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

Baldwin City, Kansas

94%

North Newton, Kansas

94%

St. Louis Park, Minnesota

94%

Joplin, Missouri

94%
94%

Wilson, North Carolina

94%

Raleigh, North Carolina

94%

Hiram, Ohio

94%

Columbus, Ohio

94%

Newberg, Oregon

94%

Salem, Oregon

94%

Hartsville, South Carolina

94%

Columbia, South Carolina

94%

Columbia, South Carolina

94%

Lynchburg, Virginia

94%

Elkins, West Virginia

94%

Madison, Wisconsin

94%

Winter Park, Florida

94%

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.