South Dakota State University
Brookings, SD
What are your chances of getting into South Dakota State University?
South Dakota State University is a large public land-grant university in Brookings that feels practical, career-focused, and strongly tied to the state’s agriculture and applied research needs. It offers 180-plus areas of study across nine colleges, with especially notable strength in agriculture, engineering, nursing, pharmacy, and the life sciences, plus a broad set of hands-on programs that fit its land-grant mission. The campus sits in a small college town rather than a big-city setting, and student life is shaped by a lively residential campus, Jackrabbit athletics, and a strong sense of school pride. With about 12,000 students and a very high admit rate of 98 percent, SDSU is accessible, but students still benefit from coming in prepared, since the middle 50 percent SAT range of 1060 to 1240 suggests a mixed academic profile. It tends to suit students who want a straightforward, supportive environment with real opportunities to get involved in research, internships, and campus leadership. Applicants who like a close-knit Midwestern setting, practical majors, and a collaborative rather than highly cutthroat culture often thrive here.
Calculate your chances at South Dakota State University
Enter your GPA and test scores, add other schools, and see where you stand instantly.
Your Academic Profile
Estimates based on admitted-student data. Real decisions also weigh essays, recommendations, and course rigor.
Your results
Enter your GPA to see your academic score.
Your chances map appears here once you enter a GPA and add colleges.
Strengths
- Broad range of majors with especially strong applied programs
- Land-grant research culture with real undergraduate opportunities
- Large enough for variety, but still feels manageable and community oriented
- Affordable public university option relative to many out-of-state schools
Things to weigh
- Very high admit rate may mean less selectivity and a less elite academic peer group
- Small-city location limits big-city internships and nightlife
- Cold, windy South Dakota weather can be a real adjustment
- Students seeking a highly competitive or highly urban campus culture may want a different fit
Frequently asked questions
How hard is it to get into South Dakota State University?+
South Dakota State University admits about 98% of applicants, and the middle 50% of admitted students score between 1060 and 1240 on the SAT. Enter your GPA and test scores above and this calculator estimates your personal chances in seconds, and tells you whether South Dakota State University is a safety, match, or reach for your profile.
Is this the most accurate college admissions calculator?+
Counselly's chances calculator runs on real, current admissions data, the actual admit rates and SAT/ACT ranges colleges report to the U.S. Department of Education, not averages scraped from forums. Our algorithm weighs your GPA, test scores, and extracurricular strength against each school's admitted-student profile the way an admissions reader would begin, which makes it one of the most reliable free tools for seeing where you'll get into college.
How does the calculator predict my chances of getting in?+
It compares your academic profile to each college's real admitted class. We look at where your GPA and test scores fall within a school's 25th to 75th percentile range, combine that with the school's overall admit rate, and factor in your extracurricular strength, then translate it into a clear percentage and a Safety, Match, or Reach label. Everything recalculates instantly as you add schools or adjust your stats.
What counts as a good chance of getting into a college?+
Roughly above 60% is a Safety, you're comfortably ahead of the typical admitted student. Around 30 to 60% is a Match, realistic and worth prioritizing. Below 30% is a Reach, still absolutely worth applying to if it's a dream school. The strongest college lists balance all three, and Counselly helps you build exactly that kind of list.
Which colleges can I check my admission chances for?+
Hundreds of US colleges and universities, from Ivy League schools to large public flagships to smaller private colleges. Just start typing, MIT, UCLA, NYU, Michigan, and pick from the suggestions. We're continuously expanding our data, and your free assessment goes even further, matching you to programs across the country based on your full profile.
Can a calculator really tell me where I will get accepted?+
No tool can promise an outcome, and you should be cautious of any that claims to. What Counselly does exceptionally well is show you, honestly and instantly, exactly where you stand academically at each college, so you can build a smart, balanced list instead of guessing. Your essays, recommendations, and story do the rest, and your free assessment is built to help you strengthen all of them.
Is the college chances calculator free?+
Completely free, and no signup is required to use it. When you're ready to go further, your full assessment, the complete list of colleges where you're a strong fit plus a step-by-step plan to raise your odds, is also free to unlock with an account.
