50 most selective colleges in America
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50 most selective colleges in America
Students raising their hands as a teacher lectures, as viewed from behind.
While there is no shortage of exceptional colleges in the United States, there are millions of gifted kids across the nation jockeying for limited seats at some of America’s top universities every year. Parents often go to great financial lengths to send their children to some of the nation’s most prestigious schools, the likes of which include paying private school tuition, hiring personal tutors, or paying for test prep classes that typically cost upwards of $1,000.
Using data from the National Center for Education Statistics, Stacker listed the 50 most selective colleges in the United States. The institutions are ranked according to acceptance rates. Statistics pertaining to total acceptance and enrollment are provided for context. Stacker used the latest available NCES data for this story, ranking schools that received at least 1,000 applications for the 2020-2021 academic year.
Read on to see if your alma mater is among the most competitive schools in the nation today.
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EQRoy // Shutterstock
#50. Georgia Institute of Technology-Main Campus, Georgia
The campus of the Georgia Institute of Technology with a sign announcing the college’s name.
– Acceptance rate: 15.96%
– Total accepted: 7,030 (44,048 total applicants)
– Total enrolled: 3,453 (49.1% yield)
Ssantera // Wikimedia Commons
#49. University of Notre Dame, Indiana
– Acceptance rate: 15.07%
– Total accepted: 3,562 (23,642 total applicants)
– Total enrolled: 2,059 (57.8% yield)
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#48. Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art, New York
The Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art building in New York City.
– Acceptance rate: 14.68%
– Total accepted: 393 (2,678 total applicants)
– Total enrolled: 210 (53.4% yield)
Lrd1rocha // Wikimedia Commons
#47. University of California-Berkeley, California
– Acceptance rate: 14.44%
– Total accepted: 16,295 (112,843 total applicants)
– Total enrolled: 6,931 (42.5% yield)
Jeffrey Beall // Wikimedia Commons
#46. Colorado College, Colorado
– Acceptance rate: 14.25%
– Total accepted: 1,564 (10,975 total applicants)
– Total enrolled: 620 (39.6% yield)
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#45. Hamilton College, New York
Hamilton College mascot “Alex” aka Alexander Hamilton posing with a sign.
– Acceptance rate: 14.07%
– Total accepted: 1,320 (9,380 total applicants)
– Total enrolled: 533 (40.4% yield)
Amy Lutz // Shutterstock
#44. Carnegie Mellon University, Pennsylvania
Carnegie Mellon University campus entrance sign with buildings in the background.
– Acceptance rate: 13.54%
– Total accepted: 4,453 (32,896 total applicants)
– Total enrolled: 1,896 (42.6% yield)
Funuk // Wikimedia Commons
#43. Middlebury College, Vermont
– Acceptance rate: 13.45%
– Total accepted: 1,601 (11,906 total applicants)
– Total enrolled: 680 (42.5% yield)
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#42. Emory University, Georgia
The entrance sign for Emory University with buildings in the background.
– Acceptance rate: 13.05%
– Total accepted: 4,364 (33,435 total applicants)
– Total enrolled: 1,494 (34.2% yield)
Minbaili // Wikimedia Commons
#41. Washington University in St Louis, Missouri
– Acceptance rate: 13.00%
– Total accepted: 4,373 (33,634 total applicants)
– Total enrolled: 1,980 (45.3% yield)
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#40. New York University, New York
Street view of New York University NYU in Greenwich Village Manhattan.
– Acceptance rate: 12.96%
– Total accepted: 12,380 (95,517 total applicants)
– Total enrolled: 6,097 (49.2% yield)
Brion Vibber // Wikimedia Commons
#39. University of Southern California, California
– Acceptance rate: 12.51%
– Total accepted: 8,884 (71,031 total applicants)
– Total enrolled: 3,668 (41.3% yield)
U.S. Air Force // Wikimedia Commons
#38. United States Air Force Academy, Colorado
– Acceptance rate: 12.43%
– Total accepted: 1,453 (11,687 total applicants)
– Total enrolled: 1,091 (75.1% yield)
Detamblelibrary // Wikimedia Commons
#37. St. Andrews University, North Carolina
The exterior of DeTamble Library at St. Andrews University.
