Texas's admission ranking does not rank its costs

Rice University admits 8% of first year applicants, the lowest admission rate among the Texas colleges listed below. Sorting colleges by admission rate does not sort them by average net price. Texas A & M International University has a lower admission rate and a lower average net price than University of Dallas. A college list needs both an admission check and a separate price check.

Admission rates range from 8% to 58% on this list

The table ranks eligible four year colleges by the share of applicants admitted, from lowest to highest. Rice University reports 8%, compared with 58% at East Texas Baptist University. Each rate measures the share of that college's first year applicant pool that it admitted.

Applicants choose which colleges to apply to, so each rate covers a different group. Requirements can also vary by program. Check the current requirements for the student's intended program when deciding how a college fits the student's list.

Admission rates cover Fall 2024; applicant counts cover Fall 2023. The columns describe different admission cycles. Net prices describe a separate enrolled-student cohort; their reporting period is listed with the sources below.

College	City	Admission rate	Applicants	Average net price
Rice University	Houston	8%	31,059	$11,164
Trinity University	San Antonio	26%	11,425	$22,962
The University of Texas at Austin	Austin	27%	66,109	$18,554
LeTourneau University	Longview	38%	3,518	$26,985
Paul Quinn College	Dallas	40%	3,398	$14,147
Southwestern University	Georgetown	43%	6,585	$29,435
Texas A & M International University	Laredo	44%	8,309	$336
Texas Christian University	Fort Worth	45%	20,517	$35,045
Austin College	Sherman	48%	5,474	$20,077
Baylor University	Waco	51%	39,735	$44,441
University of Dallas	Irving	53%	4,179	$68,064
Wayland Baptist University	Plainview	56%	1,974	$23,421
McMurry University	Abilene	57%	4,836	$19,021
Texas A&M University-College Station	College Station	57%	50,832	$21,527
East Texas Baptist University	Marshall	58%	1,639	$23,414

A lower admission rate can accompany a lower net price

Texas A & M International University reports an admission rate of 44% and an average net price of $336. University of Dallas admits 53% and reports $68,064. The difference in their average annual net prices is $67,728, calculated from the figures in the table.

These are annual averages for full time, first time undergraduates receiving federal financial aid. Net price subtracts grants and scholarships from the cost of attendance. The colleges enroll students with different financial circumstances, so their averages combine different mixes of family income and aid eligibility. The College Scorecard documentation defines the students included in this measure.

Check admission fit and your family's estimated price separately

Start with the programs and colleges the student would attend. Check their current admission requirements and deadlines, then run each college's net price calculator using the same family information. Keep the estimated amount the family would pay after grants separate from any loans offered to cover it.

Use all colleges in Texas to look beyond the low-admission-rate list. Keep options with attainable admission requirements and an estimated price the family can cover. Save those colleges and their deadlines in My plan, which requires a free account, and compare actual financial aid offers before choosing where to enroll.

How we got these numbers

Figures come from two U.S. Department of Education sources, the College Scorecard (released 2026-10-15) and the IPEDS Admissions survey. Data years:

• Admission rate: Fall 2024, reported in IPEDS DCY2024-25
• Applicants: Fall 2023, reported in IPEDS ADM2023
• Average net price: AcadYr 2024-25, reported in IPEDS DCY2025-26

Colleges with fewer than 500 applicants are excluded from selectivity rankings because their admission rates say little about selectivity. Full details on our data page.

More on DreamSchool.co

• Best-value colleges
• Colleges with no application fee
• The most selective colleges