Massachusetts Private Colleges Ranked by Lowest Acceptance Rate

Below is a ranking of the 60 private colleges in Massachusetts with the lowest acceptance rate for freshman undergraduate applications. Harvard University leads the list by accepting 4% 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 Massachusetts Private Colleges Ranked by Lowest Acceptance Rate
College	Acceptance Rate
Hellenic College Holy Cross Greek Orthodox School of Theology Brookline, Massachusetts	80%
Lasell University Newton, Massachusetts	81%
Nichols College Dudley, Massachusetts	81%
Suffolk University Boston, Massachusetts	82%
Assumption University Worcester, Massachusetts	83%
Western New England University Springfield, Massachusetts	83%
Bay Path University Longmeadow, Massachusetts	85%
MCPHS University Boston, Massachusetts	85%
College of Our Lady of the Elms Chicopee, Massachusetts	85%
Curry College Milton, Massachusetts	88%
Boston Baptist College Boston, Massachusetts	91%
Wentworth Institute of Technology Boston, Massachusetts	91%
Bard College at Simon's Rock Great Barrington, Massachusetts	96%
Lesley University Cambridge, Massachusetts	97%
American International College Springfield, Massachusetts	100%
Boston Architectural College Boston, Massachusetts	100%
Cambridge College Boston, Massachusetts	100%
Eastern Nazarene College Quincy, Massachusetts	100%

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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.