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
California Polytechnic State University San Luis Obispo San Luis Obispo, California	29
University of California Davis Davis, California	29
University of California Irvine Irvine, California	29
University of California Santa Cruz Santa Cruz, California	29
United States Air Force Academy USAF Academy, Colorado	29
United States Coast Guard Academy New London, Connecticut	29
University at Buffalo Buffalo, New York	29
Penn State Main Campus University Park, Pennsylvania	29
University of South Carolina Columbia Columbia, South Carolina	29
University of Mary Washington Fredericksburg, Virginia	29
Auburn University Auburn, Alabama	28
University of Illinois Chicago Chicago, Illinois	28
University of Maryland Baltimore County Baltimore, Maryland	28
St. Mary's College of Maryland St. Mary's City, Maryland	28
United States Naval Academy Annapolis, Maryland	28
University of Massachusetts Lowell Lowell, Massachusetts	28
University of Massachusetts Dartmouth North Dartmouth, Massachusetts	28
Michigan State University East Lansing, Michigan	28

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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.