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 |
|---|---|
|
Warner Pacific University
Portland, Oregon |
71% |
|
Holy Family University
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania |
71% |
|
Misericordia University
Dallas, Pennsylvania |
71% |
|
Widener University
Chester, Pennsylvania |
71% |
|
Lee University
Cleveland, Tennessee |
71% |
|
Quinnipiac University
Hamden, Connecticut |
72% |
|
Stetson University
DeLand, Florida |
72% |
|
McKendree University
Lebanon, Illinois |
72% |
|
Saint Mary of the Woods College
Saint Mary of the Woods, Indiana |
72% |
|
Clarke University
Dubuque, Iowa |
72% |
|
Luther College
Decorah, Iowa |
72% |
|
Kansas Wesleyan University
Salina, Kansas |
72% |
|
Kentucky Wesleyan College
Owensboro, Kentucky |
72% |
|
Springfield College
Springfield, Massachusetts |
72% |
|
Calvary University
Kansas City, Missouri |
72% |
|
Evangel University
Springfield, Missouri |
72% |
|
Hastings College
Hastings, Nebraska |
72% |
|
Canisius University
Buffalo, New York |
72% |
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.