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
100%

Cincinnati, Ohio

100%
100%

Columbus, Ohio

100%
100%

Rio Grande, Ohio

100%

South Point, Ohio

100%

Muskogee, Oklahoma

100%

Bethany, Oklahoma

100%
100%

Saint Benedict, Oregon

100%

Portland, Oregon

100%

King of Prussia, Pennsylvania

100%

Beaver Falls, Pennsylvania

100%

Melrose Park, Pennsylvania

100%

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

100%

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

100%
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.