College Acceptance Rates 2026

How hard is it to get into the school you want? Below are acceptance rates for 120 top colleges and universities, updated for the 2026 admission cycle. We also show SAT ranges and whether each school is a Reach, Match, or Safety for typical applicants.

Source: U.S. Department of Education, College Scorecard

Most Selective Colleges: Under 10% Acceptance Rate

These are the hardest colleges to get into in America. With acceptance rates below 10%, nearly all applicants are rejected — even those with perfect GPAs and test scores. For most students, these are Reach schools.

School	Acceptance Rate	SAT Range	Type	Difficulty
Caltech Pasadena, CA	3.1%	—	Private	Reach
Harvard University Cambridge, MA	3.5%	1500–1580	Private	Reach
Stanford University Stanford, CA	3.9%	1510–1580	Private	Reach
Columbia University New York, NY	4.2%	1490–1570	Private	Reach
Princeton University Princeton, NJ	4.5%	1500–1580	Private	Reach
Yale University New Haven, CT	4.5%	1500–1580	Private	Reach
MIT Cambridge, MA	4.7%	1510–1580	Private	Reach
University of Chicago Chicago, IL	4.8%	1510–1570	Private	Reach
Brown University Providence, RI	5.2%	1500–1570	Private	Reach
Northeastern University Boston, MA	5.7%	1460–1550	Private	Reach
University of Pennsylvania Philadelphia, PA	5.9%	1500–1570	Private	Reach
Dartmouth College Hanover, NH	6.2%	1500–1570	Private	Reach
Vanderbilt University Nashville, TN	6.3%	1510–1560	Private	Reach
Pomona College Claremont, CA	6.8%	1480–1560	Private	Reach
Duke University Durham, NC	6.8%	1510–1570	Private	Reach
Colby College Waterville, ME	6.8%	1440–1550	Private	Reach
Swarthmore College Swarthmore, PA	6.9%	1460–1560	Private	Reach
Northwestern University Evanston, IL	7.1%	1490–1560	Private	Reach
Johns Hopkins University Baltimore, MD	7.6%	1530–1580	Private	Reach
Rice University Houston, TX	7.9%	1500–1570	Private	Reach
Barnard College New York, NY	8.0%	1453–1550	Private	Reach
Bowdoin College Brunswick, ME	8.0%	1480–1550	Private	Reach
Cornell University Ithaca, NY	8.2%	1480–1560	Private	Reach
UCLA Los Angeles, CA	9.0%	—	Public	Reach
New York University (NYU) New York, NY	9.4%	1480–1570	Private	Reach
Amherst College Amherst, MA	9.8%	1360–1550	Private	Reach
Williams College Williamstown, MA	10.0%	1470–1560	Private	Reach

Selective Colleges: 10%–30% Acceptance Rate

These schools accept roughly 1 in 5 to 1 in 3 applicants. If your GPA and test scores are above the school's median, you're in Match territory. Below the median, it's a Reach.

