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 |
|---|---|
|
San Diego Christian College
Santee, California |
31% |
|
Kenyon College
Gambier, Ohio |
31% |
|
Lafayette College
Easton, Pennsylvania |
31% |
|
California Institute of the Arts
Valencia, California |
32% |
|
Conception Seminary College
Conception, Missouri |
32% |
|
Hope International University
Fullerton, California |
33% |
|
Fairfield University
Fairfield, Connecticut |
33% |
|
Pacific Oaks College
Pasadena, California |
34% |
|
The Chicago School at Chicago
Chicago, Illinois |
34% |
|
Saint Augustine's University
Raleigh, North Carolina |
34% |
|
Art Academy of Cincinnati
Cincinnati, Ohio |
34% |
|
Oberlin College
Oberlin, Ohio |
34% |
|
Brescia University
Owensboro, Kentucky |
35% |
|
Baptist University of Florida
Graceville, Florida |
36% |
|
Mount Holyoke College
South Hadley, Massachusetts |
36% |
|
Connecticut College
New London, Connecticut |
37% |
|
Case Western Reserve University
Cleveland, Ohio |
37% |
|
Fisk University
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.