Best Test-Optional Southwestern Colleges
There are 68 test-optional colleges in the Southwest, ranked using the same methodology as our national list. These schools do not require SAT or ACT scores with your application.
Rice University leads Southwest test-optional rankings for 2027. The top rated public option is Texas A&M University College Station. Also highly ranked: Trinity University, Southern Methodist University and Texas Christian 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.
New Mexico State University Main Campus
- Public 4 Year
- Las Cruces, NM
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| 0 reviews
New Mexico State is a large public university known for undergraduate agriculture and engineering. The main campus lies in Las Cruces near the Organ Mountains.
- SAT Range 870-1110
- Avg GPA 3.55
- Acceptance Rate 89%
- Net Price $10,719
Sam Houston State University
- Public 4 Year
- Huntsville, TX
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4.5 | 2 reviews
- Aug 1 application deadline
Sam Houston State is a large public university known for undergraduate criminal justice and forensic science. The main campus is in Huntsville in the piney woods of East Texas.
- SAT Range 930-1120
- Predicted Avg GPA 3.25
- Acceptance Rate 90%
- Net Price $14,737
The University of Texas Permian Basin
- Public 4 Year
- Odessa, TX
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| 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.
- SAT Range 910-1130
- Avg GPA 3.27
- Acceptance Rate 95%
- Net Price $13,563
Texas A & M University Corpus Christi
- Public 4 Year
- Corpus Christi, TX
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| 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.
- SAT Range 970-1193
- Avg GPA 3.41
- Acceptance Rate 89%
- Net Price $15,233
Texas Wesleyan University
- Private 4 Year
- Fort Worth, TX
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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.
- SAT Range 1020-1100
- Avg GPA 3.35
- Acceptance Rate 69%
- Net Price $26,416
Houston Christian University
- Private 4 Year
- Houston, TX
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1.0 | 1 reviews
Houston Christian is a private Christian university known for undergraduate nursing, business, and education. The campus is in southwest Houston.
- SAT Range 990-1190
- Avg GPA 3.46
- Acceptance Rate 84%
- Net Price $21,282
West Texas A & M University
- Public 4 Year
- Canyon, TX
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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.
- SAT Range 950-1170
- Avg GPA 3.61
- Acceptance Rate 99%
- Net Price $15,572
Texas Woman's University
- Public 4 Year
- Denton, TX
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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.
- SAT Range 930-1140
- Avg GPA 3.24
- Acceptance Rate 96%
- Net Price $11,636
East Central University
- Public 4 Year
- Ada, OK
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| 0 reviews
East Central is a public university known for undergraduate teacher education and nursing. The campus is in the small city of Ada in south-central Oklahoma.
- SAT Range 900-1120
- Avg GPA 3.31
- Acceptance Rate 58%
- Net Price $8,565
Texas A&M University Kingsville
- Public 4 Year
- Kingsville, TX
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| 0 reviews
- Aug 1 application deadline
Texas A&M-Kingsville is a public university known for undergraduate petroleum engineering, agriculture, and wildlife science. Students attend a campus in the small South Texas city of Kingsville.
- SAT Range 990-1110
- Avg GPA 3.45
- Acceptance Rate 91%
- Net Price $12,812
Oral Roberts University
- Private 4 Year
- Tulsa, OK
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3.3 | 3 reviews
Oral Roberts is a private Christian university known for undergraduate ministry, nursing, and business. The Tulsa campus centers on the Prayer Tower and a distinctive modernist architectural style.
- SAT Range 1120-1310
- Avg GPA 3.5
- Acceptance Rate 99%
- Net Price $25,808
Schreiner University
- Private 4 Year
- Kerrville, TX
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| 0 reviews
Schreiner is a small private university with undergraduate programs in nursing and education. The campus sits in Kerrville in the Texas Hill Country.
- SAT Range 970-1160
- Avg GPA 3.3
- Acceptance Rate 88%
- Net Price $22,884
McMurry University
- Private 4 Year
- Abilene, TX
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5.0 | 1 reviews
- Aug 15 application deadline
McMurry is a private university known for undergraduate business, education, and nursing. The residential campus in Abilene is affiliated with the United Methodist Church.
- SAT Range 950-1160
- Avg GPA 3.7
- Acceptance Rate 57%
- Net Price $20,723
Midwestern State University
- Public 4 Year
- Wichita Falls, TX
-
| 0 reviews
Midwestern State is a public liberal arts university known for undergraduate nursing and business. The campus sits in the city of Wichita Falls in North Texas.
- SAT Range 910-1100
- Predicted Avg GPA 3.2
- Acceptance Rate 94%
- Net Price $11,215
Stephen F Austin State University
- Public 4 Year
- Nacogdoches, TX
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3.8 | 8 reviews
SFA is a public university known for undergraduate forestry, education, and nursing. The residential campus sits in the historic East Texas college town of Nacogdoches.
- SAT Range 970-1170
- Predicted Avg GPA 3.26
- Acceptance Rate 94%
- Net Price $14,959
Oklahoma Christian University
- Private 4 Year
- Edmond, OK
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| 0 reviews
Oklahoma Christian is a private university affiliated with the Churches of Christ and known for undergraduate engineering, nursing, and business. The campus is in the Oklahoma City suburb of Edmond.
- SAT Range 1010-1270
- Avg GPA 3.62
- Acceptance Rate 97%
- Net Price $22,391
East Texas A&M University
- Public 4 Year
- Commerce, TX
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5.0 | 1 reviews
- Aug 15 application deadline
East Texas A&M is a public university known for undergraduate teacher education, business, and agricultural sciences. The residential campus sits in the small college town of Commerce in Northeast Texas.
- SAT Range 910-1150
- Avg GPA 3.36
- Acceptance Rate 92%
- Net Price $12,327
Tarleton State University
- Public 4 Year
- Stephenville, TX
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4.5 | 2 reviews
- Aug 1 application deadline
Tarleton State is a public university known for undergraduate agriculture, animal science, and nursing. The main campus anchors the college town of Stephenville in north-central Texas.
- SAT Range 980-1160
- Predicted Avg GPA 3.21
- Acceptance Rate 90%
- Net Price $16,159