Best Test-Optional U.S. Colleges
CollegeSimply ranks 1045 four-year colleges that do not require SAT or ACT scores for admission. These are the highest-ranked test-optional schools in the U.S., sorted by academic quality and student outcomes. Policies can vary by applicant and year, so confirm requirements on each school's website before applying.
Princeton University leads our 2027 test-optional rankings, ranked #1 nationally. The top rated public option is University of Michigan Ann Arbor. Also highly ranked: Duke University, Stanford University and Harvard University.
Without test scores, your GPA, activities, recommendation letters, and essays carry more weight. Compare acceptance rates, tuition, and enrollment across the full list below. Filter by state or sort by selectivity to build your list. You can also explore matches by GPA on our college search by GPA. See our ranking methodology for how schools are scored.
New Jersey City University
- Public 4 Year
- Jersey City, NJ
-
| 0 reviews
NJCU is a public university known for undergraduate education, nursing, and business. The urban campus sits in Jersey City across the Hudson River from Manhattan.
- SAT Range 890-1140
- Avg GPA 3.24
- Acceptance Rate 98%
- Net Price $16,724
SUNY College of Agriculture and Technology at Cobleskill
- Public 4 Year
- Cobleskill, NY
-
3.0 | 2 reviews
SUNY Cobleskill is a public college of agriculture and technology known for undergraduate animal science, agriculture, and culinary arts. The rural campus in upstate New York includes working farms and agricultural facilities.
- SAT Range 990-1170
- Avg GPA 3.1
- Acceptance Rate 84%
- Net Price $18,140
St. Thomas Aquinas College
- Private 4 Year
- Sparkill, NY
-
| 0 reviews
- May 1 application deadline
St. Thomas Aquinas is a private Catholic college known for undergraduate teacher education and business. The suburban campus sits in Sparkill just north of New York City.
- SAT Range 880-1085
- Avg GPA 3.0
- Acceptance Rate 93%
- Net Price $21,187
Chicago State University
- Public 4 Year
- Chicago, IL
-
| 0 reviews
Chicago State is a public university known for undergraduate education and nursing. The urban campus is located on Chicago's South Side.
- SAT Range 750-963
- Avg GPA 3.18
- Acceptance Rate 43%
- Net Price $10,441
Texas A & M University Corpus Christi
- Public 4 Year
- Corpus Christi, TX
-
| 0 reviews
- Jul 1 application deadline
Texas A&M-Corpus Christi is a public university known for undergraduate marine science, coastal biology, and environmental science. The campus sits on Ward Island along Corpus Christi Bay.
- SAT Range 970-1193
- Avg GPA 3.41
- Acceptance Rate 89%
- Net Price $15,233
Chestnut Hill College
- Private 4 Year
- Philadelphia, PA
-
5.0 | 1 reviews
Chestnut Hill is a private Catholic liberal arts college known for undergraduate education, psychology, and business. The wooded campus is set in Philadelphia's historic Chestnut Hill neighborhood.
- SAT Range 900-1090
- Avg GPA 3.12
- Acceptance Rate 74%
- Net Price $28,588
Texas Wesleyan University
- Private 4 Year
- Fort Worth, TX
-
3.0 | 1 reviews
Texas Wesleyan is a private Methodist university known for undergraduate teacher education and business. The historic campus sits in Fort Worth's Polytechnic Heights neighborhood.
- SAT Range 1020-1100
- Avg GPA 3.35
- Acceptance Rate 69%
- Net Price $26,416
Coppin State University
- Public 4 Year
- Baltimore, MD
-
| 0 reviews
- Jul 15 application deadline
Coppin State is a public historically Black university known for undergraduate nursing and teacher education. The urban campus sits in west Baltimore.
- SAT Range 880-1020
- Avg GPA 2.62
- Acceptance Rate 46%
- Net Price $9,831
University of South Carolina Aiken
- Public 4 Year
- Aiken, SC
-
| 0 reviews
- Aug 1 application deadline
USC Aiken is a public university known for undergraduate nursing, business, and education. The suburban campus is located in the smaller city of Aiken near the South Carolina-Georgia border.
- SAT Range 980-1220
- Predicted Avg GPA 3.19
- Acceptance Rate 79%
- Net Price $12,236
Lasell University
- Private 4 Year
- Newton, MA
-
4.8 | 18 reviews
Lasell is a private university known for undergraduate fashion design, merchandising, and business. The suburban Newton campus sits just outside Boston.
- SAT Range 1030-1158
- Avg GPA 3.12
- Acceptance Rate 81%
- Net Price $27,773
Penn State Brandywine
- Public 4 Year
- Media, PA
-
| 0 reviews
Penn State Brandywine is a public university campus known for undergraduate business, information sciences and technology, and biology. The suburban campus is located near Philadelphia in Media.
- SAT Range 1080-1310
- Avg GPA NA
- Acceptance Rate 98%
- Net Price $22,710
Brigham Young University Idaho
- Private 4 Year
- Rexburg, ID
-
4.8 | 4 reviews
- Feb 15 application deadline
BYU-Idaho is a private university affiliated with The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, known for undergraduate business, education, and nursing. The campus is in Rexburg, a small college town in eastern Idaho.
- SAT Range 970-1200
- Predicted Avg GPA 3.34
- Acceptance Rate 96%
- Net Price $8,528
Rivier University
- Private 4 Year
- Nashua, NH
-
| 0 reviews
- Oct 16 application deadline
Rivier is a private Catholic university known for undergraduate nursing and education. The campus is in Nashua in southern New Hampshire.
- SAT Range 1055-1175
- Avg GPA NA
- Acceptance Rate 83%
- Net Price $28,584
Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University
- Public 4 Year
- Tallahassee, FL
-
5.0 | 3 reviews
- May 1 application deadline
FAMU is a public HBCU known for undergraduate pharmacy, business, and engineering. The campus is located in Florida's capital city of Tallahassee.
- SAT Range 1030-1180
- Avg GPA 3.65
- Acceptance Rate 21%
- Net Price $13,819
West Virginia University Institute of Technology
- Public 4 Year
- Beckley, WV
-
| 0 reviews
- Aug 1 application deadline
WVU Tech is a public college known for undergraduate engineering and technology. The campus sits in Beckley in the mountains of southern West Virginia.
- SAT Range 880-1120
- Avg GPA 3.51
- Acceptance Rate 37%
- Net Price $11,281
University of Central Arkansas
- Public 4 Year
- Conway, AR
-
3.0 | 1 reviews
UCA is a public university known for undergraduate education and nursing programs. The campus sits in Conway, a college town north of Little Rock.
- SAT Range 910-1170
- Avg GPA 3.7
- Acceptance Rate 89%
- Net Price $16,546
University of Akron Main Campus
- Public 4 Year
- Akron, OH
-
3.5 | 4 reviews
- Aug 1 application deadline
University of Akron is a large public university known for undergraduate polymer science and engineering. The urban campus sits near downtown Akron.
- SAT Range 900-1190
- Avg GPA 3.47
- Acceptance Rate 60%
- Net Price $14,693
University of Wisconsin Milwaukee
- Public 4 Year
- Milwaukee, WI
-
| 0 reviews
- Sep 1 application deadline
UWM is a large public university known for undergraduate architecture, nursing, and freshwater sciences. The urban East Side campus sits near Lake Michigan in Milwaukee.
- SAT Range -
- Avg GPA 3.16
- Acceptance Rate 91%
- Net Price $16,263