United States Private Colleges Ranked by Lowest Acceptance Rate

Below is a ranking of the 1198 private colleges in the United States with the lowest acceptance rate for freshman undergraduate applications. California Institute of Technology leads the list by accepting 3% of high school students that applied.

Acceptance rate is a measure of the competitiveness of a school. Lower acceptance rates are more competitive and may require a higher GPA, SAT/ACT score, and other factors to be considered for admission.

List of United States Private Colleges Ranked by Lowest Acceptance Rate
College Acceptance Rate

Northfield, Minnesota

48%

Hoboken, New Jersey

48%

Defiance, Ohio

48%

Sherman, Texas

48%

Tuskegee, Alabama

49%

Caldwell, Idaho

49%

Holly Springs, Mississippi

49%
49%

Shawnee, Oklahoma

49%

Paxton, Massachusetts

50%

Milton, Massachusetts

50%

Jackson, Mississippi

50%

Great Falls, Montana

50%

Memphis, Tennessee

50%

Quincy, Illinois

51%

Haviland, Kansas

51%

Boston, Massachusetts

51%

Greensboro, North Carolina

51%

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.