School	Acceptance Rate	SAT Range	Type	Difficulty
USC Los Angeles, CA	10.0%	1440–1550	Private	Match/Reach
Tufts University Medford, MA	10.1%	1460–1550	Private	Match/Reach
Middlebury College Middlebury, VT	10.4%	1430–1550	Private	Match/Reach
Boston University Boston, MA	10.8%	1400–1520	Private	Match/Reach
Emory University Atlanta, GA	11.1%	1460–1550	Private	Match/Reach
Claremont McKenna College Claremont, CA	11.1%	1450–1560	Private	Match/Reach
Carnegie Mellon University Pittsburgh, PA	11.4%	1500–1570	Private	Match/Reach
UC Berkeley Berkeley, CA	11.7%	—	Public	Match/Reach
Hamilton College Clinton, NY	11.8%	1410–1550	Private	Match/Reach
Colgate University Hamilton, NY	11.9%	1430–1530	Private	Match/Reach
Washington University in St. Louis Saint Louis, MO	12.0%	1500–1570	Private	Match/Reach
University of Notre Dame Notre Dame, IN	12.4%	1440–1540	Private	Match/Reach
Grinnell College Grinnell, IA	12.7%	1418–1550	Private	Match/Reach
Haverford College Haverford, PA	12.9%	1430–1540	Private	Match/Reach
Georgetown University Washington, DC	13.1%	1390–1550	Private	Match/Reach
Wellesley College Wellesley, MA	13.9%	1440–1550	Private	Match/Reach
Davidson College Davidson, NC	14.5%	1360–1510	Private	Match/Reach
Tulane University New Orleans, LA	14.6%	1390–1510	Private	Match/Reach
Boston College Chestnut Hill, MA	15.7%	1430–1540	Private	Match/Reach
Georgia Tech Atlanta, GA	16.5%	1330–1530	Public	Match/Reach
University of Virginia Charlottesville, VA	16.9%	1410–1530	Public	Match/Reach
Wesleyan University Middletown, CT	17.1%	1450–1540	Private	Match/Reach
Washington and Lee University Lexington, VA	17.4%	1410–1530	Private	Match/Reach
Vassar College Poughkeepsie, NY	17.7%	1435–1550	Private	Match/Reach
University of Michigan Ann Arbor, MI	17.9%	1350–1530	Public	Match/Reach
University of Miami Coral Gables, FL	18.5%	1330–1470	Private	Match/Reach
University of North Carolina Chapel Hill, NC	18.7%	1370–1530	Public	Match/Reach
Smith College Northampton, MA	19.7%	1408–1540	Private	Match/Reach
Wake Forest University Winston-Salem, NC	21.6%	1390–1510	Private	Match/Reach
Carleton College Northfield, MN	22.3%	1430–1550	Private	Match/Reach
University of Florida Gainesville, FL	24.0%	1300–1480	Public	Match/Reach
UC San Diego La Jolla, CA	24.5%	—	Public	Match/Reach
Villanova University Villanova, PA	25.1%	1400–1510	Private	Match/Reach
Florida State University Tallahassee, FL	25.4%	1240–1390	Public	Match/Reach
UC Irvine Irvine, CA	25.6%	—	Public	Match/Reach
UC Santa Barbara Santa Barbara, CA	27.8%	—	Public	Match/Reach
Case Western Reserve University Cleveland, OH	28.7%	1430–1540	Private	Match/Reach
Texas A&M University Austin, TX	29.1%	1230–1490	Public	Match/Reach

More Accessible Colleges: 30%+ Acceptance Rate

These schools accept a larger share of applicants. If you meet the academic requirements, you have strong odds — making these solid Match or Safety schools for many students.

School	Acceptance Rate	SAT Range	Type	Difficulty
University of Rochester Rochester, NY	35.9%	1400–1540	Private	Match/Safety
University of Georgia Athens, GA	37.2%	1160–1390	Public	Match/Safety
Clemson University Clemson, SC	38.0%	1230–1390	Public	Match/Safety
UC Merced Merced, CA	39.2%	—	Public	Match/Safety
North Carolina State University Raleigh, NC	39.9%	1300–1460	Public	Match/Safety
University of South Florida Tampa, FL	41.0%	1140–1330	Public	Match/Safety
UC Davis Davis, CA	41.6%	—	Public	Match/Safety
Syracuse University Syracuse, NY	41.7%	1260–1430	Private	Match/Safety
University of Washington Seattle, WA	42.5%	—	Public	Match/Safety
University of Wisconsin Madison Madison, WI	43.4%	1360–1510	Public	Match/Safety
George Washington University Washington, DC	43.5%	1350–1500	Private	Match/Safety
University of Illinois Champaign, IL	43.7%	1270–1510	Public	Match/Safety
University of Maryland College Park, MD	44.8%	1370–1520	Public	Match/Safety
University of Tennessee Knoxville, TN	46.0%	1190–1340	Public	Match/Safety
Stony Brook University Stony Brook, NY	49.0%	1320–1490	Public	Match/Safety
University of Pittsburgh Pittsburgh, PA	49.7%	1270–1450	Public	Match/Safety
Purdue University West Lafayette, IN	50.3%	1190–1460	Public	Match/Safety
Auburn University Auburn, AL	50.5%	1240–1380	Public	Match/Safety
Ohio State University Columbus, OH	50.8%	1330–1480	Public	Match/Safety
Baylor University Waco, TX	51.0%	1210–1400	Private	Match/Safety
University of Connecticut Storrs, CT	53.9%	1210–1420	Public	Match/Safety
Penn State University University Park, PA	54.2%	1220–1400	Public	Match/Safety
Fordham University Bronx, NY	56.3%	1330–1490	Private	Match/Safety
Virginia Tech Blacksburg, VA	57.0%	1240–1420	Public	Match/Safety
University of Vermont Burlington, VT	60.0%	1250–1420	Public	Match/Safety
Southern Methodist University Dallas, TX	61.2%	1320–1480	Private	Match/Safety
University of South Carolina Columbia, SC	61.5%	1180–1380	Public	Match/Safety
UC Santa Cruz Santa Cruz, CA	62.5%	—	Public	Match/Safety
University of Texas at Austin College Station, TX	63.2%	1140–1380	Public	Match/Safety
UC Riverside Riverside, CA	63.3%	—	Public	Match/Safety
University of Delaware Newark, DE	65.1%	1200–1360	Public	Match/Safety
Rutgers University New Brunswick, NJ	65.3%	1270–1480	Public	Match/Safety
Brigham Young University Provo, UT	69.2%	1290–1450	Private	Match/Safety
University of Arkansas Fayetteville, AR	71.7%	1050–1220	Public	Match/Safety
University of Alabama Tuscaloosa, AL	75.8%	1170–1400	Public	Match/Safety
University of Oklahoma Norman, OK	76.5%	1140–1330	Public	Match/Safety
University of Minnesota Minneapolis, MN	77.0%	1310–1480	Public	Match/Safety
University of Nebraska Lincoln, NE	77.1%	1090–1330	Public	Match/Safety
Drexel University Philadelphia, PA	77.5%	1230–1430	Private	Match/Safety
Oregon State University Corvallis, OR	78.8%	—	Public	Match/Safety
Indiana University Bloomington, IN	80.4%	1170–1400	Public	Match/Safety
Loyola University Chicago Chicago, IL	81.4%	1160–1340	Private	Match/Safety
Temple University Philadelphia, PA	82.9%	—	Public	Match/Safety
University of Colorado Boulder Boulder, CO	83.3%	1230–1420	Public	Match/Safety
Michigan State University East Lansing, MI	83.9%	1150–1350	Public	Match/Safety
University of Iowa Iowa City, IA	84.7%	1130–1320	Public	Match/Safety
University of Oregon Eugene, OR	85.1%	1130–1360	Public	Match/Safety
University of Arizona Tucson, AZ	85.7%	1160–1420	Public	Match/Safety
University of Utah Salt Lake City, UT	87.2%	1180–1398	Public	Match/Safety
Marquette University Milwaukee, WI	87.4%	1190–1360	Private	Match/Safety
University of Kansas Lawrence, KS	88.2%	1050–1290	Public	Match/Safety
Iowa State University Ames, IA	89.1%	1110–1350	Public	Match/Safety
Colorado State University Fort Collins, CO	89.6%	—	Public	Match/Safety
Arizona State University Tempe, AZ	90.2%	—	Public	Match/Safety
University of Kentucky Lexington, KY	92.4%	1080–1290	Public	Match/Safety

