Best Test-Optional Minnesota Colleges
Minnesota has 22 ranked test-optional colleges, part of our national test-optional list. These schools do not require SAT or ACT scores with your application, ranked by academic quality and outcomes.
Carleton College tops our 2027 test-optional rankings in Minnesota. The top rated public option is University of Minnesota Twin Cities. Also highly ranked: Macalester College, St Olaf College and University of Minnesota Twin Cities.
Without test scores, your GPA, activities, recommendation letters, and essays carry more weight. Compare acceptance rates, tuition, and enrollment across the colleges below. Sort by tuition or acceptance rate to find schools that fit your profile. See our ranking methodology for how schools are scored.
Carleton College
- Private 4 Year
- Northfield, MN
-
5.0 | 1 reviews
- Jan 15 application deadline
Carleton is a highly selective private liberal arts college known for undergraduate natural sciences, economics, and political science. Most students live on the residential campus in the small college town of Northfield.
- SAT Range 1450-1560
- Predicted Avg GPA 3.9
- Acceptance Rate 20%
- Net Price $28,047
Macalester College
- Private 4 Year
- Saint Paul, MN
-
5.0 | 1 reviews
- Jan 15 application deadline
Macalester is a selective private liberal arts college known for undergraduate international studies, political science, and economics. The urban campus sits in Saint Paul within the Twin Cities.
- SAT Range 1350-1510
- Predicted Avg GPA 3.81
- Acceptance Rate 29%
- Net Price $40,225
St Olaf College
- Private 4 Year
- Northfield, MN
-
4.8 | 4 reviews
- Jan 15 application deadline
St. Olaf is a private liberal arts college known for undergraduate music and the sciences. Most students live on the residential campus in the college town of Northfield.
- SAT Range 1300-1470
- Avg GPA 3.68
- Acceptance Rate 48%
- Net Price $26,756
University of Minnesota Twin Cities
- Public 4 Year
- Minneapolis, MN
-
5.0 | 1 reviews
- Jan 1 application deadline
Minnesota is a large public university known for undergraduate engineering, business, and biological sciences. The Twin Cities campus spans Minneapolis and St. Paul along the Mississippi River.
- SAT Range 1300-1500
- Predicted Avg GPA 3.75
- Acceptance Rate 80%
- Net Price $17,209
University of St Thomas
- Private 4 Year
- Saint Paul, MN
-
| 0 reviews
- Jan 15 application deadline
St. Thomas is a private Catholic university known for undergraduate business. The urban campus sits along Summit Avenue in St. Paul.
- SAT Range 1260-1423
- Avg GPA 3.63
- Acceptance Rate 85%
- Net Price $31,250
Concordia College at Moorhead
- Private 4 Year
- Moorhead, MN
-
| 0 reviews
Concordia College is a private liberal arts college known for undergraduate music and education. Most students live on the residential campus in Moorhead, across the river from Fargo.
- SAT Range 1160-1420
- Avg GPA 3.58
- Acceptance Rate 63%
- Net Price $25,190
College of Saint Benedict
- Private 4 Year
- Saint Joseph, MN
-
| 0 reviews
College of Saint Benedict is a private Catholic women's liberal arts college known for undergraduate nursing. Students share classes and many programs with men from nearby Saint John's University under a coordinate college system.
- SAT Range 1048-1233
- Avg GPA 3.72
- Acceptance Rate 92%
- Net Price $28,400
Saint Johns University
- Private 4 Year
- Collegeville, MN
-
5.0 | 1 reviews
Saint John's is a private Benedictine men's college known for undergraduate liberal arts. The wooded Collegeville campus centers on a historic abbey and shares academics with the nearby College of Saint Benedict.
- SAT Range 941-1228
- Avg GPA 3.51
- Acceptance Rate 91%
- Net Price $28,504
The College of Saint Scholastica
- Private 4 Year
- Duluth, MN
-
| 0 reviews
St. Scholastica is a private Benedictine college known for undergraduate nursing and health sciences. The wooded campus overlooks Lake Superior in Duluth.
- SAT Range 1110-1310
- Avg GPA 3.5
- Acceptance Rate 93%
- Net Price $26,083
Hamline University
- Private 4 Year
- Saint Paul, MN
-
2.0 | 2 reviews
Hamline is a private university known for undergraduate education, business, and the liberal arts. The residential campus sits in a neighborhood setting in Saint Paul within the Twin Cities.
- SAT Range 1133-1391
- Avg GPA 3.48
- Acceptance Rate 88%
- Net Price $22,390
Bethel University
- Private 4 Year
- Saint Paul, MN
-
| 0 reviews
- May 1 application deadline
Bethel is a private Christian university known for undergraduate nursing, education, and business. The suburban Arden Hills campus sits in the Twin Cities metro near St. Paul.
- SAT Range 1190-1300
- Avg GPA 3.6
- Acceptance Rate 88%
- Net Price $31,738
Augsburg University
- Private 4 Year
- Minneapolis, MN
-
| 0 reviews
- Aug 1 application deadline
Augsburg is a private Lutheran university known for undergraduate nursing, education, and social work. The urban campus is in Minneapolis's Cedar-Riverside neighborhood.
- SAT Range 1188-1376
- Predicted Avg GPA 3.27
- Acceptance Rate 82%
- Net Price $24,561
St Catherine University
- Private 4 Year
- Saint Paul, MN
-
3.7 | 3 reviews
St. Catherine is a private Catholic women's university known for undergraduate nursing and health sciences. Most bachelor's programs enroll women on the urban Saint Paul campus.
- SAT Range 850-1140
- Avg GPA 3.62
- Acceptance Rate 92%
- Net Price $20,918
Winona State University
- Public 4 Year
- Winona, MN
-
| 0 reviews
- Jul 1 application deadline
Winona State is a public university known for undergraduate nursing, education, and business. The campus sits along the Mississippi River in Minnesota's bluff country.
- SAT Range 980-1250
- Avg GPA 3.44
- Acceptance Rate 75%
- Net Price $18,289
University of Minnesota Duluth
- Public 4 Year
- Duluth, MN
-
| 0 reviews
- Aug 1 application deadline
UMD is a public university known for undergraduate engineering, business, and the natural sciences. The hillside campus overlooks Lake Superior above the city of Duluth.
- SAT Range 1180-1350
- Avg GPA 3.51
- Acceptance Rate 89%
- Net Price $20,128
University of Northwestern St Paul
- Private 4 Year
- Saint Paul, MN
-
| 0 reviews
- Aug 1 application deadline
A private Christian university known for undergraduate biblical studies, communications, and education. The suburban campus sits in Roseville near St. Paul.
- SAT Range 868-1271
- Avg GPA 3.58
- Acceptance Rate 93%
- Net Price $29,117
Minnesota State University Moorhead
- Public 4 Year
- Moorhead, MN
-
| 0 reviews
Minnesota State Moorhead is a public university known for undergraduate teacher education, fine arts, and mass communications. The campus sits in Moorhead across the Red River from Fargo, North Dakota.
- SAT Range 1080-1290
- Avg GPA 3.52
- Acceptance Rate 59%
- Net Price $18,221
Saint Cloud State University
- Public 4 Year
- Saint Cloud, MN
-
| 0 reviews
- Aug 15 application deadline
Saint Cloud State is a public university known for undergraduate aviation, business, and education. The campus sits along the Mississippi River in central Minnesota.
- SAT Range 1025-1260
- Avg GPA 3.4
- Acceptance Rate 95%
- Net Price $14,735