2022 Tightest Colleges To Admit Rankings
The acceptance rate is the percentage of students who are allowed to admitted. It is calculated by dividing the number of accepted students by the number of applicants. The "admitted" does not mean that all admitted students would enroll to school. An admitted student may or may not enroll to school and the term "Yield", also known as enrollment rate, is used to represent the percentage of enrolled students over admitted students.
Suppose that 1,500 students have applied, 500 students have allowed to admit, and finally 200 students have enrolled to a school. In this case, the acceptance rate is 33.33% (500 / 1,500 * 100) and the yield (enrollment rate is ) 40% (200 / 500 * 100).
In general, the lower the acceptance rate, the harder it is admitted to school.
In fact, the acceptance rate of most top ranked schools is low and the schools tend to keep their acceptance rate low.
Minerva University has the tightest acceptance rate (0.9990%) and Harvard University has the second lowest rate (3.9992%) based on academic year 2020-2021 admission data.
Below table ranks and compares the Tightest Colleges To Admit having lowest acceptance rate. For the acceptance rate rankings, we only include 4-year colleges that more than 5,000 students have applied to.
Tightest Colleges To Admit
| Rank | College Name | Applicants | Admitted | Enrolled | Acceptance Rate | Yield | Tuition & Fees | Student Population | SAT Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Minerva University Claremont, CA | 25,026 | 250 | 183 | 1.0% | 73.2% | $16,450 | 468 | - |
| 2 | Harvard University Cambridge, MA | 57,786 | 2,311 | 1,942 | 4.0% | 84.0% | $55,587 | 30,391 | 1,530 |
| 3 | Columbia University in the City of New York New York, NY | 61,110 | 2,444 | 1,589 | 4.0% | 65.0% | $63,530 | 30,135 | 1,520 |
| 4 | California Institute of Technology Pasadena, CA | 13,026 | 521 | 276 | 4.0% | 53.0% | $58,680 | 2,240 | 1,555 |
| 5 | Princeton University Princeton, NJ | 37,601 | 1,504 | 1,173 | 4.0% | 78.0% | $56,010 | 7,853 | 1,515 |
| 6 | Stanford University Stanford, CA | 55,471 | 2,219 | 1,775 | 4.0% | 80.0% | $56,169 | 15,953 | 1,520 |
| 7 | Massachusetts Institute of Technology Cambridge, MA | 33,240 | 1,330 | 1,143 | 4.0% | 85.9% | $55,878 | 11,254 | 1,545 |
| 8 | Yale University New Haven, CT | 47,240 | 2,362 | 1,677 | 5.0% | 71.0% | $59,950 | 12,060 | 1,530 |
| 9 | Dartmouth College Hanover, NH | 28,356 | 1,701 | 1,191 | 6.0% | 70.0% | $60,870 | 6,292 | 1,500 |
| 10 | University of Chicago Chicago, IL | 37,974 | 2,278 | 1,891 | 6.0% | 83.0% | $62,241 | 17,834 | 1,545 |
| 11 | Duke University Durham, NC | 49,703 | 2,982 | 1,789 | 6.0% | 60.0% | $60,244 | 16,172 | 1,513 |
| 12 | Brown University Providence, RI | 46,568 | 2,794 | 1,844 | 6.0% | 66.0% | $62,304 | 9,948 | 1,515 |
| 13 | University of Pennsylvania Philadelphia, PA | 56,332 | 3,380 | 2,467 | 6.0% | 73.0% | $61,710 | 26,552 | 1,525 |
| 14 | Pomona College Claremont, CA | 11,620 | 813 | 472 | 7.0% | 58.1% | $56,686 | 1,475 | 1,520 |
| 15 | Vanderbilt University Nashville, TN | 47,152 | 3,301 | 1,584 | 7.0% | 48.0% | $56,966 | 13,537 | 1,525 |
