The Most Selective College In Each State [MAP]
Higher-education information website eCollegeFinder has put together a great map showing the most selective college in each state based on the number of applications they received for the class of 2017.
Selectivity rates range wildly from state to state - some schools' acceptance percentages are in the single digits, while others can reach above 80%. The map also features a diverse array of schools, including large state universities, art and music institutes, and prestigious private colleges.
Pennsylvania's Curtis Institute of Music was the most selective of any college in the country, taking only 5% of students vying for admission in fall 2013. Only colleges that offered four-year undergraduate degrees with housing were included on this map.
eCollegeFinder's Mike Simmons put the map together using data from the National Center for Education Statistics.
Via eCollegeFinder, these are the most desirable colleges in the country:
eCollegeFinder also compiled a helpful list of the top 10 schools with the most applications and an excellent state-by-state breakdown of just how many students applied to each school:
Top 10 Colleges With The Lowest Acceptance Rates:
- Pennsylvania - Curtis Institute of Music - 5%
- Massachusetts - Harvard University - 6%
- California - Stanford University - 6%
- Connecticut - Yale University - 7%
- Maryland - United States Naval Academy - 7%
- New Jersey - Princeton University - 7%
- New York - The Juilliard School - 7%
- Illinois - University of Chicago - 9%
- Rhode Island - Brown University - 9%
- New Hampshire - Dartmouth University - 10%
Most Selective College By State:
Alabama - Oakwood University
- Location - Huntsville, Alabama
- Acceptance Rate - 34%
- Number of Applications Received - 2,728
- Total Undergraduates - 1,966
Alaska - Alaska Pacific University
- Location - Anchorage, Alaska
- Acceptance Rate - 37%
- Number of Applications Received - 494
- Total Undergraduates - 439
Arizona - Grand Canyon University
- Location - Phoenix, Arizona
- Acceptance Rate - 55%
- Number of Applications Received - 15,401
- Total Undergraduates - 31,158
Arkansas - University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff
- Location - Pine Bluff, Arkansas
- Acceptance Rate - 28%
- Number of Applications Received - 4,094
- Total Undergraduates - 2,724
California - Stanford University
- Location - Stanford, California
- Acceptance Rate - 6%
- Number of Applications Received - 38,828
- Total Undergraduates - 7,063
Colorado - United States Air Force Academy
- Location - USAFA, Colorado
- Acceptance Rate - 15%
- Number of Applications Received - 9,634
- Total Undergraduates - 4,120
Connecticut - Yale University
- Location - New Haven, Connecticut
- Acceptance Rate - 7%
- Number of Applications Received - 28,977
- Total Undergraduates - 5,405
Delaware - Delaware State University
- Location - Dover, Delaware
- Acceptance Rate - 42%
- Number of Applications Received - 8,884
- Total Undergraduates - 3,877
Florida - Adventist University of Health Sciences
- Location - Orlando, Florida
- Acceptance Rate - 13%
- Number of Applications Received - 2,110
- Total Undergraduates - 2,576
Georgia - Albany State University
- Location - Albany, Georgia
- Acceptance Rate - 20%
- Number of Applications Received - 8,250
- Total Undergraduates - 3,803
Hawaii - Brigham Young University-Hawaii
- Location - Laie, Hawaii
- Acceptance Rate - 36%
- Number of Applications Received - 2,664
- Total Undergraduates - 3,166
Idaho - Northwest Nazarene University
- Location - Nampa, Idaho
- Acceptance Rate - 62%
- Number of Applications Received - 1,227
- Total Undergraduates - 1,477
Illinois - University of Chicago
- Location - Chicago, Illinois
- Acceptance Rate - 9%
- Number of Applications Received - 30,304
- Total Undergraduates - 5,618
Indiana - University of Notre Dame
- Location - Notre Dame, Indiana
- Acceptance Rate - 22%
- Number of Applications Received - 17,647
- Total Undergraduates - 8,475
Iowa - Grinnell College
- Location - Grinnell, Iowa
- Acceptance Rate - 35%
- Number of Applications Received - 3,979
- Total Undergraduates - 1,674
Kansas - Sterling College
- Location - Sterling, Kansas
- Acceptance Rate - 44%
- Number of Applications Received - 883
- Total Undergraduates - 653
Kentucky - Berea College
- Location - Berea, Kentucky
- Acceptance Rate - 34%
- Number of Applications Received - 1,620
- Total Undergraduates - 1,658
Louisiana - Tulane University
- Location - New Orleans, Louisiana
- Acceptance Rate - 26%
- Number of Applications Received - 30,122
- Total Undergraduates - 8,357
Maine - Bowdoin College
- Location - Brunswick, Maine
- Acceptance Rate - 15%
- Number of Applications Received - 7,052
- Total Undergraduates - 1,839
Maryland - United State Naval Academy
- Location - Annapolis, Maryland
- Acceptance Rate - 7%
- Number of Applications Received - 19,146
- Total Undergraduates - 4,536
Massachusetts - Harvard University
