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
Carnegie Mellon University Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania	1535
Vanderbilt University Nashville, Tennessee	1535
Williams College Williamstown, Massachusetts	1530
Pomona College Claremont, California	1525
Swarthmore College Swarthmore, Pennsylvania	1525
Franklin W Olin College of Engineering Needham, Massachusetts	1525
Yale University New Haven, Connecticut	1520
New York University New York, New York	1520
Claremont McKenna College Claremont, California	1515
Tufts University Medford, Massachusetts	1515
Barnard College New York, New York	1515
Emory University Atlanta, Georgia	1510
Bowdoin College Brunswick, Maine	1510
Wellesley College Wellesley, Massachusetts	1510
Jewish Theological Seminary of America New York, New York	1510
University of Notre Dame Notre Dame, Indiana	1507
Colby College Waterville, Maine	1505
Carleton College Northfield, Minnesota	1505

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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.