Most Selective Colleges

Every college in the database with an acceptance rate of 10% or lower. At this level of selectivity, strong grades and scores are the starting point, not the finish line, and a balanced list matters more than anywhere else.

Schools

Median acceptance

Most selective

California Institute of Technology

3% acceptance

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29 schools

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Your chances at these colleges

Estimated chance of admission for three typical students, from the same model as the calculator. Unweighted GPA; 2, 4 and 7 AP courses respectively; Regular Decision; no legacy, athletic or first-generation hook.

Which of the Most Selective Colleges can I get into with a 3.7 GPA and a 1300 SAT?

By CollegeCalcAI's model, a student with a 3.7 unweighted GPA and a 1300 SAT has no Likely or Safety estimate among the 29 colleges here. The other 29 are Reach. Estimates assume Regular Decision and no hook; courses, activities and essays move them.

Estimated admission chance for three student profiles at each college: 3.3 GPA, 1150 SAT; 3.7 GPA, 1300 SAT; 4.0 GPA, 1500 SAT
College	3.3 GPA1150 SAT	3.7 GPA1300 SAT	4.0 GPA1500 SAT
California Institute of Technologyadmits 3%	4%Reach	4%Reach	7%Reach
Columbia Universityadmits 4%	4%Reach	6%Reach	8%Reach
Harvard Universityadmits 4%	4%Reach	6%Reach	8%Reach
Stanford Universityadmits 4%	4%Reach	6%Reach	8%Reach
Yale Universityadmits 4%	4%Reach	6%Reach	8%Reach
University of Chicagoadmits 4%	4%Reach	6%Reach	8%Reach
Brown Universityadmits 5%	5%Reach	7%Reach	10%Reach
Dartmouth Collegeadmits 5%	5%Reach	7%Reach	10%Reach
Northeastern Universityadmits 5%	5%Reach	7%Reach	11%Reach
Princeton Universityadmits 5%	5%Reach	7%Reach	10%Reach
University of Pennsylvaniaadmits 5%	5%Reach	7%Reach	10%Reach
Massachusetts Institute of Technologyadmits 5%	5%Reach	7%Reach	10%Reach
Duke Universityadmits 6%	6%Reach	8%Reach	12%Reach
Vanderbilt Universityadmits 6%	6%Reach	8%Reach	12%Reach
Johns Hopkins Universityadmits 6%	6%Reach	8%Reach	12%Reach
Bowdoin Collegeadmits 7%	7%Reach	9%Reach	14%Reach
Colby Collegeadmits 7%	7%Reach	9%Reach	15%Reach
Pomona Collegeadmits 7%	7%Reach	9%Reach	14%Reach
Swarthmore Collegeadmits 7%	7%Reach	9%Reach	14%Reach
Northwestern Universityadmits 8%	7%Reach	10%Reach	15%Reach
Rice Universityadmits 8%	7%Reach	9%Reach	16%Reach
Williams Collegeadmits 8%	7%Reach	10%Reach	16%Reach
Cornell Universityadmits 9%	8%Reach	10%Reach	18%Reach
U.S. Naval Academyadmits 9%	8%Reach	13%Reach	21%Reach
UCLAadmits 9%	8%Reach	11%Reach	18%Reach

Show all 29 colleges

Estimated admission chance for three student profiles at each college: 3.3 GPA, 1150 SAT; 3.7 GPA, 1300 SAT; 4.0 GPA, 1500 SAT (continued)
Amherst Collegeadmits 9%	8%Reach	11%Reach	18%Reach
New York Universityadmits 9%	8%Reach	11%Reach	18%Reach
University of Southern Californiaadmits 10%	8%Reach	12%Reach	20%Reach
Claremont McKenna Collegeadmits 10%	9%Reach	12%Reach	20%Reach

Estimates, not guarantees. Get yours with your real courses and activities or compare your own list with the free admissions API.

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CollegeCalcAI. "Most Selective Colleges." 2026. https://collegecalcai.com/data/most-selective

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6%median acceptance rate, most selective colleges (29 schools)Source: CollegeCalcAI

<a href="https://collegecalcai.com/data/most-selective?utm_source=embed&utm_medium=statcard" style="display:inline-block;padding:16px 20px;border:1px solid #E5E9F0;border-radius:14px;text-decoration:none;font-family:system-ui,sans-serif;background:#fff">6%median acceptance rate, most selective colleges (29 schools)Source: CollegeCalcAI</a>

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Acceptance rates and admitted test ranges reflect publicly reported data (U.S. Department of Education / NCES IPEDS / Common Data Sets) and are rounded. Estimates from CollegeCalcAI are a planning tool computed by a fixed, transparent model, not a guarantee of any admission decision.