– Acceptance rate: 12.29%
– Total accepted: 266 (2,164 total applicants)
– Total enrolled: 261 (98.1% yield)
Patrickneil // Wikimedia Commons
#36. Georgetown University, Washington, D.C.
– Acceptance rate: 11.98%
– Total accepted: 3,311 (27,629 total applicants)
– Total enrolled: 1,585 (47.9% yield)
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#35. Barnard College, New York
– Acceptance rate: 11.47%
– Total accepted: 1,192 (10,395 total applicants)
– Total enrolled: 769 (64.5% yield)
Jellymuffin40 // Wikimedia Commons
#34. Tufts University, Massachusetts
– Acceptance rate: 11.43%
– Total accepted: 3,566 (31,198 total applicants)
– Total enrolled: 1,800 (50.5% yield)
Craig Stanfill // Wikimedia Commons
#33. Claremont McKenna College, California
– Acceptance rate: 11.24%
– Total accepted: 633 (5,632 total applicants)
– Total enrolled: 358 (56.6% yield)
Josh Lee // Wikimedia Commons
#32. University of California-Los Angeles, California
– Acceptance rate: 10.77%
– Total accepted: 15,028 (139,489 total applicants)
– Total enrolled: 6,584 (43.8% yield)
Teddy Wade // Wikimedia Commons
#31. United States Military Academy, New York
– Acceptance rate: 10.66%
– Total accepted: 1,488 (13,955 total applicants)
– Total enrolled: 1,201 (80.7% yield)
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Aureliusxv // Wikimedia Commons
#30. Grinnell College, Iowa
– Acceptance rate: 10.54%
– Total accepted: 1,108 (10,513 total applicants)
– Total enrolled: 471 (42.5% yield)
Monirb // Wikimedia Commons
#29. Stanbridge University, California
The interior of the Learning Resource Center at Stanbridge University.
– Acceptance rate: 10.50%
– Total accepted: 173 (1,648 total applicants)
– Total enrolled: 161 (93.1% yield)
Bovineone // Wikimedia Commons
#28. Harvey Mudd College, California
– Acceptance rate: 9.99%
– Total accepted: 473 (4,737 total applicants)
– Total enrolled: 225 (47.6% yield)
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#27. Tulane University of Louisiana, Louisiana
A sign for Tulane University outside of a building on its campus.
– Acceptance rate: 9.63%
– Total accepted: 4,385 (45,525 total applicants)
– Total enrolled: 2,027 (46.2% yield)
Daderot // Wikimedia Commons
#26. Rice University, Texas
– Acceptance rate: 9.48%
– Total accepted: 2,802 (29,544 total applicants)
– Total enrolled: 1,226 (43.8% yield)
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Nick Kline // Wikimedia Commons
#25. Colby College, Maine
– Acceptance rate: 8.87%
– Total accepted: 1,407 (15,857 total applicants)
– Total enrolled: 667 (47.4% yield)
Beyond my Ken // Wikimedia Commons
#24. Williams College, Massachusetts
– Acceptance rate: 8.83%
– Total accepted: 1,099 (12,452 total applicants)
– Total enrolled: 574 (52.2% yield)
Daderot // Wikimedia Commons
#23. Bowdoin College, Maine
– Acceptance rate: 8.82%
– Total accepted: 822 (9,325 total applicants)
– Total enrolled: 517 (62.9% yield)
Kenneth C. Zirkel // Wikimedia Commons
#22. Amherst College, Massachusetts
– Acceptance rate: 8.74%
– Total accepted: 1,224 (13,999 total applicants)
– Total enrolled: 515 (42.1% yield)
Notyourbroom // Wikimedia Commons
#21. Cornell University, New York
– Acceptance rate: 8.69%
– Total accepted: 5,852 (67,380 total applicants)
– Total enrolled: 3,718 (63.5% yield)
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Daniel J. McLain // Wikimedia Commons
#20. United States Naval Academy, Maryland
– Acceptance rate: 8.45%
– Total accepted: 1,374 (16,265 total applicants)
– Total enrolled: 1,183 (86.1% yield)
Tlönorbis // Wikimedia Commons
#19. Swarthmore College, Pennsylvania
– Acceptance rate: 7.79%
– Total accepted: 1,013 (13,012 total applicants)
– Total enrolled: 454 (44.8% yield)
