The 30 Hardest Colleges To Get Into In America—According To Data

It's Not Easy

Sometimes the hardest part about college is getting into one (or at least the one you really want to get into). There are a lot of really good schools across the country, but according to College Transitions, these are the hardest ones to get into. Is your alma mater on the list?

Methodology

So how did they come up with their ranking? Well, there are a few factors. Including...

Acceptance Rate: the percentage of students who are admitted out of those who apply.

Median SAT/ACT Scores: Yes, for many universities these standardized tests still play a role.

Academic Credentials: impressive academic and extracurricular profiles are going to be a big part of any student's chance of being accepted or not.

Let's get into it...

Photography of People Graduating Emily Ranquist, Pexels

30: University Of Southern California

Acceptance Rate (Class of 2028): 9.2%

Class of 2028 applicants: 82,000+

Mid-50% SAT: 1430-1530

Mid-50% ACT: 32-35

Curriculum, grades, test scores, essays, and recommendations are all key factors in a yay or a nay from USC. It also doesn't hurt to be a legacy at USC—as the student body is made up of about 10-15% legacy students. The acceptance rate has fluctuated quite a bit in recent years and it is for that reason that USC finds itself in 30th place (behind other schools with higher acceptance percentages).

Bovard Auditorium At Dusk, University Of Southern California EEJCC, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons

29: Washington University In St Louis

Acceptance Rate (Class of 2027): 12%

Class of 2027 applicants: 32,240

Mid-50% SAT: 1500-1570

Mid-50% ACT: 33-35

According to the university's admissions office, character/personal qualities, extracurricular activities, talent/ability, essays, and volunteer/work experience are all given "high importance" when final decisions are made.

Brookings Hall at Washington University in St. Louis Endersan, Wikimedia Commons

28: Georgetown University

Acceptance Rate: 12%

Class of 2028 applicants: 26,170

Mid-50% SAT: 1440-1560

Mid-50% ACT: 32-35

Not only did Georgetown only accept 10% of their early admission applications in 2024, but if you want to get in, you better not be slacking in high school. Test scores around the 97th percentile and great grades in many AP classes are needed to even have a shot here.

Healy Hall at Georgetown University ajay_suresh, CC BY 2.0, Wikimedia Commons

27: University Of Notre Dame

Acceptance Rate: 11%

Class of 2028 applicants: 29,943

Mid-50% SAT: 1450-1530

Mid-50% ACT: 33-35

If you want to join the Fighting Irish, it's gonna be a fight. An impressive 40% of all accepted students to Notre Dame come from the top 1% of their class.

Main Building At The University Of Notre Dame Matthew Rice, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons

26: Carnegie Mellon University

Acceptance Rate (Class of 2027): 11%

Class of 2027 applicants: 33,707

Median SAT (Class of 2026): 1540

Median ACT (Class of 2026): 35

Along with high scholastic achievement, Carnegie Mellon admissions makes character/personal qualities, volunteer work, and extracurriculars a priority when deciding who gets in and who doesn't.

Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania photosounds, Shutterstock

25: Tufts University

Acceptance Rate: 10%

Class of 2028 applicants: 34,400+

Mid-50% SAT: 1470-1560

Mid-50% ACT: 34-35

Tufts is pretty tough to get into. But bad pun aside—the university is looking for top-of-their-class students who can write a great essay, and recommendations from your high school teachers don't hurt either.

Eaton Hall at Tufts University Jellymuffin40, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons

24: Amherst College

Acceptance Rate: 9.0%

Class of 2028 applicants: 13,700

Median SAT: 1520

Median ACT: 33

Amherst does things a little differently when it comes to their "New Curriculum"—that has no course or credit distribution requirements. You find what you love and you pursue it. However, to get to that point, you have to get accepted into the university. And to do that you're gonna need to be near the top of your class and have standardized test scores in the top 1-2% (along with a number of intangibles).

Fayerweather Hall at Amherst College - Front View Kenneth C. Zirkel, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons

23: Cornell University

Acceptance Rate (Class of 2027): 7.9%

Class of 2027 applicants: 67,846

Median SAT: 1520

Median ACT: 34

The seven most important criteria to gaining acceptance at Cornell are: difficulty of coursework, test scores, grades, essays, recommendations, extracurriculars, talent/ability, and character/personal qualities.

