United States Public Colleges Ranked by Lowest Acceptance Rate

Below is a ranking of the 633 public colleges in the United States with the lowest acceptance rate for freshman undergraduate applications. University of California Los Angeles leads the list by accepting 9% 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 United States Public Colleges Ranked by Lowest Acceptance Rate
College Acceptance Rate

Huntsville, Texas

90%

Stephenville, Texas

90%

Farmville, Virginia

90%

Norfolk, Virginia

90%

Radford, Virginia

90%
91%

Los Angeles, California

91%

New Haven, Connecticut

91%

Thibodaux, Louisiana

91%

North Dartmouth, Massachusetts

91%

Big Rapids, Michigan

91%
91%
91%

Cleveland, Ohio

91%

Portland, Oregon

91%
91%

Kutztown, Pennsylvania

91%
91%

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.