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

Rome, Georgia

96%
96%
96%
96%

Fayette, Iowa

96%

Waterville, Maine

96%

Great Barrington, Massachusetts

96%
96%

Misenheimer, North Carolina

96%
96%

Charleston, South Carolina

96%

Columbia, South Carolina

96%
96%
96%

Buena Vista, Virginia

96%

Fort Lauderdale, Florida

97%

Greenville, Illinois

97%

Chicago, Illinois

97%

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.