| 16 | Northwestern University Evanston, IL | 47,636 | 3,335 | 2,101 | 7.0% | 63.0% | $60,768 | 22,603 | 1,520 |
| 17 | United States Naval Academy Annapolis, MD | 16,265 | 1,301 | 1,119 | 8.0% | 86.0% | - | 4,594 | 1,310 |
| 18 | Johns Hopkins University Baltimore, MD | 39,515 | 3,161 | 1,517 | 8.0% | 48.0% | $58,720 | 28,890 | 1,515 |
| 19 | Swarthmore College Swarthmore, PA | 13,012 | 1,041 | 468 | 8.0% | 45.0% | $56,056 | 1,437 | 1,495 |
| 20 | Bowdoin College Brunswick, ME | 9,325 | 839 | 529 | 9.0% | 63.1% | $58,322 | 1,777 | - |
| 21 | Colby College Waterville, ME | 15,857 | 1,427 | 671 | 9.0% | 47.0% | $61,220 | 2,155 | 1,465 |
| 22 | Cornell University Ithaca, NY | 67,380 | 6,064 | 3,881 | 9.0% | 64.0% | $61,015 | 23,620 | 1,505 |
| 23 | Rice University Houston, TX | 29,544 | 2,659 | 1,170 | 9.0% | 44.0% | $52,895 | 7,643 | 1,530 |
| 24 | Amherst College Amherst, MA | 13,999 | 1,260 | 529 | 9.0% | 42.0% | $61,150 | 1,745 | 1,460 |
| 25 | Williams College Williamstown, MA | 12,452 | 1,121 | 583 | 9.0% | 52.0% | $59,660 | 1,987 | 1,480 |
| 26 | Tulane University of Louisiana New Orleans, LA | 45,525 | 4,553 | 2,094 | 10.0% | 46.0% | $60,814 | 13,927 | 1,435 |
| 27 | Barnard College New York, NY | 10,395 | 1,143 | 743 | 11.0% | 65.0% | $59,687 | 2,744 | 1,488 |
| 28 | Grinnell College Grinnell, IA | 10,513 | 1,156 | 497 | 11.0% | 43.0% | $58,648 | 1,493 | 1,450 |
| 29 | United States Military Academy West Point, NY | 13,955 | 1,535 | 1,243 | 11.0% | 81.0% | - | 4,536 | 1,320 |
| 30 | University of California-Los Angeles Los Angeles, CA | 139,489 | 15,344 | 6,751 | 11.0% | 44.0% | $43,012 | 44,589 | 1,415 |
| 31 | Tufts University Medford, MA | 31,198 | 3,432 | 1,716 | 11.0% | 50.0% | $63,000 | 12,219 | 1,495 |
| 32 | Claremont McKenna College Claremont, CA | 5,632 | 620 | 353 | 11.0% | 56.9% | $58,111 | 1,264 | 1,475 |
| 33 | United States Air Force Academy USAF Academy, CO | 11,687 | 1,402 | 1,052 | 12.0% | 75.0% | - | 4,307 | 1,349 |
| 34 | Georgetown University Washington, DC | 27,629 | 3,315 | 1,591 | 12.0% | 48.0% | $59,957 | 19,371 | 1,480 |
| 35 | Washington University in St Louis Saint Louis, MO | 33,634 | 4,372 | 1,968 | 13.0% | 45.0% | $58,866 | 15,449 | 1,530 |
| 36 | New York University New York, NY | 95,517 | 12,417 | 6,084 | 13.0% | 49.0% | $56,500 | 52,775 | 1,510 |
| 37 | University of Southern California Los Angeles, CA | 71,031 | 9,234 | 3,786 | 13.0% | 41.0% | $61,503 | 46,287 | 1,475 |
| 38 | Emory University Atlanta, GA | 33,435 | 4,347 | 1,478 | 13.0% | 34.0% | $55,468 | 13,997 | 1,480 |
| 39 | Middlebury College Middlebury, VT | 11,906 | 1,548 | 650 | 13.0% | 42.0% | $59,770 | 2,669 | 1,455 |
| 40 | Hamilton College Clinton, NY | 9,380 | 1,313 | 525 | 14.0% | 40.0% | $59,970 | 1,902 | 1,475 |
| 41 | Carnegie Mellon University Pittsburgh, PA | 32,896 | 4,605 | 1,980 | 14.0% | 43.0% | $58,924 | 13,519 | 1,520 |
| 42 | University of California-Berkeley Berkeley, CA | 112,843 | 15,798 | 6,793 | 14.0% | 43.0% | $43,980 | 42,327 | 1,420 |
| 43 | Colorado College Colorado Springs, CO | 10,975 | 1,537 | 615 | 14.0% | 40.0% | $62,070 | 2,050 | - |
| 44 | University of Notre Dame Notre Dame, IN | 23,642 | 3,546 | 2,057 | 15.0% | 58.0% | $58,843 | 12,809 | 1,480 |
