United States Public Colleges Ranked by Highest ACT Score

Below is a list of the 443 public colleges in the United States with the highest ACT Score for incoming freshmen. University of Maryland College Park leads the list with an average ACT Score of 33. Alternatively, check out the SAT version of these rankings.

The ACT is a standardized test used by colleges to evaluate applicants. It is not a guarantee of success in college, but it is a strong indicator of academic potential.

List of United States Public Colleges Ranked by Highest ACT Score
College	Average ACT Score
Appalachian State University Boone, North Carolina	24
University of North Carolina at Charlotte Charlotte, North Carolina	24
University of North Carolina at Greensboro Greensboro, North Carolina	24
University of Pittsburgh Bradford Bradford, Pennsylvania	24
University of Pittsburgh Johnstown Johnstown, Pennsylvania	24
Citadel Military College of South Carolina Charleston, South Carolina	24
Utah State University Logan, Utah	24
University of Wisconsin La Crosse La Crosse, Wisconsin	24
University of Wyoming Laramie, Wyoming	24
University of Connecticut Hartford Campus Hartford, Connecticut	24
University of South Alabama Mobile, Alabama	23
California State Polytechnic University Pomona Pomona, California	23
California State University Long Beach Long Beach, California	23
University of Colorado Colorado Springs Colorado Springs, Colorado	23
University of Northern Colorado Greeley, Colorado	23
Florida Atlantic University Boca Raton, Florida	23
University of West Florida Pensacola, Florida	23
Boise State University Boise, Idaho	23

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This list is updated annually based on the latest data from the National Center for Education Statistics.
Last updated: March 15, 2026

Data source: IPEDS 2025 survey for academic year 2024/2025 - National Center for Education Statistics.