United States Private Colleges Ranked by Highest ACT Score

Below is a list of the 708 private colleges in the United States with the highest ACT Score for incoming freshmen. California Institute of Technology leads the list with an average ACT Score of 35. Alternatively, check out the SAT version of these rankings.

The ACT is a standardized test used by colleges to evaluate applicants. It is not a guarantee of success in college, but it is a strong indicator of academic potential.

List of United States Private Colleges Ranked by Highest ACT Score
College	Average ACT Score
Florida Southern College Lakeland, Florida	27
Rollins College Winter Park, Florida	27
The College of Idaho Caldwell, Idaho	27
Illinois Wesleyan University Bloomington, Illinois	27
Holy Cross College Notre Dame, Indiana	27
Taylor University Upland, Indiana	27
Valparaiso University Valparaiso, Indiana	27
Transylvania University Lexington, Kentucky	27
Endicott College Beverly, Massachusetts	27
Calvin University Grand Rapids, Michigan	27
University of St Thomas Saint Paul, Minnesota	27
Saint Anselm College Manchester, New Hampshire	27
Drew University Madison, New Jersey	27
Adelphi University Garden City, New York	27
Albany College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences Albany, New York	27
Elmira College Elmira, New York	27
Le Moyne College Syracuse, New York	27
Manhattan University Riverdale, New York	27

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This list is updated annually based on the latest data from the National Center for Education Statistics.
Last updated: August 2026

Data source: IPEDS 2025 survey for academic year 2024/2025 - National Center for Education Statistics.