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
Reed College Portland, Oregon	32
Lafayette College Easton, Pennsylvania	32
Lehigh University Bethlehem, Pennsylvania	32
Rhode Island School of Design Providence, Rhode Island	32
Southern Methodist University Dallas, Texas	32
Trinity University San Antonio, Texas	32
Colorado College Colorado Springs, Colorado	31
Connecticut College New London, Connecticut	31
University of Miami Coral Gables, Florida	31
Rose Hulman Institute of Technology Terre Haute, Indiana	31
Clark University Worcester, Massachusetts	31
Wheaton College (Massachusetts) Norton, Massachusetts	31
Hillsdale College Hillsdale, Michigan	31
The Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art New York, New York	31
Fordham University Bronx, New York	31
Rochester Institute of Technology Rochester, New York	31
St Lawrence University Canton, New York	31
Union College Schenectady, New York	31

Search and filter all 708 colleges

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.