- Location - Cambridge, Massachusetts
- Acceptance Rate - 6%
- Number of Applications Received - 35,023
- Total Undergraduates - 10,564
Michigan - University of Michigan
- Location - Ann Arbor, Michigan
- Acceptance Rate - 33%
- Number of Applications Received - 46,813
- Total Undergraduates - 27,979
Minnesota - Carleton College
- Location - Northfield, Minnesota
- Acceptance Rate - 21%
- Number of Applications Received - 7,045
- Total Undergraduates - 2,055
Mississippi - Rust College
- Location - Holy Springs, Mississippi
- Acceptance Rate - 14%
- Number of Applications Received - 3,152
- Total Undergraduates - 934
Missouri - College of the Ozarks
- Location - Point Lookout, Missouri
- Acceptance Rate - 13%
- Number of Applications Received - 3,006
- Total Undergraduates - 1,372
Montana - Carroll College
- Location - Helena, Montana
- Acceptance Rate - 53%
- Number of Applications Received - 3,279
- Total Undergraduates - 1,463
Nebraska - York College
- Location - York, Nebraska
- Acceptance Rate - 49%
- Number of Applications Received - 546
- Total Undergraduates - 472
Nevada - University of Nevada
- Location - Reno, Nevada
- Acceptance Rate - 84%
- Number of Applications Received - 7,857
- Total Undergraduates - 15,082
New Hampshire - Dartmouth College
- Location - Hannover, New Hampshire
- Acceptance Rate - 10%
- Number of Applications Received - 23,110
- Total Undergraduates - 4,193
New Jersey - Princeton University
- Location - Princeton, New Jersey
- Acceptance Rate - 7%
- Number of Applications Received - 26,499
- Total Undergraduates - 5,327
New Mexico - New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology
- Location - Socorro, New Mexico
- Acceptance Rate - 41%
- Number of Applications Received - 1,088
- Total Undergraduates - 1,565
New York* - The Juilliard School
- Location - New York, New York
- Acceptance Rate - 7%
- Number of Applications Received - 31,851
- Total Undergraduates - 7,814
North Carolina - Duke University
- Location - Durham, North Carolina
- Acceptance Rate - 13%
- Number of Applications Received - 30,374
- Total Undergraduates - 6,655
North Dakota - Dickinson State University
- Location - Dickinson, North Dakota
- Acceptance Rate - 49%
- Number of Applications Received - 417
- Total Undergraduates - 1,837
Ohio - Oberlin College
- Location - Oberlin, Ohio
- Acceptance Rate - 30%
- Number of Applications Received - 7,438
- Total Undergraduates - 2,930
Oklahoma - University of Tulsa
- Location - Tulsa, Oklahoma
- Acceptance Rate - 41%
- Number of Applications Received - 7,304
- Total Undergraduates - 3,160
Oregon - Corban University
- Location - Salem, Oregon
- Acceptance Rate - 32%
- Number of Applications Received - 2,896
- Total Undergraduates - 955
Pennsylvania - University of Pennsylvania
- Location - Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
- Acceptance Rate - 12%
- Number of Applications Received - 31,282
- Total Undergraduates - 11,678
Rhode Island - Brown University
- Location - Providence, Rhode Island
- Acceptance Rate - 9%
- Number of Applications Received - 28,919
- Total Undergraduates - 6,435
South Carolina - Lander University
- Location - Greenwood, South Carolina
- Acceptance Rate - 42%
- Number of Applications Received - 3,349
- Total Undergraduates - 2,969
South Dakota - Presentation College
- Location - Aberdeen, South Dakota
- Acceptance Rate - 66%
- Number of Applications Received - 401
- Total Undergraduates - 746
Tennessee - Vanderbilt University
- Location - Nashville, Tennessee
- Acceptance Rate - 13%
- Number of Applications Received - 38,161
- Total Undergraduates - 6,796
Texas - Rice University
- Location - Houston, Texas
- Acceptance Rate - 17%
- Number of Applications Received - 15,415
- Total Undergraduates - 3,848
Utah - Brigham Young University
- Location - Provo, Utah
- Acceptance Rate - 49%
- Number of Applications Received - 11,423
- Total Undergraduates - 31,060
Vermont - Middlebury College
- Location - Middlebury, Vermont
- Acceptance Rate - 17%
- Number of Applications Received - 8,847
- Total Undergraduates - 2,516
Virginia - Washington and Lee University
- Location - Lexington, Virginia
- Acceptance Rate - 18%
- Number of Applications Received - 6,222
- Total Undergraduates - 1,838
Washington - University of Washington
- Location - Seattle, Washington
- Acceptance Rate - 55%
- Number of Applications Received - 30,199
- Total Undergraduates - 29,475
West Virginia - Ohio Valley University
- Location - Vienna, West Virginia
- Acceptance Rate - 36%
- Number of Applications Received - 904
- Total Undergraduates - 436
Wisconsin - Mount Mary University
- Location - Milwaukee, Wisconsin
- Acceptance Rate - 54%
- Number of Applications Received - 478
- Total Undergraduates - 1,054
Wyoming - University of Wyoming
- Location - Laramie, Wyoming
- Acceptance Rate - 96%
- Number of Applications Received - 4,181
- Total Undergraduates - 10,194
*Tied with Columbia University, we used U.S. News as a tiebreaker.