United States Private Colleges Ranked by Highest SAT Score

Below is a list of the 783 private colleges in the United States with the highest SAT Score for incoming freshmen. California Institute of Technology leads the list with an average SAT Score of 1555. Alternatively, check out the ACT version of these rankings.

The SAT 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 SAT Score
College	Average SAT Score
Rider University Lawrenceville, New Jersey	1210
St. John Fisher University Rochester, New York	1210
Whitworth University Spokane, Washington	1210
Viterbo University La Crosse, Wisconsin	1210
Goucher College Baltimore, Maryland	1207
Elizabethtown College Elizabethtown, Pennsylvania	1207
Calvin University Grand Rapids, Michigan	1206
Xavier University Cincinnati, Ohio	1206
John Brown University Siloam Springs, Arkansas	1205
Howard University Washington, District Of Columbia	1205
Springfield College Springfield, Massachusetts	1205
Iona University New Rochelle, New York	1205
Elon University Elon, North Carolina	1205
George Fox University Newberg, Oregon	1205
Austin College Sherman, Texas	1205
Sweet Briar College Sweet Briar, Virginia	1205
Cornell College Mount Vernon, Iowa	1202
Alfred University Alfred, New York	1202

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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.