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 |
|---|---|
|
Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute
Troy, New York |
63% |
|
Erskine College
Due West, South Carolina |
63% |
|
Lincoln Memorial University
Harrogate, Tennessee |
63% |
|
Southern Methodist University
Dallas, Texas |
63% |
|
Wheeling University
Wheeling, West Virginia |
63% |
|
Beloit College
Beloit, Wisconsin |
63% |
|
Fresno Pacific University
Fresno, California |
64% |
|
Florida Southern College
Lakeland, Florida |
64% |
|
Clark Atlanta University
Atlanta, Georgia |
64% |
|
Berry College
Mount Berry, Georgia |
64% |
|
Coe College
Cedar Rapids, Iowa |
64% |
|
Drake University
Des Moines, Iowa |
64% |
|
Logan University
Chesterfield, Missouri |
64% |
|
Hobart William Smith Colleges
Geneva, New York |
64% |
|
Lawrence University
Appleton, Wisconsin |
64% |
|
Chapman University
Orange, California |
65% |
|
Sacred Heart University
Fairfield, Connecticut |
65% |
|
Embry Riddle Aeronautical University Daytona Beach
Daytona Beach, Florida |
65% |
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.