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 |
|---|---|
|
North Carolina Wesleyan University
Rocky Mount, North Carolina |
80% |
|
Shaw University
Raleigh, North Carolina |
80% |
|
Tiffin University
Tiffin, Ohio |
80% |
|
New Hope Christian College Eugene
Eugene, Oregon |
80% |
|
Arcadia University
Glenside, Pennsylvania |
80% |
|
Seton Hill University
Greensburg, Pennsylvania |
80% |
|
Ripon College
Ripon, Wisconsin |
80% |
|
Johnson & Wales University Charlotte
Charlotte, North Carolina |
80% |
|
John Paul the Great Catholic University
Escondido, California |
80% |
|
Whittier College
Whittier, California |
81% |
|
Flagler College
Saint Augustine, Florida |
81% |
|
Aurora University
Aurora, Illinois |
81% |
|
Graceland University Lamoni
Lamoni, Iowa |
81% |
|
Lasell University
Newton, Massachusetts |
81% |
|
Nichols College
Dudley, Massachusetts |
81% |
|
Albion College
Albion, Michigan |
81% |
|
D'Youville University
Buffalo, New York |
81% |
|
New York Institute of Technology
Old Westbury, New York |
81% |
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.