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

Chadron, Nebraska

100%

Peru, Nebraska

100%

Wayne, Nebraska

100%

Las Vegas, Nevada

100%

Elko, Nevada

100%

Carson City, Nevada

100%
100%

Trenton, New Jersey

100%

Crownpoint, New Mexico

100%

Las Vegas, New Mexico

100%

Espanola, New Mexico

100%

Silver City, New Mexico

100%

Saratoga Springs, New York

100%

Bismarck, North Dakota

100%

Mayville, North Dakota

100%

Fort Yates, North Dakota

100%
100%
100%

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.