Colleges Hardest to Get Into
Colleges with the Lowest Acceptance Rate in for 2018
These are the most selective colleges in . We've ranked the schools which reject over fifty percent of applicants by rate of acceptance. Leading the list is Stanford University which sent acceptance letters to only 5% of the 43,997 students who applied and rejected 95%. Interestingly, not all schools on our "most selective" lists are overly academically challenging. Schools with less rigorous standardized test and high school GPA requirements may receive a large numbers of qualified applicants and the school does not have the capacity to potentially enroll.
| Rank | College | Percent Admitted | Academic Difficulty | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Stanford University Stanford, California 43,997 Applicants |
5% | Very Hard | Chance |
| 2 | California Institute of Technology Pasadena, California 6,855 Applicants |
8% | Very Hard | Chance |
| 3 | Claremont McKenna College Claremont, California 6,342 Applicants |
9% | Very Hard | Chance |
| 4 | Pomona College Claremont, California 8,102 Applicants |
9% | Very Hard | Chance |
| 5 | Harvey Mudd College Claremont, California 4,180 Applicants |
13% | Very Hard | Chance |
| 6 | Pitzer College Claremont, California 4,142 Applicants |
14% | N/A | Chance |
| 7 | University of California Berkeley Berkeley, California 82,561 Applicants |
17% | Very Hard | Chance |
| 8 | University of Southern California Los Angeles, California 54,280 Applicants |
17% | Very Hard | Chance |
| 9 | University of California Los Angeles Los Angeles, California 97,112 Applicants |
18% | Very Hard | Chance |
| 10 | California Institute of the Arts Valencia, California 2,258 Applicants |
24% | N/A | Chance |
| 11 | California Polytechnic State University San Luis Obispo San Luis Obispo, California 48,162 Applicants |
29% | Very Hard | Chance |
| 12 | California State University Long Beach Long Beach, California 61,808 Applicants |
32% | Avg+ | Chance |
| 13 | Hope International University Fullerton, California 1,006 Applicants |
32% | Easy | Chance |
| 14 | San Diego State University San Diego, California 60,834 Applicants |
35% | Hard | Chance |
| 15 | California State University Monterey Bay Seaside, California 16,258 Applicants |
35% | N/A | Chance |
| 16 | University of California San Diego La Jolla, California 84,208 Applicants |
36% | Very Hard | Chance |
| 17 | University of California Santa Barbara Santa Barbara, California 77,112 Applicants |
36% | Very Hard | Chance |
| 18 | Pepperdine University Malibu, California 11,111 Applicants |
37% | Very Hard | Chance |
| 19 | Soka University of America Aliso Viejo, California 500 Applicants |
38% | Very Hard | Chance |
| 20 | Laguna College of Art and Design Laguna Beach, California 472 Applicants |
39% | N/A | Chance |