Lester Spence // Wikimedia Commons
#18. Johns Hopkins University, Maryland
– Acceptance rate: 7.52%
– Total accepted: 2,972 (39,515 total applicants)
– Total enrolled: 1,420 (47.8% yield)
Paul Masck // Wikimedia Commons
#17. The Juilliard School, New York
– Acceptance rate: 7.43%
– Total accepted: 174 (2,342 total applicants)
– Total enrolled: 110 (63.2% yield)
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#16. Vanderbilt University, Tennessee
– Acceptance rate: 7.14%
– Total accepted: 3,368 (47,152 total applicants)
– Total enrolled: 1,626 (48.3% yield)
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Madcoverboy // Wikimedia Commons
#15. Northwestern University, Illinois
– Acceptance rate: 6.97%
– Total accepted: 3,321 (47,636 total applicants)
– Total enrolled: 2,086 (62.8% yield)
OfficialPomonaCollege // Wikimedia Commons
#14. Pomona College, California
– Acceptance rate: 6.64%
– Total accepted: 771 (11,620 total applicants)
– Total enrolled: 451 (58.5% yield)
Crimsonmaroon // Wikimedia Commons
#13. University of Chicago, Illinois
– Acceptance rate: 6.48%
– Total accepted: 2,460 (37,974 total applicants)
– Total enrolled: 2,053 (83.5% yield)
Kane5187 // Wikimedia Commons
#12. Dartmouth College, New Hampshire
– Acceptance rate: 6.17%
– Total accepted: 1,750 (28,356 total applicants)
– Total enrolled: 1,221 (69.8% yield)
Ildar Sagdejev // Wikimedia Commons
#11. Duke University, North Carolina
– Acceptance rate: 5.89%
– Total accepted: 2,927 (49,703 total applicants)
– Total enrolled: 1,744 (59.6% yield)
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Teutonia25 // Wikimedia Commons
#10. University of Pennsylvania, Pennsylvania
– Acceptance rate: 5.87%
– Total accepted: 3,304 (56,332 total applicants)
– Total enrolled: 2,418 (73.2% yield)
Dale182 // Wikimedia Commons
#9. Brown University, Rhode Island
– Acceptance rate: 5.51%
– Total accepted: 2,568 (46,568 total applicants)
– Total enrolled: 1,705 (66.4% yield)
Ragesoss // Wikimedia Commons
#8. Yale University, Connecticut
– Acceptance rate: 5.31%
– Total accepted: 2,509 (47,240 total applicants)
– Total enrolled: 1,786 (71.2% yield)
Carol M. Highsmith // Wikimedia Commons
#7. Princeton University, New Jersey
– Acceptance rate: 4.38%
– Total accepted: 1,647 (37,601 total applicants)
– Total enrolled: 1,290 (78.3% yield)
Bronxbombr21 // Wikimedia Commons
#6. Columbia University in the City of New York, New York
– Acceptance rate: 4.13%
– Total accepted: 2,524 (61,110 total applicants)
– Total enrolled: 1,641 (65.0% yield)
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Department of Earth, Atmospheric and Planetary Sciences Massachusetts Institute of Technology // Wikimedia Commons
#5. Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Massachusetts
– Acceptance rate: 4.11%
– Total accepted: 1,365 (33,240 total applicants)
– Total enrolled: 1,177 (86.2% yield)
Bostonian13 // Wikimedia Commons
#4. Harvard University, Massachusetts
– Acceptance rate: 4.01%
– Total accepted: 2,318 (57,786 total applicants)
– Total enrolled: 1,951 (84.2% yield)
Jawed Karim // Wikimedia Commons
#3. Stanford University, California
– Acceptance rate: 3.95%
– Total accepted: 2,190 (55,471 total applicants)
– Total enrolled: 1,757 (80.2% yield)
Antony-22 // Wikimedia Commons
#2. California Institute of Technology, California
– Acceptance rate: 3.92%
– Total accepted: 510 (13,026 total applicants)
– Total enrolled: 270 (52.9% yield)
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#1. Minerva University, California
Students walking down a university hallway.
– Acceptance rate: 1.02%
– Total accepted: 256 (25,026 total applicants)
– Total enrolled: 186 (72.7% yield)
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