact Information below) or withdraw your application through your application portal.

Finalists who ranked Bates and submitted all materials (but did not match to a binding college)

Finalists who did not rank Bates

Including most recent senior grades

Including most recent senior grades

Music, theater, art, dance, film, and creative writing supplements may be included in your application portfolio. Supplementary materials can be uploaded after submitting your application to Bates and receiving access to your Bates application portal.

Music, theater, art, dance, film, and creative writing supplements may be included in your application portfolio. Supplementary materials can be uploaded after submitting your application to Bates and receiving access to your Bates application portal.

Finalists who ranked Bates and submitted all materials (but did not match to a binding college)

Finalists who did not rank Bates