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 |
|---|---|
|
Casa Loma College Los Angeles
Sherman Oaks, California |
43% |
|
Warner University
Lake Wales, Florida |
43% |
|
Millsaps College
Jackson, Mississippi |
43% |
|
Talmudical Academy New Jersey
Adelphia, New Jersey |
43% |
|
Furman University
Greenville, South Carolina |
43% |
|
Mount Marty University
Yankton, South Dakota |
43% |
|
Southwestern University
Georgetown, Texas |
43% |
|
University of Lynchburg
Lynchburg, Virginia |
43% |
|
Beacon College
Leesburg, Florida |
43% |
|
Soka University of America
Aliso Viejo, California |
43% |
|
Occidental College
Los Angeles, California |
44% |
|
Point University
West Point, Georgia |
44% |
|
Morehouse College
Atlanta, Georgia |
44% |
|
Berklee College of Music
Boston, Massachusetts |
44% |
|
Maria College of Albany
Albany, New York |
44% |
|
Union College
Schenectady, New York |
44% |
|
Texas Christian University
Fort Worth, Texas |
44% |
|
Yeshiva Toras Chaim
Lakewood, New Jersey |
44% |
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.