Best Test-Optional Southern Colleges

There are 307 test-optional colleges in the South, ranked using the same methodology as our national list. These schools do not require SAT or ACT scores with your application.

Duke University leads South test-optional rankings for 2027. The top rated public option is University of Virginia Main Campus. Also highly ranked: Rice University, Vanderbilt University and Emory University.

Without test scores, your GPA, activities, recommendation letters, and essays carry more weight. Compare acceptance rates, tuition, and enrollment across the colleges below. Explore the regional list below or browse individual states. See our ranking methodology for how schools are scored.

307 Results
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South Test Optional Public Private 4 Year
Saint Leo University Campus

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  • Private 4 Year
  • Saint Leo, FL
  • 5.0 | 1 reviews

Saint Leo is a private Catholic university known for undergraduate criminal justice, business, and education. The campus adjoins a Benedictine abbey in a small central Florida town north of Tampa.

#16 Best Private Colleges in Florida 4/10 Overall Rating
  • SAT Range 980-1190
  • Avg GPA 3.1
  • Acceptance Rate 78%
  • Net Price $22,599
Details
The University of Texas Permian Basin Campus

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  • Public 4 Year
  • Odessa, TX
  • | 0 reviews
  • Aug 23 application deadline

UT Permian Basin is a public university known for undergraduate petroleum engineering and business. The campus is located in Odessa in West Texas's Permian Basin.

#11 Best Public Universities in Texas 4/10 Overall Rating
  • SAT Range 910-1130
  • Avg GPA 3.27
  • Acceptance Rate 95%
  • Net Price $13,563
Details
Johnson & Wales University Charlotte Campus
 

  • Private 4 Year
  • Charlotte, NC
  • | 0 reviews

Johnson & Wales Charlotte is a private university known for undergraduate culinary arts, hospitality management, and business. The urban campus is located in uptown Charlotte.

#12 Best Private Colleges in North Carolina 4/10 Overall Rating
  • SAT Range 880-1130
  • Avg GPA NA
  • Acceptance Rate 80%
  • Net Price $28,084
Details
Coastal Carolina University Campus

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  • Public 4 Year
  • Conway, SC
  • 4.7 | 3 reviews

Coastal Carolina is a public university known for undergraduate marine science and PGA golf management. The Conway campus lies a short drive from Myrtle Beach and the Atlantic coast.

#7 Best Public Universities in South Carolina 4/10 Overall Rating
  • SAT Range 1050-1220
  • Avg GPA 3.72
  • Acceptance Rate 75%
  • Net Price $14,379
Details
Wingate University Campus

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  • Private 4 Year
  • Wingate, NC
  • | 0 reviews

Wingate is a private university known for undergraduate programs in the health sciences, business, and education. The residential campus sits in a small town east of Charlotte.

#13 Best Private Colleges in North Carolina 4/10 Overall Rating
  • SAT Range 1010-1210
  • Avg GPA 3.33
  • Acceptance Rate 91%
  • Net Price $21,282
Details
Texas A & M University Corpus Christi Campus

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  • Public 4 Year
  • Corpus Christi, TX
  • | 0 reviews
  • Jul 1 application deadline

Texas A&M-Corpus Christi is a public university known for undergraduate marine science, coastal biology, and environmental science. The campus sits on Ward Island along Corpus Christi Bay.

#12 Best Public Universities in Texas 4/10 Overall Rating
  • SAT Range 970-1193
  • Avg GPA 3.41
  • Acceptance Rate 89%
  • Net Price $15,233
Details
Texas Wesleyan University Campus

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  • Private 4 Year
  • Fort Worth, TX
  • 3.0 | 1 reviews

Texas Wesleyan is a private Methodist university known for undergraduate teacher education and business. The historic campus sits in Fort Worth's Polytechnic Heights neighborhood.

#21 Best Private Colleges in Texas 4/10 Overall Rating
  • SAT Range 1020-1100
  • Avg GPA 3.35
  • Acceptance Rate 69%
  • Net Price $26,416
Details
Coppin State University Campus

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  • Public 4 Year
  • Baltimore, MD
  • | 0 reviews
  • Jul 15 application deadline

Coppin State is a public historically Black university known for undergraduate nursing and teacher education. The urban campus sits in west Baltimore.

#7 Best Public Universities in Maryland 4/10 Overall Rating
  • SAT Range 880-1020
  • Avg GPA 2.62
  • Acceptance Rate 46%
  • Net Price $9,831
Details
West Virginia University Institute of Technology Campus

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  • Public 4 Year
  • Beckley, WV
  • | 0 reviews
  • Aug 1 application deadline

WVU Tech is a public college known for undergraduate engineering and technology. The campus sits in Beckley in the mountains of southern West Virginia.