The Arts Quad on Cornell's main campus at Cornell University Eustress, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons

22: Williams College

Acceptance Rate: 7.5%

Class of 2028 applicants: 15,411

Median SAT: 1520

Median ACT: 34

Williams College makes a point of having a diverse student body. They also tend to accept a little less than a quarter of "early decision" applicants.

Morgan Hall of Williams College in the fall Tim4403224246, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons

21: Barnard College

Acceptance Rate: 7%

Class of 2028 applicants: 11,832

Mid-50% SAT: 1450-1540

Mid-50% ACT: 32-34

It's one of the best all-women college's in the world and you'll need great grades, test scores, and personal attributes to get a "yes" from them. Last year, upwards of 60% of new students were accepted via early decision.

Barnard College Barnard Hall Entrance Facade Beyond My Ken, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons

20: Bowdoin College

Acceptance Rate: 7%

Class of 2028 applicants: 13,200

Median SAT: 1510

Median ACT: 34

Not only do you want to be near the top of your high school class to have a shot at Bowdoin—but students who get a "yes" from the college also usually have standardized test scores above the 95th percentile.

The Chapel at Bowdoin College Campus Gwynfisher, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons

19: Rice University

Acceptance Rate: 7.5%

Class of 2028 applicants: 32,459

Mid-50% SAT: 1500-1560

Mid-50% ACT: 34-36

89% of Rice students placed in the top 10% of their high school class. So, that's something.

Main Entrance of the Rice University Katie Haugland Bowen, CC BY 2.0, Wikimedia Commons

18: Swarthmore College

Acceptance Rate: 7.5%

Class of 2028 applicants: 13,065

Median SAT: 1520

Median ACT: 34

These are the six things the acceptance committee at Swarthmore consider the most important: rigor of secondary coursework, class rank, GPA, application essay, recommendations, and character/personal qualities.

Parrish Hall at the center of the Swarthmore College campus Ugen64, Wikimedia Commons

17: Northwestern University

Acceptance Rate: ~7.5%

Class of 2028 applicants: 50,000+

Median SAT (Class of 2026): 1530

Median ACT (Class of 2026): 34

Northwestern has become even harder to get into in recent years—and rigor of courses, GPA, and class rank are three of the eight main factors the acceptance committee takes into consideration.

Aerial Photograph of Northwestern University Joshsukoff, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons

16: Colby College

Acceptance Rate: 6.6%

Class of 2028 applicants: 19,188

Mid-50% SAT: 1510

Mid-50% ACT: 34

With applications having tripled in the last 10 years, Colby has only gotten harder to get into. The early decision acceptance rate is about three times higher than the regular one, so you might want to give ED a go if Colby is your first choice school.

Miller Library in the center of the campus at Colby College Colby Mariam, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons

15: Pomona College

Acceptance Rate (Class of 2027): 6.8%

Class of 2027 applicants: 12,121

Median SAT: 1520

Median ACT: 34

85% of enrolled students at this prestigious liberal arts college in California were in the top 10% of their graduating class. But if you thought that number was impressive, just wait...

Inscription on the northern side of the Pomona College Gates Sdkb, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons

14: Johns Hopkins University

Acceptance Rate (Class of 2027): 6.2%

Class of 2027 applicants: 38,294

Mid-50% SAT: 1530-1560

Mid-50% ACT: 34-35

99% of the Johns Hopkins student body were in the top 10% of their high school classes.

The George Peabody Library in Baltimore, Maryland, USA Matthew Petroff, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons

13: Dartmouth College

Acceptance Rate: 5.3%

Class of 2026 applicants: 31,657

Median SAT: Not Reported

Median ACT: Not Reported

Dartmouth had an acceptance rate that was three times higher than it is now, back 10 years ago. The college has only gotten harder to get into.

Sherman Fairchild Sciences complex at Dartmouth College Kane5187, Wikimedia Commons

12: University Of Pennsylvania

Acceptance Rate (Class of 2027): 5.8%

Class of 2027 applicants: 59,465

Mid-50% SAT: 1510-1560

Mid-50% ACT: 34-35

With so many applicants to choose from, the University of Pennsylvania has determined that secondary school records, GPA, test scores, essays, recommendations, and character/personal qualities are all "very important" to their final decision.

