College Acceptance Rate Statistics (2026 stats)
TL;DR
In our analysis of 1,954 Scorecard campuses with a reported admission rate, the median acceptance rate is 77.9% (mean 72.8%). 37 campuses admit under 10% of applicants; 1097 admit 75% or more. Among bachelor’s-predominant campuses, the median is 77.2%.
Key Facts
- Median acceptance rate (all reporting): 77.9%
- Mean acceptance rate: 72.8%
- Campuses under 10% admit rate: 37
- Campuses at 75%+ admit rate: 1097
- Bachelor’s-predominant median: 77.2% (n=1,617)
Download the data
Downloads reflect the processed dataset used on this page.
How selective are U.S. colleges?
Selectivity is skewed toward open admissions
EDsmart Data’s analysis finds most reporting campuses are not hyper-selective: 56.1% of campuses have acceptance rates of 75% or higher, while only 1.9% admit under 10% of applicants.
Campus counts by College Scorecard admission-rate bucket. Source: EDsmart Data analysis of College Scorecard.
Most selective colleges (lowest acceptance rate)
Lowest reported admission rates in our extract. For the full ranked table with downloads, see most selective colleges (lowest acceptance rate).
| # | College | State | Acceptance rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | California Institute of Technology | CA | 2.6% |
| 2 | Minerva University | CA | 3.0% |
| 3 | Stanford University | CA | 3.6% |
| 4 | Harvard University | MA | 3.6% |
| 5 | Yale University | CT | 3.9% |
| 6 | Columbia University in the City of New York | NY | 4.0% |
| 7 | University of Chicago | IL | 4.5% |
| 8 | Massachusetts Institute of Technology | MA | 4.5% |
| 9 | Curtis Institute of Music | PA | 4.6% |
| 10 | Princeton University | NJ | 4.6% |
| 11 | Northeastern University | MA | 5.2% |
| 12 | Brown University | RI | 5.4% |
| 13 | Dartmouth College | NH | 5.4% |
| 14 | University of Pennsylvania | PA | 5.4% |
| 15 | Duke University | NC | 5.7% |
| 16 | Vanderbilt University | TN | 5.9% |
| 17 | Johns Hopkins University | MD | 6.4% |
| 18 | Colby College | ME | 7.1% |
| 19 | Pomona College | CA | 7.1% |
| 20 | Bowdoin College | ME | 7.1% |
Median college acceptance rate by state
States with at least five reporting campuses, sorted from most selective (lowest median) to least.
| State | Median | Mean | Campuses | Share under 25% |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| VT | 65.3% | 57.0% | 9 | 22.2% |
| PR | 68.2% | 69.2% | 45 | 0.0% |
| DC | 68.6% | 67.8% | 10 | 10.0% |
| RI | 70.2% | 66.3% | 12 | 16.7% |
| TN | 70.5% | 71.7% | 39 | 2.6% |
| MA | 70.9% | 62.1% | 76 | 17.1% |
| CT | 72.7% | 64.4% | 24 | 12.5% |
| FL | 73.2% | 68.6% | 69 | 8.7% |
| NY | 73.2% | 69.1% | 199 | 8.0% |
| GA | 73.4% | 70.7% | 53 | 7.5% |
| NC | 74.7% | 67.5% | 59 | 8.5% |
| AR | 74.8% | 74.4% | 20 | 0.0% |
| SC | 75.3% | 73.8% | 35 | 2.9% |
| CA | 75.7% | 67.7% | 135 | 9.6% |
| OK | 76.0% | 75.9% | 19 | 0.0% |
| ND | 76.1% | 70.2% | 8 | 0.0% |
| MO | 76.1% | 75.5% | 60 | 3.3% |
| MD | 76.1% | 69.7% | 28 | 7.1% |
| NJ | 76.3% | 73.5% | 58 | 3.5% |
| AL | 76.6% | 72.9% | 27 | 0.0% |
| IL | 77.3% | 74.1% | 69 | 2.9% |
| OH | 78.2% | 74.7% | 82 | 1.2% |
| LA | 78.3% | 72.1% | 27 | 3.7% |
| NE | 79.0% | 75.1% | 16 | 0.0% |
| VA | 79.8% | 70.8% | 51 | 9.8% |
| IA | 80.0% | 77.8% | 30 | 3.3% |
| IN | 80.0% | 78.0% | 49 | 2.0% |
| KY | 80.5% | 77.8% | 28 | 3.6% |
| MI | 80.9% | 77.6% | 48 | 4.2% |
| ME | 81.0% | 70.8% | 17 | 17.6% |
| PA | 81.0% | 75.4% | 157 | 4.5% |
| WI | 81.5% | 79.3% | 38 | 0.0% |
| KS | 82.3% | 78.1% | 26 | 0.0% |
| WA | 82.5% | 75.3% | 24 | 0.0% |
| MT | 83.4% | 80.5% | 8 | 0.0% |
| MN | 83.7% | 74.0% | 36 | 5.6% |
| NH | 84.2% | 77.4% | 13 | 7.7% |
| TX | 84.4% | 75.4% | 89 | 2.2% |
| SD | 84.6% | 82.3% | 11 | 0.0% |
| ID | 85.5% | 79.3% | 8 | 0.0% |
Frequently asked questions
What is the median college acceptance rate in the U.S.?
Among 1,954 campuses with a reported Scorecard admission rate in our extract, the median acceptance rate is 77.9% (mean 72.8%).
How many colleges accept fewer than 10% of applicants?
In our analysis, 37 reporting campuses admit under 10% of applicants. Use the table above or the most selective ranking for the full list.
Do most colleges accept most applicants?
For the reporting set overall, yes: 1097 campuses have acceptance rates of 75% or higher, while 105 sit under 25%.
Where can I look up a single school’s acceptance rate?
Open any school profile (for example Colorado State University–Fort Collins) or search from the homepage. Profiles also show tuition, enrollment, and outcomes.
Methodology
Acceptance rate is College Scorecard latest.admissions.admission_rate.overall (share of applicants admitted). Open-admission and non-reporting campuses are excluded. Figures are institution-level, not applicant-weighted.
Bachelor’s-predominant subset uses degrees_awarded_predominant = 3 in our school-profile extract (n=1,617; median 77.2%).
Related: most selective colleges ranking, selectivity index, college enrollment statistics.