North Carolina Public Colleges Ranked by Highest SAT Score

Below is a list of the 16 public colleges in North Carolina with the highest SAT Score for incoming freshmen. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill leads the list with an average SAT Score of 1460. 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 North Carolina Public Colleges Ranked by Highest SAT Score
College	Average SAT Score
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Chapel Hill, North Carolina	1460
North Carolina State University at Raleigh Raleigh, North Carolina	1385
University of North Carolina Wilmington Wilmington, North Carolina	1285
University of North Carolina Asheville Asheville, North Carolina	1265
University of North Carolina School of the Arts Winston Salem, North Carolina	1255
University of North Carolina at Greensboro Greensboro, North Carolina	1252
University of North Carolina at Charlotte Charlotte, North Carolina	1235
Appalachian State University Boone, North Carolina	1200
Western Carolina University Cullowhee, North Carolina	1175
East Carolina University Greenville, North Carolina	1155
North Carolina A & T State University Greensboro, North Carolina	1105
University of North Carolina at Pembroke Pembroke, North Carolina	1085
North Carolina Central University Durham, North Carolina	1040
Elizabeth City State University Elizabeth City, North Carolina	1000
Fayetteville State University Fayetteville, North Carolina	990
Winston Salem State University Winston-Salem, North Carolina	925

Search and filter all 16 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.