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

Omaha, Nebraska

78%

Manchester, New Hampshire

78%

Alliance, Ohio

78%

Portland, Oregon

78%

Elizabethtown, Pennsylvania

78%
78%

Tacoma, Washington

78%

Mount Hope, West Virginia

78%

Mequon, Wisconsin

78%

Milwaukee, Wisconsin

78%

Surprise, Arizona

78%

West Hartford, Connecticut

79%

Anderson, Indiana

79%
79%

Owings Mills, Maryland

79%

Flint, Michigan

79%

Holland, Michigan

79%

Saint Paul, Minnesota

79%

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.