this incoming class (of those from schools that officially rank students) graduated in the top decile of their high school classes. Bates has a 95% freshman retention rate. A significant portion of 45% of all applicants, transfer and non-transfer, are from New England. About 89% of students are out-of-state, (all 50 states are represented), and the college has students from 73 countries.
=== Rankings and reputation ===
Bates is noted as one of the Little Ivies, along with universities such as Tufts, Bowdoin, Colby, Amherst, Middlebury, Connecticut College, Hamilton, Trinity, Wesleyan, and Williams. The college is also known as one of the Hidden Ivies, which includes much larger research universities such as Johns Hopkins and Stanford University. The 2025 annual ranking by U.S. News & World Report ranked Bates tied for 26th overall best liberal arts college in the nation. Forbes ranked Bates 80th in its 2025 national rankings of 500 U.S. colleges, universities and service academies, and 20th among liberal arts …