| 45 | Wellesley College Wellesley, MA | 7,663 | 1,226 | 601 | 16.0% | 49.0% | $60,752 | 2,280 | 1,470 |
| 46 | Georgia Institute of Technology-Main Campus Atlanta, GA | 44,048 | 7,048 | 3,453 | 16.0% | 49.0% | $33,964 | 39,771 | 1,405 |
| 47 | Bates College Lewiston, ME | 7,319 | 1,244 | 547 | 17.0% | 44.0% | $59,062 | 1,876 | - |
| 48 | Colgate University Hamilton, NY | 17,540 | 2,982 | 865 | 17.0% | 29.0% | $61,966 | 3,054 | 1,425 |
| 49 | Davidson College Davidson, NC | 6,434 | 1,158 | 556 | 18.0% | 48.0% | $55,200 | 1,983 | 1,380 |
| 50 | Northeastern University Boston, MA | 75,244 | 13,544 | 4,469 | 18.0% | 33.0% | $57,592 | 22,905 | 1,490 |
| 51 | Carleton College Northfield, MN | 7,915 | 1,425 | 570 | 18.0% | 40.0% | $60,225 | 1,940 | 1,479 |
| 52 | Haverford College Haverford, PA | 5,332 | 960 | 413 | 18.0% | 43.0% | $61,210 | 1,307 | 1,480 |
| 53 | Boston University Boston, MA | 75,778 | 14,398 | 4,031 | 19.0% | 28.0% | $59,816 | 32,718 | 1,440 |
| 54 | Washington and Lee University Lexington, VA | 6,621 | 1,258 | 491 | 19.0% | 39.0% | $59,380 | 2,183 | 1,470 |
| 55 | Boston College Chestnut Hill, MA | 39,846 | 7,571 | 2,498 | 19.0% | 33.0% | $61,706 | 14,934 | 1,475 |
| 56 | Wesleyan University Middletown, CT | 13,067 | 2,483 | 894 | 19.0% | 36.0% | $62,049 | 3,053 | 1,405 |
| 57 | Emory University-Oxford College Oxford, GA | 20,211 | 4,042 | 606 | 20.0% | 15.0% | $55,468 | 947 | 1,480 |
| 58 | University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Chapel Hill, NC | 50,729 | 10,146 | 4,566 | 20.0% | 45.0% | $36,891 | 30,092 | 1,260 |
| 59 | University of Michigan-Ann Arbor Ann Arbor, MI | 79,743 | 15,949 | 7,177 | 20.0% | 45.0% | $53,232 | 47,907 | 1,430 |
| 60 | Vassar College Poughkeepsie, NY | 10,884 | 2,177 | 675 | 20.0% | 31.0% | $62,870 | 2,435 | 1,480 |
| 61 | University of Virginia-Main Campus Charlottesville, VA | 47,971 | 10,074 | 3,929 | 21.0% | 39.0% | $53,626 | 25,628 | 1,440 |
| 62 | American Musical and Dramatic Academy New York, NY | 9,727 | 2,140 | 449 | 22.0% | 21.0% | $42,960 | 1,399 | - |
| 63 | Babson College Wellesley, MA | 7,104 | 1,776 | 639 | 25.0% | 36.0% | $54,944 | 3,340 | 1,405 |
| 64 | Wake Forest University Winston-Salem, NC | 15,156 | 3,789 | 1,402 | 25.0% | 37.0% | $59,770 | 8,789 | - |
| 65 | Villanova University Villanova, PA | 24,410 | 6,103 | 1,770 | 25.0% | 29.0% | $59,020 | 11,032 | 1,420 |
| 66 | University of Miami Coral Gables, FL | 42,245 | 11,829 | 2,721 | 28.0% | 23.0% | $54,760 | 17,809 | 1,380 |
| 67 | Denison University Granville, OH | 9,513 | 2,664 | 639 | 28.0% | 24.0% | $57,500 | 2,258 | 1,330 |
| 68 | The University of Texas at Austin Austin, TX | 66,077 | 19,162 | 9,198 | 29.0% | 48.0% | $40,996 | 50,476 | 1,365 |
| 69 | University of California-Santa Barbara Santa Barbara, CA | 105,641 | 30,636 | 4,902 | 29.0% | 16.0% | $44,171 | 26,179 | 1,345 |
| 70 | University of Richmond University of Richmond, VA | 13,955 | 4,047 | 890 | 29.0% | 22.0% | $58,570 | 4,056 | 1,370 |
| 71 | University of California-Irvine Irvine, CA | 107,950 | 31,306 | 6,574 | 29.0% | 21.0% | $43,529 | 36,303 | 1,330 |
| 72 | Smith College Northampton, MA | 6,064 | 1,819 | 673 | 30.0% | 37.0% | $56,114 | 2,504 | 1,450 |
