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
37%
37%

Claremont, California

38%

Thomasville, Georgia

38%

Liberty, Missouri

38%

Circleville, Ohio

38%

Longview, Texas

38%

Virginia Beach, Virginia

38%

Walla Walla, Washington

38%

Monsey, New York

38%

Bedford, Missouri

38%
39%

Bloomington, Illinois

39%

Peoria, Illinois

39%

Mankato, Minnesota

39%

Gettysburg, Pennsylvania

39%
39%

Tampa, Florida

40%

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.