Top 100 College With Lowest Acceptance Rates (2022 Updated)

Many students have a dream to get themselves admitted to a prestigious/reputed college or university. But the high competition and a low number of seats usually don’t meet the demand from applicants. Moreover, each college and university have their own requirements that many students fail to achieve and don’t qualify for the admission process. Therefore, below I have listed the top 100 colleges and universities in the United States that pride themselves on being very selective and have the lowest rates of acceptance for entering freshmen.          

List Of Top 100 Colleges With Lowest Acceptance Rates

Name	Location	Acceptance Rate
Curtis Institute of Music	Philadelphia, PA	4%
Harvard University	Cambridge, MA	5%
Stanford University	Stanford, CA	5%
Columbia University	New York, NY	6%
Princeton University	Princeton, NJ	6%
Alice Lloyd College	Pippa Passes, KY	7%
California Institute of Technology	Pasadena, CA	7%
Juilliard School	New York, NY	7%
Massachusetts Institute of Technology	Cambridge, MA	7%
University of Chicago	Chicago, IL	7%
Yale University	New Haven, CT	7%
Brown University	Providence, RI	8%
Duke University	Durham, NC	8%
Bowdoin College	Brunswick, ME	9%
Dartmouth College	Hanover, NH	9%
Johns Hopkins University	Baltimore, MD	9%
Northwestern University	Evanston, IL	9%
Pomona College	Claremont, CA	9%
Swarthmore College	Swarthmore, PA	9%
United States Military Academy	West Point, NY	9%
United States Naval Academy	Annapolis, MD	9%
University of Pennsylvania	Philadelphia, PA	9%
Colby College	Waterville, ME	10%
Cornell University	Ithaca, NY	11%
Rice University	Houston, TX	11%
Tulane University	New Orleans, LA	11%
Amherst College	Amherst, MA	12%
Vanderbilt University	Nashville, TN	12%
Chicago School of Professional Psychology at Los Angeles	Los Angeles, CA	13%
Claremont McKenna College	Claremont, CA	13%
United States Air Force Academy	USAF Academy, CO	13%
United States Coast Guard Academy	New London, CT	13%
University of Science and Arts of Oklahoma	Chickasha, OK	13%
Barnard College	New York, NY	14%
Bates College	Lewiston, ME	14%
College of the Ozarks	Point Lookout, MO	14%
Colorado College	Colorado Springs, CO	14%
University of California–Los Angeles	Los Angeles, CA	14%
Wiley College	Marshall, TX	15%
Williams College	Williamstown, MA	15%
Franklin W. Olin College of Engineering	Needham, MA	16%
Tufts University	Medford, MA	16%
United States Merchant Marine Academy	Kings Point, NY	16%
University of Southern California	Los Angeles, CA	16%
Washington University in St. Louis	St. Louis, MO	16%
Carnegie Mellon University	Pittsburgh, PA	17%
Georgetown University	Washington, DC	17%
Pitzer College	Claremont, CA	17%
Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art	New York, NY	18%
Hamilton College	Clinton, NY	18%
Harvey Mudd College	Claremont, CA	18%
Haverford College	Haverford, PA	18%
University of California–Berkeley	Berkeley, CA	18%
Emory University	Atlanta, GA	19%
Grinnell College	Grinnell, IA	19%
Texas Wesleyan University	Fort Worth, TX	19%
University of Notre Dame	Notre Dame, IN	19%
Boston University	Boston, MA	20%
Davidson College	Davidson, NC	20%
Northeastern University	Boston, MA	20%
Wellesley College	Wellesley, MA	20%
Carleton College	Northfield, MN	21%
Georgia Institute of Technology	Atlanta, GA	21%
Laboure College	Milton, MA	21%
New York University	New York, NY	21%
Philander Smith College	Little Rock, AR	21%
Webb Institute	Glen Cove, NY	21%
Wesleyan University	Middletown, CT	21%
Kettering College	Kettering, OH	22%
Middlebury College	Middlebury, VT	22%
University of Virginia	Charlottesville, VA	23%
New York School of Interior Design	New York, NY	24%
Ottawa University	Ottawa, KS	24%
University of North Carolina–Chapel Hill	Chapel Hill, NC	24%
Washington and Lee University	Lexington, VA	24%
California Institute of the Arts	Valencia, CA	25%
Charles R. Drew University of Medicine and Science	Los Angeles, CA	25%
Vassar College	Poughkeepsie, NY	25%
Arkansas Baptist College	Little Rock, AR	26%
Boston College	Chestnut Hill, MA	26%
Calumet College of St. Joseph	Whiting, IN	26%
Inter American University of Puerto Rico–Metropolitan Campus	San Juan, PR	26%
University of Michigan–Ann Arbor	Ann Arbor, MI	26%
Babson College	Babson Park, MA	27%
Colgate University	Hamilton, NY	27%
Rhode Island School of Design	Providence, RI	27%
Cabarrus College of Health Sciences	Concord, NC	28%
Denison University	Granville, OH	28%
Mississippi College	Clinton, MS	29%
Point University	West Point, GA	29%
St Luke’s College	Sioux City, IA	29%
University of North Carolina School of the Arts	Winston-Salem, NC	29%
Case Western Reserve University	Cleveland, OH	30%
Galen College of Nursing–Louisville	Louisville, KY	30%
Purdue University–Northwest	Hammond, IN	30%
University of California–Irvine	Irvine, CA	30%
Art Academy of Cincinnati	Cincinnati, OH	31%
Davis College	Bible School Park, NY	31%
Johnson University (FL)	Kissimmee, FL	31%
University of Florida	Gainesville, FL	31%

