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.
| College | Acceptance Rate |
|---|---|
|
St Lawrence University
Canton, New York |
54% |
|
Moravian University
Bethlehem, Pennsylvania |
54% |
|
Latin American Bible Institute
La Puente, California |
55% |
|
San Francisco Conservatory of Music
San Francisco, California |
55% |
|
Illinois Institute of Technology
Chicago, Illinois |
55% |
|
Friends University
Wichita, Kansas |
55% |
|
St. John's College
Annapolis, Maryland |
55% |
|
Kansas City Art Institute
Kansas City, Missouri |
55% |
|
Allegheny College
Meadville, Pennsylvania |
55% |
|
Anderson University
Anderson, South Carolina |
55% |
|
Hendrix College
Conway, Arkansas |
56% |
|
Olivet Nazarene University
Bourbonnais, Illinois |
56% |
|
Bethany College
Lindsborg, Kansas |
56% |
|
The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary
Louisville, Kentucky |
56% |
|
Centenary College of Louisiana
Shreveport, Louisiana |
56% |
|
Lawrence Technological University
Southfield, Michigan |
56% |
|
Mesivta of Eastern Parkway Yeshiva Zichron Meilech
Brooklyn, New York |
56% |
|
Davis College
Pottersville, New York |
56% |
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.