#3 Best Colleges in West Virginia 4/10 Overall Rating
  • SAT Range 880-1120
  • Avg GPA 3.51
  • Acceptance Rate 37%
  • Net Price $11,281
Details
University of Central Arkansas Campus

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  • Public 4 Year
  • Conway, AR
  • 3.0 | 1 reviews

UCA is a public university known for undergraduate education and nursing programs. The campus sits in Conway, a college town north of Little Rock.

#3 Best Public Universities in Arkansas 4/10 Overall Rating
  • SAT Range 910-1170
  • Avg GPA 3.7
  • Acceptance Rate 89%
  • Net Price $16,546
Details
Carson Newman University Campus
 

  • Private 4 Year
  • Jefferson City, TN
  • 4.0 | 1 reviews

Carson-Newman is a private Baptist university with undergraduate strengths in nursing, education, and the liberal arts. Students live on a residential campus in the small East Tennessee town of Jefferson City.

#16 Best Private Colleges in Tennessee 4/10 Overall Rating
  • SAT Range 955-1215
  • Avg GPA 3.6
  • Acceptance Rate 90%
  • Net Price $20,895
Details
Houston Christian University Campus

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  • Private 4 Year
  • Houston, TX
  • 1.0 | 1 reviews

Houston Christian is a private Christian university known for undergraduate nursing, business, and education. The campus is in southwest Houston.

#22 Best Private Colleges in Texas 4/10 Overall Rating
  • SAT Range 990-1190
  • Avg GPA 3.46
  • Acceptance Rate 84%
  • Net Price $21,282
Details
West Texas A & M University Campus

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  • Public 4 Year
  • Canyon, TX
  • 4.0 | 1 reviews
  • Aug 1 application deadline

West Texas A&M is a public university known for undergraduate agriculture, nursing, and business. The campus is in Canyon, a small college town in the Texas Panhandle.

#14 Best Public Universities in Texas 4/10 Overall Rating
  • SAT Range 950-1170
  • Avg GPA 3.61
  • Acceptance Rate 99%
  • Net Price $15,572
Details
Columbia International University Campus
 

  • Private 4 Year
  • Columbia, SC
  • | 0 reviews
  • Aug 1 application deadline

CIU is a private Christian university known for undergraduate biblical studies and intercultural studies. Most undergrads live on the residential campus in Columbia.

#7 Best Private Colleges in South Carolina 4/10 Overall Rating
  • SAT Range 990-1195
  • Avg GPA 3.5
  • Acceptance Rate 94%
  • Net Price $26,056
Details
Texas Woman's University Campus

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  • Public 4 Year
  • Denton, TX
  • 4.7 | 3 reviews

TWU is a public university primarily for women, known for undergraduate nursing, health sciences, and education. The main campus is in Denton, a college town north of Dallas-Fort Worth.

#15 Best Public Universities in Texas 4/10 Overall Rating
  • SAT Range 930-1140
  • Avg GPA 3.24
  • Acceptance Rate 96%
  • Net Price $11,636
Details
Louisiana State University Shreveport Campus

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  • Public 4 Year
  • Shreveport, LA
  • | 0 reviews

LSU Shreveport is a public university in the LSU system with undergraduate programs in business, education, and the sciences. The campus serves students across the Shreveport-Bossier region of northwest Louisiana.

#6 Best Public Universities in Louisiana 4/10 Overall Rating
  • SAT Range 1000-1195
  • Avg GPA 3.38
  • Acceptance Rate 51%
  • Net Price $7,287
Details
Liberty University Campus

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  • Private 4 Year
  • Lynchburg, VA
  • 4.8 | 4 reviews

Liberty is a private Christian university known for undergraduate aviation, nursing, and business. The Lynchburg campus sits in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains.

#13 Best Private Colleges in Virginia
  • SAT Range 1040-1250
  • Avg GPA 3.56
  • Acceptance Rate 99%
  • Net Price $29,532
Details
Northern Kentucky University Campus

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  • Public 4 Year
  • Highland Heights, KY
  • | 0 reviews
  • Aug 15 application deadline

NKU is a public university known for undergraduate nursing, business, and education. The suburban campus in Highland Heights sits just south of Cincinnati.

#4 Best Public Universities in Kentucky 4/10 Overall Rating
  • SAT Range 953-1150
  • Avg GPA 3.42
  • Acceptance Rate 68%
  • Net Price $9,211
Details