California Private Colleges Ranked by Highest SAT Score

Below is a list of the 43 private colleges in California 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 California Private Colleges Ranked by Highest SAT Score
College	Average SAT Score
University of San Francisco San Francisco, California	1290
Point Loma Nazarene University San Diego, California	1270
Biola University La Mirada, California	1265
Dominican University of California San Rafael, California	1255
California Lutheran University Thousand Oaks, California	1240
Whittier College Whittier, California	1240
University of Redlands Redlands, California	1228
Saint Mary's College of California Moraga, California	1161
Concordia University Irvine Irvine, California	1145
William Jessup University Rocklin, California	1134
Southern California Institute of Architecture Los Angeles, California	1125
John Paul the Great Catholic University Escondido, California	1122
University of La Verne La Verne, California	1111
Azusa Pacific University Azusa, California	1110
Fresno Pacific University Fresno, California	1105
Vanguard University of Southern California Costa Mesa, California	1090
Simpson University Redding, California	1072
Pacific Union College Angwin, California	1060

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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.