Best Test-Optional U.S. Colleges
CollegeSimply ranks 1045 four-year colleges that do not require SAT or ACT scores for admission. These are the highest-ranked test-optional schools in the U.S., sorted by academic quality and student outcomes. Policies can vary by applicant and year, so confirm requirements on each school's website before applying.
Princeton University leads our 2027 test-optional rankings, ranked #1 nationally. The top rated public option is University of Michigan Ann Arbor. Also highly ranked: Duke University, Stanford University and Harvard University.
Without test scores, your GPA, activities, recommendation letters, and essays carry more weight. Compare acceptance rates, tuition, and enrollment across the full list below. Filter by state or sort by selectivity to build your list. You can also explore matches by GPA on our college search by GPA. See our ranking methodology for how schools are scored.
Cornell University
- Private 4 Year
- Ithaca, NY
-
4.0 | 4 reviews
- Jan 2 application deadline
Cornell is an Ivy League university known for undergraduate engineering, hotel administration, and agriculture and life sciences. The hillside campus overlooks Cayuga Lake in the college town of Ithaca.
- SAT Range 1500-1570
- Predicted Avg GPA 3.9
- Acceptance Rate 9%
- Net Price $26,361
Pomona College
- Private 4 Year
- Claremont, CA
-
| 0 reviews
- Jan 8 application deadline
Pomona is a highly selective private liberal arts college known for undergraduate economics, biology, and politics. Students live on a residential campus and can cross-enroll across the adjoining Claremont Colleges.
- SAT Range 1490-1560
- Predicted Avg GPA 3.89
- Acceptance Rate 7%
- Net Price $19,938
Washington University in St Louis
- Private 4 Year
- St. Louis, MO
-
5.0 | 2 reviews
- Jan 4 application deadline
WashU is a highly selective private university known for undergraduate biology, business, and engineering. The Danforth campus adjoins Forest Park in suburban St. Louis.
- SAT Range 1500-1570
- Predicted Avg GPA 3.92
- Acceptance Rate 12%
- Net Price $22,408
Columbia University in the City of New York
- Private 4 Year
- New York, NY
-
| 0 reviews
- Jan 1 application deadline
Columbia is an Ivy League university known for its undergraduate Core Curriculum, political science, and economics. The urban campus sits in Morningside Heights in Manhattan.
- SAT Range 1510-1580
- Predicted Avg GPA 3.91
- Acceptance Rate 4%
- Net Price $22,520
University of Pennsylvania
- Private 4 Year
- Philadelphia, PA
-
5.0 | 3 reviews
- Jan 5 application deadline
Penn is an Ivy League university known for undergraduate business, nursing, and engineering. The urban campus sits in Philadelphia's University City neighborhood.
- SAT Range 1510-1570
- Predicted Avg GPA 3.95
- Acceptance Rate 5%
- Net Price $23,570
Middlebury College
- Private 4 Year
- Middlebury, VT
-
5.0 | 1 reviews
- Jan 1 application deadline
Middlebury is a highly selective liberal arts college known for undergraduate language study, environmental studies, and international affairs. The hillside campus sits in a small college town in Vermont's Champlain Valley.
- SAT Range 1445-1550
- Predicted Avg GPA 3.89
- Acceptance Rate 11%
- Net Price $26,233
Bowdoin College
- Private 4 Year
- Brunswick, ME
-
5.0 | 1 reviews
- Jan 5 application deadline
Bowdoin is a highly selective private liberal arts college known for undergraduate government, environmental studies, and the sciences. The historic campus sits in the coastal college town of Brunswick.
- SAT Range 1470-1550
- Avg GPA NA
- Acceptance Rate 7%
- Net Price $22,228
Hamilton College
- Private 4 Year
- Clinton, NY
-
5.0 | 1 reviews
- Jan 5 application deadline
Hamilton is a highly selective private liberal arts college known for undergraduate writing, economics, and government. The hilltop campus sits in the small village of Clinton in upstate New York.
- SAT Range 1450-1550
- Predicted Avg GPA 3.87
- Acceptance Rate 14%
- Net Price $28,719
University of Notre Dame
- Private 4 Year
- Notre Dame, IN
-
4.1 | 7 reviews
- Jan 1 application deadline
Notre Dame is a highly selective private Catholic university known for undergraduate business, engineering, and architecture. The residential campus near South Bend is centered on the Golden Dome and Basilica of the Sacred Heart.
- SAT Range 1455-1560
- Predicted Avg GPA 3.91
- Acceptance Rate 11%
- Net Price $29,300
Emory University
- Private 4 Year
- Atlanta, GA
-
4.8 | 5 reviews
- 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
- Acceptance Rate 11%
- Net Price $27,303
Georgetown University
- Private 4 Year
- Washington, DC
-
4.6 | 5 reviews
Georgetown is a highly selective private university known for undergraduate international relations, government, and business. Students attend a Jesuit campus in a historic hillside neighborhood of Washington, D.C.
- SAT Range 1390-1550
- Predicted Avg GPA 3.89
- Acceptance Rate 13%
- Net Price $39,083
Colgate University
- Private 4 Year
- Hamilton, NY
-
5.0 | 1 reviews
- Jan 15 application deadline
Colgate is a highly selective private liberal arts college known for undergraduate economics, political science, and the sciences. The hillside campus overlooks the small college town of Hamilton in upstate New York.
- SAT Range 1430-1540
- Avg GPA 3.77
- Acceptance Rate 14%
- Net Price $28,736
Washington and Lee University
- Private 4 Year
- Lexington, VA
-
4.3 | 3 reviews
- 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
- Acceptance Rate 14%
- Net Price $23,055
Davidson College
- Private 4 Year
- Davidson, NC
-
4.0 | 1 reviews
- 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
- Acceptance Rate 13%
- Net Price $27,720
Tufts University
- Private 4 Year
- Medford, MA
-
4.5 | 2 reviews
- Jan 1 application deadline
Tufts is a highly selective private university known for undergraduate international relations and biology. Most undergrads live on a residential hilltop campus in the Boston suburbs of Medford and Somerville.
- SAT Range 1470-1560
- Predicted Avg GPA 3.91
- Acceptance Rate 11%
- Net Price $32,367
Boston College
- Private 4 Year
- Chestnut Hill, MA
-
5.0 | 5 reviews
- Jan 1 application deadline
Boston College is a highly selective private Jesuit university known for undergraduate business, nursing, and the liberal arts. The residential campus sits in suburban Chestnut Hill just outside Boston.
- SAT Range 1440-1540
- Predicted Avg GPA 3.86
- Acceptance Rate 16%
- Net Price $32,519
Barnard College
- Private 4 Year
- New York, NY
-
5.0 | 1 reviews
- Jan 4 application deadline
Barnard is a highly selective private women's liberal arts college known for undergraduate English, political science, and psychology. The urban Morningside Heights campus sits beside Columbia University, where students can cross-register for courses.
- SAT Range 1470-1560
- Predicted Avg GPA 3.85
- Acceptance Rate 9%
- Net Price $26,407
Wesleyan University
- Private 4 Year
- Middletown, CT
-
| 0 reviews
- Jan 1 application deadline
Wesleyan is a highly selective liberal arts college known for undergraduate film studies, creative writing, and music. Students live on a residential Middletown campus and follow an open curriculum with no required core courses.
- SAT Range 1415-1540
- Avg GPA NA
- Acceptance Rate 16%
- Net Price $23,025