United States Private Colleges Ranked by Highest SAT Score

Below is a list of the 783 private colleges in the United States with the highest SAT Score for incoming freshmen. California Institute of Technology leads the list with an average SAT Score of 1555. Alternatively, check out the ACT version of these rankings.

The SAT is a standardized test used by colleges to evaluate applicants. It is not a guarantee of success in college, but it is a strong indicator of academic potential.

List of United States Private Colleges Ranked by Highest SAT Score
College	Average SAT Score
Methodist University Fayetteville, North Carolina	1165
Arcadia University Glenside, Pennsylvania	1165
Mount St. Mary's University Emmitsburg, Maryland	1163
University of New Haven West Haven, Connecticut	1162
Bushnell University Eugene, Oregon	1162
Saint Mary's College of California Moraga, California	1161
Saint Norbert College De Pere, Wisconsin	1161
Samford University Birmingham, Alabama	1160
Walsh University North Canton, Ohio	1160
Southern Adventist University Collegedale, Tennessee	1160
LeTourneau University Longview, Texas	1160
La Salle University Philadelphia, Pennsylvania	1159
The University of Tampa Tampa, Florida	1155
Nebraska Wesleyan University Lincoln, Nebraska	1155
Oklahoma Baptist University Shawnee, Oklahoma	1155
Oklahoma City University Oklahoma City, Oklahoma	1155
Marywood University Scranton, Pennsylvania	1155
Randolph College Lynchburg, Virginia	1155

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This list is updated annually based on the latest data from the National Center for Education Statistics.
Last updated: August 2026

Data source: IPEDS 2025 survey for academic year 2024/2025 - National Center for Education Statistics.