Stanford University
Stanford, CA
3.6% admitted · $12,307/yr after aid
The most selective colleges
65 colleges on DreamSchool.co are in this group. This list ranks four-year colleges with at least 1,000 undergraduates that admit fewer than 20% of applicants, most selective first. The median admission rate among them is 11%, and the median average net price, across all family incomes, is $25,124 a year.
Harvard University
Cambridge, MA
3.7% admitted · $19,148/yr after aid
Yale University
New Haven, CT
3.9% admitted · $11,340/yr after aid
Columbia University in the City of New York
New York, NY
4.0% admitted · $15,370/yr after aid
University of Chicago
Chicago, IL
4.5% admitted · $16,776/yr after aid
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Cambridge, MA
4.6% admitted · $14,815/yr after aid
Princeton University
Princeton, NJ
4.6% admitted · $7,815/yr after aid
Northeastern University
Boston, MA
5.2% admitted · $29,060/yr after aid
Brown University
Providence, RI
5.4% admitted · $26,976/yr after aid
Dartmouth College
Hanover, NH
5.4% admitted · $26,707/yr after aid
University of Pennsylvania
Philadelphia, PA
5.4% admitted · $29,577/yr after aid
Duke University
Durham, NC
5.7% admitted · $23,706/yr after aid
Vanderbilt University
Nashville, TN
5.9% admitted · $15,497/yr after aid
Johns Hopkins University
Baltimore, MD
6.4% admitted · $18,431/yr after aid
Bowdoin College
Brunswick, ME
7.1% admitted · $15,595/yr after aid
Colby College
Waterville, ME
7.1% admitted · $19,835/yr after aid
Pomona College
Claremont, CA
7.1% admitted · $18,978/yr after aid
Swarthmore College
Swarthmore, PA
7.5% admitted · $17,392/yr after aid
Northwestern University
Evanston, IL
7.7% admitted · $34,420/yr after aid
Rice University
Houston, TX
8.0% admitted · $11,164/yr after aid
Williams College
Williamstown, MA
8.3% admitted · $15,157/yr after aid
Barnard College
New York, NY
8.8% admitted · $28,930/yr after aid
Cornell University
Ithaca, NY
8.8% admitted · $33,934/yr after aid
Amherst College
Amherst, MA
9.0% admitted · $19,536/yr after aid
University of California-Los Angeles
Los Angeles, CA
9.0% admitted · $14,659/yr after aid
New York University
New York, NY
9.2% admitted · $35,737/yr after aid
United States Naval Academy
Annapolis, MD
9.3% admitted
Claremont McKenna College
Claremont, CA
9.6% admitted · $26,039/yr after aid
University of Southern California
Los Angeles, CA
9.8% admitted · $33,056/yr after aid
SU
Stanbridge University
Irvine, CA
10% admitted · $25,124/yr after aid
Emory University
Atlanta, GA
11% admitted · $16,754/yr after aid
Middlebury College
Middlebury, VT
11% admitted · $32,102/yr after aid
University of California-Berkeley
Berkeley, CA
11% admitted · $14,538/yr after aid
Boston University
Boston, MA
11% admitted · $36,503/yr after aid
University of Notre Dame
Notre Dame, IN
11% admitted · $25,339/yr after aid
Tufts University
Medford, MA
12% admitted · $38,797/yr after aid
Carnegie Mellon University
Pittsburgh, PA
12% admitted · $35,780/yr after aid
CO
College of the Ozarks
Point Lookout, MO
12% admitted · $13,114/yr after aid
Washington University in St Louis
St. Louis, MO
12% admitted · $13,360/yr after aid
Haverford College
Haverford, PA
12% admitted · $31,075/yr after aid
United States Military Academy
West Point, NY
13% admitted
Georgetown University
Washington, DC
13% admitted · $33,661/yr after aid
Bates College
Lewiston, ME
13% admitted · $27,390/yr after aid
Davidson College
Davidson, NC
13% admitted · $15,060/yr after aid
Hamilton College
Clinton, NY
14% admitted · $25,793/yr after aid
Colgate University
Hamilton, NY
14% admitted · $29,409/yr after aid
Tulane University of Louisiana
New Orleans, LA
14% admitted · $40,693/yr after aid
Washington and Lee University
Lexington, VA
14% admitted · $25,279/yr after aid
Georgia Institute of Technology-Main Campus
Atlanta, GA
14% admitted · $12,028/yr after aid
United States Air Force Academy
USAF Academy, CO
14% admitted
Wellesley College
Wellesley, MA
14% admitted · $23,995/yr after aid
Grinnell College
Grinnell, IA
14% admitted · $15,203/yr after aid
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Chapel Hill, NC
15% admitted · $11,305/yr after aid
University of Michigan-Ann Arbor
Ann Arbor, MI
16% admitted · $14,362/yr after aid
Boston College
Chestnut Hill, MA
16% admitted · $38,930/yr after aid
Wesleyan University
Middletown, CT
17% admitted · $23,014/yr after aid
University of Virginia-Main Campus
Charlottesville, VA
17% admitted · $18,056/yr after aid
Babson College
Wellesley, MA
17% admitted · $34,096/yr after aid
Denison University
Granville, OH
17% admitted · $40,163/yr after aid
College of the Holy Cross
Worcester, MA
18% admitted · $38,829/yr after aid
Colorado College
Colorado Springs, CO
19% admitted · $27,951/yr after aid
Vassar College
Poughkeepsie, NY
19% admitted · $36,924/yr after aid
Rhode Island School of Design
Providence, RI
19% admitted · $50,513/yr after aid
University of Miami
Coral Gables, FL
19% admitted · $36,483/yr after aid
Berea College
Berea, KY
19% admitted · $5,836/yr after aid
Most selective by state
- Massachusetts (11)
- New York (8)
- California (7)
- Pennsylvania (4)
- North Carolina (3)
- Maine (3)
- Connecticut (2)
- Illinois (2)
- Rhode Island (2)
- Maryland (2)
- Georgia (2)
- Missouri (2)
- Virginia (2)
- Colorado (2)
- New Jersey (1)
- New Hampshire (1)
- Tennessee (1)
- Texas (1)
- Vermont (1)
- Indiana (1)
- District of Columbia (1)
- Louisiana (1)
- Iowa (1)
- Michigan (1)
- Ohio (1)
- Florida (1)
- Kentucky (1)
Related stories and research
- How much early decision raises your admission odds, by collegeOctober 31, 2026
- Test required, optional or blind: where four-year colleges standOctober 30, 2026
- The 25 most selective colleges in AmericaOctober 30, 2026
- Which selective colleges still consider legacy status?October 30, 2026