The campus of the University of Pennsylvania Jay Yuan, Shutterstock

11: Brown University

Acceptance Rate: 5.2%

Class of 2028 applicants: 48,898

Mid-50% SAT: 1510-1570

Mid-50% ACT: 34-36

Most years, over half of the new students on campus were either the valedictorian or salutatorian of their high school class. Wow!

Brown's University Hall in 2007 Kenneth C. Zirkel, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons

10: Duke University

Acceptance Rate: 5.1%

Class of 2028 applicants: 54,191

Mid-50% SAT: 1520-1570

Mid-50% ACT: Not Reported

You'll need more than great grades to get a "yes" from Duke University. A stand-out essay and personal qualities are also highly regarded by the acceptance committee.

Duke University Chapel and Benjamin Duke statue on campus Jay Yuan, Shutterstock

9: University Of Chicago

Acceptance Rate (Class of 2027): 4.8%

Class of 2027 applicants: 38,800

SAT Score Range (Admitted Students): 1080-1600

ACT Score Range (Admitted Students): 21-36

That 4.8% acceptance rate is significantly lower than it was just 10 years ago.

The Main Quadrangles area of the campus of the University of Chicago Michael Barera, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons

8: Princeton University

Acceptance Rate (Class of 2027): 4.5%

Class of 2027 applicants: 39,644

Mid-50% SAT: 1540-1580

Mid-50% ACT: 34-35

It will take almost perfect test scores to get accepted into Princeton—and sometimes, even that isn't enough.

McCosh 50, the largest lecture hall on campus at Princeton University PoliticsIsExciting, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons

7: Columbia University

Acceptance Rate: 3.85%

Class of 2028 applicants: 60,248

Mid-50% SAT: 1510-1560

Mid-50% ACT: 34-35

With over 60,000 applications and a less than 4% acceptance rate...you do the math on that one. Also, it's worth noting that the university fills over half of its freshman spots during the early decision process.

The campus of New York City's Columbia University Suchan, Shutterstock

6: Vanderbilt University

Acceptance Rate: 3.7%

Class of 2028 applicants: 41,336

Mid-50% SAT (Class of 2028): 1530-1600

Mid-50% ACT (Class of 2028): 34-36

Along with all the grades, test scores and essay requirements, Vanderbilt puts a very strong emphasis on extracurricular involvement—so much so that 100% of admitted students held leadership positions in high school.

Old Gym at Vanderbilt University BugsMeanee, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons

5: MIT

Acceptance Rate: 4.5%

Class of 2026 applicants: 28,232

Mid-50% SAT: 1520-1580

Mid-50% ACT: 34-36

Legacy status means nothing to MIT as far as acceptance to the school goes. What does matter, though, are amazing grades and test scores, and STEM-focused experiences/accomplishments outside the classroom.

Great Dome, Massachusetts Institute Of Technology, Aug 2019 Mys 721tx, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons

4: Yale University

Acceptance Rate: 3.7%

Class of 2028 applicants: 57,465

Median SAT: 1540

Median ACT: 34

These are the two questions that guide the Yale acceptance committee: “Who is likely to make the most of Yale’s resources?” and “Who will contribute most significantly to the Yale community?”

The Old Campus Courtyard of Yale University Ad Meskens, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons

3: Stanford University

Acceptance Rate (Class of 2027): 3.9%

Class of 2027 applicants: 53,733

Median SAT: 1540

Median ACT: 35

A 3.9 GPA is great, but just know that 94% of incoming Stanford freshmen had a GPA of a 4.0 or above in high school. Gulp!

Stanford University Main Quad During Daytime King of Hearts, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons

2: Harvard University

Acceptance Rate: 3.6%

Class of 2028 applicants: 54,008

Median SAT: 1520

Median ACT: 34

83% of accepted students decide to enrol at Harvard. So, those lucky enough to get in, almost always go.

View of the architecture of the famous Harvard University in Cambridge Marcio Jose Bastos Silva, Shutterstock

1: Caltech

Acceptance Rate (Class of 2027): 2.5%

Class of 2027 applicants: 16,626

Mid-50% SAT/ACT: Caltech is currently test-blind through 2025 and does not consider SAT/ACT scores.

Only 315 students were admitted into the Caltech class of 2028. Good luck.