Most Selective Southeastern Colleges
There are 70 four-year colleges in the Southeast that accept 50% or fewer of applicants, ranked from most to least selective.
Johns Hopkins University is the hardest to get into in the Southeast, accepting just 6% of 45,895 applicants. Also highly selective: Duke University, Vanderbilt University and United States Naval Academy.
Selectivity does not always equal academic difficulty. Some schools admit a small share of applicants because demand exceeds capacity, not because admission standards are extreme. If you need safety schools, see our highest acceptance rate colleges in Southeast. For academically demanding options, explore colleges with the highest SAT, highest ACT, and highest GPA averages.
Johns Hopkins University
- Private 4 Year
- Baltimore, MD
-
5.0 | 1 reviews
- 6% acceptance rate
- Jan 3 application deadline
Johns Hopkins is a highly selective private university known for undergraduate biomedical engineering, public health, and international studies. Most undergraduates study on the Homewood campus in north Baltimore.
- SAT Range 1520-1570
- Avg GPA 3.92
- Net Price $26,017
Duke University
- Private 4 Year
- Durham, NC
-
5.0 | 6 reviews
- 6% acceptance rate
- Jan 3 application deadline
Duke is a highly selective private university known for undergraduate public policy, biomedical engineering, and economics. The residential campus in Durham centers on Collegiate Gothic quads and a separate East Campus for first-year housing.
- SAT Range 1500-1570
- Predicted Avg GPA 3.94
- Net Price $21,981
Vanderbilt University
- Private 4 Year
- Nashville, TN
-
5.0 | 5 reviews
- 6% acceptance rate
- Jan 1 application deadline
Vanderbilt is a highly selective private university known for undergraduate education, music, and the sciences. The tree-lined urban campus is a designated arboretum in the heart of Nashville.
- SAT Range 1500-1570
- Avg GPA 3.89
- Net Price $25,186
United States Naval Academy
- Public 4 Year
- Annapolis, Maryland
-
5.0 | 1 reviews
- 9% acceptance rate
- Jan 31 application deadline
Naval Academy is a highly selective federal service academy known for undergraduate engineering and oceanography. The historic campus sits on the Severn River in Annapolis.
- SAT Range 1210-1410
- Predicted Avg GPA 3.8
- Net Price -
Emory University
- Private 4 Year
- Atlanta, GA
-
4.8 | 5 reviews
- 11% acceptance rate
- Jan 1 application deadline
Emory is a highly selective private university known for undergraduate business, nursing, and the biological sciences. The wooded campus sits in Atlanta's Druid Hills neighborhood.
- SAT Range 1470-1550
- Avg GPA 3.8
- Net Price $27,303
Davidson College
- Private 4 Year
- Davidson, NC
-
4.0 | 1 reviews
- 13% acceptance rate
- Jan 7 application deadline
Davidson is a highly selective private liberal arts college known for undergraduate economics, political science, and the sciences. An honor code shapes unproctored exams and student self-governance on the residential campus near Charlotte.
- SAT Range 1400-1530
- Avg GPA 3.81
- Net Price $27,720
Georgia Institute of Technology Main Campus
- Public 4 Year
- Atlanta, GA
-
| 0 reviews
- 14% acceptance rate
- Jan 4 application deadline
Georgia Tech is a highly selective public university known for undergraduate engineering, computer science, and the sciences. The urban campus sits in midtown Atlanta.
- SAT Range 1370-1540
- Predicted Avg GPA 3.85
- Net Price $15,918
Tulane University of Louisiana
- Private 4 Year
- New Orleans, LA
-
5.0 | 1 reviews
- 14% acceptance rate
- Jan 15 application deadline
Tulane is a private university known for undergraduate public health, business, and architecture. The uptown New Orleans campus sits beside Audubon Park.
