West Colleges with low acceptance rates

Colleges with the Lowest Acceptance Rate in West for 2025

These are the most selective public and private four-year colleges in West. 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 California Institute of Technology which sent acceptance letters to only 3% of the 13,107 students who applied and rejected 97%.

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 West colleges with the highest SAT scores, highest ACT scores and highest GPA's.


43 results

California Institute of Technology
C
Pasadena, CA

California Institute of Technology

Private 4 Year

1 reviews

3% Acceptance Rate

#6 Best Colleges in America

  • 2,463enrollment
  • $23,397net price
  • 1530-1580SAT range
  • 35-36ACT range
  • 3.97Estimated Avg GPA

Applications Due Jan 3

Stanford University
S
Stanford, CA

Stanford University

Private 4 Year

6 reviews

4% Acceptance Rate

#2 Best Colleges in America

  • 18,446enrollment
  • $17,998net price
  • 1510-1580SAT range
  • 34-35ACT range
  • 3.96Avg GPA

Applications Due Jan 2

Minerva University
M
San Francisco, California
 

Minerva University

Private 4 Year

0 reviews

4% Acceptance Rate

 

  • 656enrollment
  • $16,556net price
  • -SAT range
  • -ACT range
  • NAAvg GPA

Pomona College
P
Claremont, CA

Pomona College

Private 4 Year

0 reviews

7% Acceptance Rate

#20 Best Colleges in America

  • 1,664enrollment
  • $17,423net price
  • 1480-1560SAT range
  • 33-35ACT range
  • 3.89Estimated Avg GPA

Applications Due Jan 8

University of California Los Angeles
C
Los Angeles, CA

University of California Los Angeles

Public 4 Year

3 reviews

9% Acceptance Rate

#3 Best Public Universities in America

  • 46,678enrollment
  • $15,166net price
  • 1300-1530SAT range
  • 29-35ACT range
  • 3.92Avg GPA

Applications Due Nov 30

Pacific Oaks College
P
Pasadena, CA
 

Pacific Oaks College

Private 4 Year

0 reviews

10% Acceptance Rate

 

  • 1,051enrollment
  • -net price
  • -SAT range
  • -ACT range
  • NAAvg GPA

University of Southern California
S
Los Angeles, CA

University of Southern California

Private 4 Year

5 reviews

10% Acceptance Rate

#5 Best Private Colleges in California

  • 47,147enrollment
  • $41,496net price
  • 1440-1550SAT range
  • 32-35ACT range
  • 3.83Avg GPA

Claremont McKenna College
C
Claremont, CA

Claremont McKenna College

Private 4 Year

0 reviews

11% Acceptance Rate

#17 Best Colleges in America

  • 1,384enrollment
  • $29,978net price
  • 1450-1560SAT range
  • 33-35ACT range
  • 3.89Estimated Avg GPA

Applications Due Jan 5

University of California Berkeley
C
Berkeley, CA

University of California Berkeley

Public 4 Year

2 reviews

12% Acceptance Rate

#5 Best Public Universities in America

  • 45,699enrollment
  • $16,997net price
  • 1310-1530SAT range
  • 30-35ACT range
  • 3.87Avg GPA

Applications Due Nov 30

Harvey Mudd College
H
Claremont, CA

Harvey Mudd College

Private 4 Year

1 reviews

13% Acceptance Rate

 

  • 949enrollment
  • $42,720net price
  • 1480-1560SAT range
  • 34-36ACT range
  • 3.96Estimated Avg GPA

Applications Due Jan 5

United States Air Force Academy
A
USAFA, Colorado

United States Air Force Academy

Public 4 Year

6 reviews

14% Acceptance Rate

 

  • 4,124enrollment
  • -net price
  • 1250-1450SAT range
  • 26-33ACT range
  • 3.81Avg GPA

Applications Due Dec 31

Mills College
M
Oakland, CA

Mills College

Private 4 Year

0 reviews

17% Acceptance Rate

 

  • 658enrollment
  • -net price
  • 1390-1520SAT range
  • 31-33ACT range
  • 3.57Avg GPA

Pitzer College
P
Claremont, CA

Pitzer College

Private 4 Year

0 reviews

17% Acceptance Rate

 

  • 1,204enrollment
  • $34,801net price
  • -SAT range
  • -ACT range
  • 3.93Avg GPA

Applications Due Jan 1

Colorado College
C
Colorado Springs, CO

Colorado College

Private 4 Year

0 reviews

20% Acceptance Rate

#1 Best Value in Colorado

  • 2,173enrollment
  • $35,281net price
  • 1365-1520SAT range
  • 31-34ACT range
  • 3.98Avg GPA

Applications Due Jan 15

University of California San Diego
C
La Jolla, CA

University of California San Diego

Public 4 Year

0 reviews

25% Acceptance Rate

#9 Best Public Universities in America

  • 42,376enrollment
  • $13,293net price
  • 1270-1480SAT range
  • 28-34ACT range
  • 3.82Estimated Avg GPA

Applications Due Nov 30

University of California Irvine
C
Irvine, CA

University of California Irvine

Public 4 Year

2 reviews

26% Acceptance Rate

#11 Best Public Universities in America

  • 36,582enrollment
  • $14,647net price
  • 1230-1430SAT range
  • 26-33ACT range
  • 3.75Estimated Avg GPA

Applications Due Nov 30

California Institute of the Arts
C
Valencia, CA

California Institute of the Arts

Private 4 Year

0 reviews

26% Acceptance Rate

 

  • 1,353enrollment
  • $57,288net price
  • -SAT range
  • -ACT range
  • NAAvg GPA

Applications Due Jan 5

Reed College
R
Portland, OR

Reed College

Private 4 Year

0 reviews

27% Acceptance Rate

#1 Best Value in Oregon

  • 1,458enrollment
  • $36,993net price
  • 1300-1510SAT range
  • 29-34ACT range
  • 4.0Avg GPA