Fall 2023 acceptance rates at these schools ranged between 3.1% and 6.8%, per U.S. News data.
High school students with impressive GPAs and standardized test scores should be aware that those academic credentials may not be sufficient to get them into every college where they apply. That’s especially true at colleges where stratospheric grades and test scores are the norm and competition among many highly qualified applicants is fierce.
Some colleges are extraordinarily difficult to impress. California Institute of Technology and Harvard University in Massachusetts are the two most selective institutions in the U.S. for undergraduate applicants, according to data submitted to U.S. News by more than 1,100 ranked colleges in an annual survey. They accepted 3.1% and 3.5% of applicants, respectively.
The accepted students who enrolled at either school typically had impeccable academic credentials. At California Institute of Technology, where class rank is an important factor in admissions decisions, 95% of freshmen ranked in the top 10% of their high school class. Although class rank is not a factor for admission at Harvard, 94% of admitted freshmen finished in the top 10% of their class.
CalTech was previously temporarily test-blind, meaning an applicant’s SAT or ACT scores weren’t considered even if submitted. The school is reinstating the standardized test requirement beginning in fall 2025, so applicant standardized test scores aren’t yet available.
Harvard was previously temporarily test-optional, meaning applicants could send their scores but weren’t required to as part of their application. Applicants will also be required to submit test scores for admission beginning in fall 2025. Harvard didn’t make average SAT scores among incoming freshmen available, but the average ACT composite score was 35 out of 36.
CalTech and Harvard aren’t the only schools that reject most of their applicants. The 15 colleges with the lowest acceptance rates, including ties, each admitted no more than 7% of applicants.
Six of these schools are in the Ivy League, a group of East Coast colleges famous for selectivity and often regarded as a gateway into the upper crust of society. They also rank in the top 15 among National Universities, schools that are often research-focused and offer a variety of undergraduate majors and a wide range of master’s and doctoral programs. Still, many of the non-Ivy schools on this list are academic powerhouses in their own right, with six ranking in the top 20 among National Universities.
Thirteen of the colleges on this list with the lowest acceptance rates are National Universities, and the other two are National Liberal Arts Colleges, which emphasize undergraduate education and award at least half of their degrees in the liberal arts fields of study. Among them, Pomona College in California is tied for No. 5 and Colby College in Maine is ranked No. 25.
California and Massachusetts each claim three schools on the list, and no other state has more than one.
These schools are outliers in terms of acceptance rates, since most colleges admit a majority of applicants. The average acceptance rate among all ranked colleges that reported their admissions statistics to U.S. News was 70.8%, and 11 schools reported that they accepted 100% of applicants.
Students applying to the nation’s most selective colleges should not only demonstrate exceptional academic ability but also showcase their personality in college essays and display their initiative and leadership skills through extracurricular activities, experts say. They note that a student’s hobbies and personal projects are worth mentioning in a college application, as is any form of employment, since those details tend to humanize an applicant and can illustrate uniqueness.
Below is a list of the 15 colleges that admitted the lowest proportion of their fall 2023 applicants. Unranked schools, which did not meet certain criteria required by U.S. News to be numerically ranked, were not considered for this report.
Don’t see your school in the top 15? Access the U.S. News College Compass to find acceptance rates, complete rankings and much more. Sign up for the U.S. News Extra Help: College Admissions free email newsletter to receive expert advice twice a month.