- SAT Range 1400-1520
- Avg GPA 3.64
- Net Price $47,427
Washington and Lee University
- Private 4 Year
- Lexington, VA
-
4.3 | 3 reviews
- 14% acceptance rate
- Jan 1 application deadline
Washington and Lee is a highly selective private liberal arts university known for undergraduate business, journalism, and politics. Most undergrads live under a strict student-run honor system on the historic campus in Lexington.
- SAT Range 1430-1540
- Predicted Avg GPA 3.87
- Net Price $23,055
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
- Public 4 Year
- Chapel Hill, NC
-
5.0 | 2 reviews
- 15% acceptance rate
- Jan 15 application deadline
UNC-Chapel Hill is a highly selective public university known for undergraduate journalism, business, and public health. Chapel Hill is a classic college town built around the historic campus.
- SAT Range 1390-1530
- Predicted Avg GPA 3.83
- Net Price $10,154
University of Virginia Main Campus
- Public 4 Year
- Charlottesville, VA
-
| 0 reviews
- 17% acceptance rate
UVA is a highly selective public university known for undergraduate commerce, government, and architecture. The historic campus in Charlottesville centers on Thomas Jefferson's Academical Village.
- SAT Range 1410-1540
- Predicted Avg GPA 3.85
- Net Price $18,427
University of Miami
- Private 4 Year
- Coral Gables, FL
-
4.0 | 14 reviews
- 19% acceptance rate
- Jan 1 application deadline
University of Miami is a private university known for undergraduate marine science, business, and communications. The Coral Gables campus has Mediterranean-style buildings set among lakes and tropical landscaping.
- SAT Range 1320-1480
- Avg GPA 3.7
- Net Price $45,397
Berea College
- Private 4 Year
- Berea, KY
-
| 0 reviews
- 19% acceptance rate
- Mar 31 application deadline
Berea is a private liberal arts college known for tuition-free undergraduate education paired with a required campus work program. The small campus lies in the Appalachian foothills of Kentucky.
- SAT Range 1156-1335
- Avg GPA 3.62
- Net Price $5,888
Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University
- Public 4 Year
- Tallahassee, FL
-
5.0 | 3 reviews
- 21% acceptance rate
- May 1 application deadline
FAMU is a public HBCU known for undergraduate pharmacy, business, and engineering. The campus is located in Florida's capital city of Tallahassee.
- SAT Range 1030-1180
- Avg GPA 3.65
- Net Price $13,819
Wake Forest University
- Private 4 Year
- Winston-Salem, NC
-
| 0 reviews
- 22% acceptance rate
- Jan 1 application deadline
Wake Forest is a highly selective private university known for undergraduate business and the liberal arts. Most undergraduates live on the residential campus in Winston-Salem.
- SAT Range 1410-1520
- Avg GPA NA
- Net Price $24,401
University of Richmond
- Private 4 Year
- University of Richmond, VA
-
5.0 | 1 reviews
- 22% acceptance rate
- Jan 1 application deadline
University of Richmond is a highly selective private university known for undergraduate business and leadership studies. The suburban Collegiate Gothic campus sits in Richmond's West End.
- SAT Range 1410-1530
- Avg GPA 3.71
- Net Price $30,037
Cabarrus College of Health Sciences
- Private 4 Year
- Concord, NC
-
| 0 reviews
- 23% acceptance rate
- Feb 1 application deadline
Cabarrus College is a private health sciences college known for undergraduate nursing and allied health programs. The Concord campus is closely tied to Atrium Health for clinical training.
- SAT Range 970-1060
- Predicted Avg GPA 3.21
- Net Price $14,795
Citadel Military College of South Carolina
- Public 4 Year
- Charleston, SC
-
| 0 reviews
- 23% acceptance rate
The Citadel is a public military college known for undergraduate engineering, business, and criminal justice. Most undergrads join the Corps of Cadets and live in barracks under a structured military system on the historic Charleston campus.
- SAT Range 1085-1285
- Avg GPA 3.8
- Net Price $22,124