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.
| College | Average ACT Score |
|---|---|
|
Indiana University Kokomo
Kokomo, Indiana |
24 |
|
Iowa State University
Ames, Iowa |
24 |
|
University of Iowa
Iowa City, Iowa |
24 |
|
University of Kansas
Lawrence, Kansas |
24 |
|
University of Kentucky
Lexington, Kentucky |
24 |
|
Louisiana Tech University
Ruston, Louisiana |
24 |
|
Salisbury University
Salisbury, Maryland |
24 |
|
Massachusetts Maritime Academy
Buzzards Bay, Massachusetts |
24 |
|
Central Michigan University
Mount Pleasant, Michigan |
24 |
|
University of Minnesota Morris
Morris, Minnesota |
24 |
|
University of Missouri Kansas City
Kansas City, Missouri |
24 |
|
Montana State University
Bozeman, Montana |
24 |
|
Keene State College
Keene, New Hampshire |
24 |
|
Rutgers University Newark
Newark, New Jersey |
24 |
|
New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology
Socorro, New Mexico |
24 |
|
Farmingdale State College
Farmingdale, New York |
24 |
|
SUNY Brockport
Brockport, New York |
24 |
|
State University of New York at Cortland
Cortland, New York |
24 |
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.