Minnesota Private Colleges Ranked by Lowest Acceptance Rate

Below is a ranking of the 26 private colleges in Minnesota with the lowest acceptance rate for freshman undergraduate applications. Carleton College leads the list by accepting 20% of high school students that applied.

Acceptance rate is a measure of the competitiveness of a school. Lower acceptance rates are more competitive and may require a higher GPA, SAT/ACT score, and other factors to be considered for admission.

List of Minnesota Private Colleges Ranked by Lowest Acceptance Rate
College	Acceptance Rate
Carleton College Northfield, Minnesota	20%
Crown College Saint Bonifacius, Minnesota	23%
Macalester College Saint Paul, Minnesota	29%
Bethany Lutheran College Mankato, Minnesota	39%
Minneapolis College of Art and Design Minneapolis, Minnesota	48%
St Olaf College Northfield, Minnesota	48%
Gustavus Adolphus College Saint Peter, Minnesota	61%
Concordia College at Moorhead Moorhead, Minnesota	63%
Concordia University Saint Paul Saint Paul, Minnesota	79%
Augsburg University Minneapolis, Minnesota	82%
University of St Thomas Saint Paul, Minnesota	85%
Martin Luther College New Ulm, Minnesota	87%
Bethel University Saint Paul, Minnesota	88%
Hamline University Saint Paul, Minnesota	88%
Saint Johns University Collegeville, Minnesota	91%
College of Saint Benedict Saint Joseph, Minnesota	92%
St Catherine University Saint Paul, Minnesota	92%
University of Northwestern St Paul Saint Paul, Minnesota	93%

Search and filter all 26 colleges

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.