United States Private Colleges Ranked by Highest Acceptance Rate
Below is a ranking of the 1198 private colleges in the United States with the highest acceptance rate for freshman undergraduate applications. Amridge University leads the list by accepting 100% of high school students that applied.
Acceptance rate is a measure of the competitiveness of a school. Lower acceptance rates are more competitive and may require a higher GPA, SAT/ACT score, and other factors to be considered for admission.
| College | Acceptance Rate |
|---|---|
|
Beth Hamedrash Shaarei Yosher Institute
Brooklyn, New York |
90% |
|
Metropolitan College of New York
New York, New York |
90% |
|
Pacific University
Forest Grove, Oregon |
90% |
|
Gwynedd Mercy University
Gwynedd Valley, Pennsylvania |
90% |
|
Robert Morris University
Moon Township, Pennsylvania |
90% |
|
Talmudical Yeshiva of Philadelphia
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania |
90% |
|
Waynesburg University
Waynesburg, Pennsylvania |
90% |
|
Newberry College
Newberry, South Carolina |
90% |
|
Carson Newman University
Jefferson City, Tennessee |
90% |
|
Hardin Simmons University
Abilene, Texas |
90% |
|
University of St Thomas
Houston, Texas |
90% |
|
Saint Martin's University
Lacey, Washington |
90% |
|
Whitworth University
Spokane, Washington |
90% |
|
Yeshiva Gedolah of Greater Detroit
Oak Park, Michigan |
90% |
|
Yeshivas Novominsk
Brooklyn, New York |
90% |
|
Berkeley School of Theology
Berkeley, California |
89% |
|
Columbia College Chicago
Chicago, Illinois |
89% |
|
VanderCook College of Music
Chicago, Illinois |
89% |
This list is updated annually based on the latest data from the National Center for Education Statistics.
Last updated: March 15, 2026
Data source: IPEDS 2025 survey for academic year 2024/2025 - National Center for Education Statistics.