| 73 | University of Florida Gainesville, FL | 51,207 | 15,362 | 6,759 | 30.0% | 44.0% | $28,659 | 53,372 | 1,385 |
| 74 | Case Western Reserve University Cleveland, OH | 33,232 | 9,970 | 1,595 | 30.0% | 16.0% | $54,532 | 11,465 | 1,470 |
| 75 | Macalester College Saint Paul, MN | 9,046 | 2,804 | 589 | 31.0% | 21.0% | $60,518 | 2,049 | 1,428 |
| 76 | Skidmore College Saratoga Springs, NY | 11,176 | 3,465 | 728 | 31.0% | 21.0% | $58,128 | 2,582 | 1,355 |
| 77 | California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo San Luis Obispo, CA | 54,570 | 18,008 | 4,862 | 33.0% | 27.0% | $28,105 | 22,440 | 1,315 |
| 78 | University of California-San Diego La Jolla, CA | 118,386 | 40,251 | 7,648 | 34.0% | 19.0% | $44,454 | 39,576 | 1,375 |
| 79 | Tuskegee University Tuskegee, AL | 8,597 | 2,923 | 555 | 34.0% | 19.0% | $22,614 | 2,747 | 1,025 |
| 80 | Oberlin College Oberlin, OH | 10,597 | 3,603 | 865 | 34.0% | 24.0% | $60,240 | 2,658 | 1,399 |
| 81 | Trinity University San Antonio, TX | 9,626 | 3,273 | 655 | 34.0% | 20.0% | $47,392 | 2,677 | 1,374 |
| 82 | Bucknell University Lewisburg, PA | 11,263 | 3,942 | 1,025 | 35.0% | 26.0% | $59,802 | 3,726 | 1,373 |
| 83 | Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University Tallahassee, FL | 8,717 | 3,051 | 1,129 | 35.0% | 37.0% | $17,725 | 9,184 | 1,080 |
| 84 | Howard University Washington, DC | 29,396 | 10,289 | 2,778 | 35.0% | 27.0% | $28,916 | 10,859 | 1,185 |
| 85 | University of Central Florida Orlando, FL | 48,929 | 17,614 | 7,046 | 36.0% | 40.0% | $22,467 | 71,881 | 1,260 |
| 86 | Kenyon College Gambier, OH | 7,601 | 2,812 | 506 | 37.0% | 18.0% | $63,310 | 1,615 | 1,420 |
| 87 | Florida State University Tallahassee, FL | 65,235 | 24,137 | 7,724 | 37.0% | 32.0% | $18,786 | 43,569 | 1,260 |
| 88 | William & Mary Williamsburg, VA | 17,475 | 6,466 | 1,681 | 37.0% | 26.0% | $47,038 | 8,939 | 1,440 |
| 89 | Trinity College Hartford, CT | 5,603 | 2,129 | 532 | 38.0% | 25.0% | $61,370 | 2,241 | 1,407 |
| 90 | Occidental College Los Angeles, CA | 6,495 | 2,468 | 543 | 38.0% | 22.0% | $58,426 | 1,839 | 1,415 |
| 91 | San Diego State University San Diego, CA | 67,660 | 25,711 | 5,399 | 38.0% | 21.0% | $20,016 | 36,334 | 1,195 |
| 92 | Franklin and Marshall College Lancaster, PA | 7,720 | 2,934 | 528 | 38.0% | 18.0% | $63,406 | 2,254 | - |
| 93 | Brandeis University Waltham, MA | 9,796 | 3,820 | 955 | 39.0% | 25.0% | $60,006 | 5,440 | 1,450 |
| 94 | University of Georgia Athens, GA | 39,229 | 15,692 | 5,806 | 40.0% | 37.0% | $31,108 | 39,147 | 1,360 |
| 95 | Regent University Virginia Beach, VA | 5,240 | 2,148 | 451 | 41.0% | 21.0% | $18,820 | 10,483 | 1,095 |
| 96 | Lafayette College Easton, PA | 8,262 | 3,387 | 779 | 41.0% | 23.0% | $57,114 | 2,514 | 1,380 |
| 97 | University of Rochester Rochester, NY | 19,543 | 8,013 | 1,603 | 41.0% | 20.0% | $59,378 | 11,741 | 1,445 |
| 98 | Connecticut College New London, CT | 7,682 | 3,150 | 504 | 41.0% | 16.0% | $60,795 | 1,737 | 1,405 |
| 99 | College of the Holy Cross Worcester, MA | 6,498 | 2,794 | 810 | 43.0% | 29.0% | $56,540 | 2,970 | 1,330 |
| 100 | Reed College Portland, OR | 7,010 | 3,084 | 494 | 44.0% | 16.0% | $62,730 | 1,385 | 1,423 |