Minnesota Colleges with low acceptance rates

Colleges with the Lowest Acceptance Rate in Minnesota for 2025

These are the most selective public and private four-year colleges in Minnesota. The list is ranked by acceptance rate, lowest to highest and limited to schools which reject at least half of all applicants. Leading the list is Carleton College which sent acceptance letters to only 22% of the 6,464 students who applied and rejected 78%.

Not all schools on the most selective list are overly academically challenging. Some schools with less rigorous test and high school GPA requirements may receive a large numbers of qualified applicants and the school does not have space to admit them all.

If you're looking for challenging colleges, explore rankings of Minnesota colleges with the highest SAT scores, highest ACT scores and highest GPA's.


3 results

Carleton College
C
Northfield, MN

Carleton College

Private 4 Year

1 reviews

22% Acceptance Rate

#1 Best Value in Minnesota

  • 2,069enrollment
  • $29,434net price
  • 1430-1550SAT range
  • 32-34ACT range
  • 3.9Estimated Avg GPA

Applications Due Jan 15

Macalester College
M
Saint Paul, MN

Macalester College

Private 4 Year

1 reviews

28% Acceptance Rate

#2 Best Colleges in Minnesota

  • 2,142enrollment
  • $38,571net price
  • 1350-1510SAT range
  • 30-33ACT range
  • 3.81Estimated Avg GPA

Applications Due Jan 15

Minneapolis College of Art and Design
M
Minneapolis, MN

Minneapolis College of Art and Design

Private 4 Year

0 reviews

48% Acceptance Rate

 

  • 824enrollment
  • $27,031net price
  • 1110-1430SAT range
  • 20-24ACT range
  • 3.29Avg GPA

Applications Due Apr 1