Advantages Of Low College Acceptance Rates

It’s true that getting admitted to a low acceptance rate college is very difficult but it has some advantages too. A college with a low acceptance rate means the college has the greatest prestige and name recognition. If you can attend a prestigious educational institution then you might get a strong alumni network and career opportunities after graduation. Moreover, these schools help the students to focus on academic research, invest in the latest technologies, and conduct cutting-edge experiments. So, students who are interested in research careers can benefit from attending these schools. Moreover, the low acceptance rate also correlates with high graduation rates because most of the selective schools have graduation rates of over 90%. Low acceptance rate colleges maintain high education standards which are very important to achieve a good result and build the foundation of the career.

How To Get Into Colleges With Low Acceptance Rates

If you want to get yourself admitted to a low acceptance rates college then you must have a good result in high school. You must have a very high GPA and high standardized test scores to meet the admission standards. Moreover, you have to identify what is your strong academic and extracurricular skills and try to translate those skills into accomplishments. It will help you stand out from the crowd. You have to try to show these schools that you’re capable of more than just high grades and test scores. Colleges with low acceptance rates usually look for students who will make a strong, positive impact on the world. You have to closely look at the requirements of these selective schools and find out what you are missing. For example, if you want to get into a selective music school then you have to practice music every day to prepare yourself for the audition. On the other hand, for military schools, you have to apply for your nomination from a government official before the application deadline.

FAQs About Top 100 College With Lowest Acceptance Rates

What Is The Hardest College To Get Into In Texas?

Dallas Nursing Institute is the hardest college in Texas. This college has an acceptance rate of 5%. The next hardest college in Texas is Rice University and it has an acceptance rate of 11%.

What’s The Easiest College To Get Into In Florida?

Below are some 4-year colleges and universities in Florida which are very easy to get into – 

1. Barry University – Miami Florida

2. DeVry University-Florida – Miramar, Florida

3. Herzing University-Winter Park – Winter Park, Florida

4. Palm Beach Atlantic University-West Palm Beach, Florida

5. St. John Vianney College Seminary – Miami, Florida

6. West Coast University-Miami – Doral, Florida 

What Are The Easiest Colleges To Get Into In California?

Some of the easiest colleges to get into California are – 

1. Alliant International University-San Diego

2. American Jewish University

3. California Christian College

4. California Jazz Conservatory

5. DeVry University-California

6. Grace Mission University

7. John Paul the Great Catholic University

8. Life Pacific University

9. Newschool of Architecture and Design

10. San Francisco Art Institute

11. Southern States University

Why Does UCLA Have A Low Acceptance Rate?

UCLA has a low acceptance rate because lots of students apply to UCLA but out of these applicants UCLA only accepts a few applications. Therefore, their acceptance rate is very low.

What College Has A 99-Acceptance Rate?

Wilmington University New Castle has a 99-acceptance rate.

What Is The Duke Acceptance Rate?

The acceptance rate of Duke University is 7.7%.  

References:

1. https://www.usnews.com/best-colleges/rankings/lowest-acceptance-rate
2. https://www.educationcorner.com/colleges-with-lowest-acceptance-rates.html

Last Updated on October 24, 2022 by Magalie D.