What Acceptance Rate Actually Means for You

An acceptance rate tells you one thing: what percentage of applicants got in. It does not tell you whether you will get in. Here's how to use it:

The Reach / Match / Safety Framework

Category	What It Means	How Many to Apply To
Reach	Your stats are below the school's median. Acceptance is possible but unlikely.	2–3 schools
Match	Your stats align with the school's admitted student profile. Realistic odds.	3–4 schools
Safety	Your stats are above the school's median. You're very likely to get in.	2–3 schools

Why Acceptance Rate Alone Is Misleading

A school with a 5% acceptance rate might seem impossible, but that number includes thousands of unqualified applicants. If your GPA, test scores, and extracurriculars match the school's profile, your personal odds are much higher than 5%.

That's why we show CDS admission factor weights for each school — so you know what they actually care about (GPA? Essays? Extracurriculars?) instead of just the headline number.

Ivy League Acceptance Rates 2026

All eight Ivies at a glance. See full Ivy League comparison →

University of Pennsylvania

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Hardest Colleges to Get Into

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College Rankings 2026

Ranked by outcomes, not surveys

Best Colleges in America

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Scholarships & Financial Aid

What you'll actually pay

Frequently Asked Questions

What college has the lowest acceptance rate in 2026?

Based on the most recent College Scorecard data, the colleges with the lowest acceptance rates are typically Harvard University (3.5%), MIT (4.7%), and Columbia University (3.9%). These schools reject over 95% of applicants.

Is a low acceptance rate better?

Not necessarily. A low acceptance rate means the school is selective, but selectivity alone doesn't mean it's the right fit for you. A school with a 40% acceptance rate may offer better programs, better ROI, or better financial aid for your situation than a 5% school.

What is a good acceptance rate for college?

There's no single 'good' rate. Under 10% is considered 'most selective' (Reach for nearly everyone). 10-30% is 'selective' (Match if you meet the profile). 30-50% is 'moderately selective.' Above 50% is 'accessible' and typically a Safety school.

Do acceptance rates include early decision?

The acceptance rates shown here are overall rates (combining all admission rounds). Early Decision acceptance rates are typically higher at selective schools — sometimes 2-3x the regular decision rate — because ED applicants demonstrate commitment.