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

Santee, California

31%

Gambier, Ohio

31%

Easton, Pennsylvania

31%

Valencia, California

32%

Conception, Missouri

32%

Fullerton, California

33%

Fairfield, Connecticut

33%

Pasadena, California

34%

Chicago, Illinois

34%

Raleigh, North Carolina

34%

Cincinnati, Ohio

34%

Oberlin, Ohio

34%

Owensboro, Kentucky

35%

Graceville, Florida

36%

South Hadley, Massachusetts

36%

New London, Connecticut

37%
37%

Nashville, Tennessee

37%

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.