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

Brooklyn, New York

98%

Des Moines, Iowa

99%

Williamsburg, Kentucky

99%

Louisville, Kentucky

99%
99%

Wyoming, Michigan

99%

Minneapolis, Minnesota

99%

Minneapolis, Minnesota

99%

Canton, Missouri

99%

Tulsa, Oklahoma

99%

Lancaster, Pennsylvania

99%

Memphis, Tennessee

99%

Lynchburg, Virginia

99%

Montgomery, Alabama

100%

Fairfield, Alabama

100%

Selma, Alabama

100%

Palmer, Alaska

100%

Little Rock, Arkansas

100%

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.