- Business Insider compiled the nation’s 25 universities that are the hardest to get into.
- Eight universities had an acceptance rate of under 5% in 2024.
- Fear of rejection is driving students to apply to more schools, pushing down admission rates.
- University of Notre Dame
Location: Notre Dame, Indiana
Applicants: 29,942
Acceptance rate: 11.3%
Student population: 13,000 students
2026-2027 Academic Year Tuition: $69,280
Most popular major: Finance
24. Boston University
Location: Boston
Applicants: 78,769
Acceptance rate: 11.1%
Student population: 38,093 students
2026-2027 Academic Year Tuition: $73,024
Most popular major: Business Administration and Management
- University of California-Berkeley
Location: Berkeley, California
Applicants: 124,242
Acceptance rate: 11.0%
Student population: 45,882 students
2026-2027 Academic Year In-State Tuition: $18,214
Most popular major: Data science
- Emory University
Location: Atlanta
Applicants: 33,450
Acceptance rate: 10.6%
Student population: 16,000 students
2026-2027 Academic Year Tuition: $70,300
Most popular major: Management Sciences and Information Systems
- University of Southern California
Location: Los Angeles
Applicants: 82,027
Acceptance rate: 9.8%
Student population: 46,000 students
2026-2027 Academic Year Tuition: $75,384
Most popular major: Business
- New York University
Location: New York City
Applicants: 110,807
Acceptance rate: 9.2%
Student population: 56,800 students
2026-2027 Academic Year Tuition: $68,576
Most popular major: Visual and Performing Arts
- University of California, Los Angeles
Location: Los Angeles
Applicants: 146,272
Acceptance rate: 9.0%
Student population: 49,013 students
2026-2027 Academic Year In-State Tuition: $16,430
Most popular major: Business Economics
- Cornell University
Location: Ithaca, New York
Applicants: 62,993
Acceptance rate: 8.8%
Student population: 26,561 students
2026-2027 Academic Year Tuition: $49,816
Most popular major: Computer Science
- Rice University
Location: Houston
Applicants: 32,473
Acceptance rate: 8.0%
Student population: 9,200 students
2026-2027 Academic Year Tuition: $71,140
Most popular major: Computer Science
- Northwestern University
Location: Evanston, Illinois
Applicants: 49,474
Acceptance rate: 7.7%
Student population: 23,400 students
2026-2027 Academic Year Tuition: $71,802
Most popular degree: Economics
- Johns Hopkins University
Location: Baltimore
Applicants: 45,895
Acceptance rate: 6.4%
Student population: 30,210 students
2026-2027 Academic Year Tuition: $68,670
Most popular major: Cellular and Molecular Biology
- Vanderbilt University
Location: Nashville
Applicants: 45,409
Acceptance rate: 5.9%
Student population: 13,575 students
2026-2027 Academic Year Tuition: $69,822
Most popular degree: Human and Organizational Development
- Duke University
Location: Durham, North Carolina
Applicants: 51,795
Acceptance rate: 5.7%
Student population: 17,325 students
2026-2027 Academic Year Tuition: $73,740
Most popular degree: Computer Science
- Dartmouth College (tie)
Location: Hanover, New Hampshire
Applicants: 31,656
Acceptance rate: 5.4%
Student population: 6,900 students
2026-2027 Academic Year Tuition: $71,697
Most popular major: Economics
- University of Pennsylvania (tie)
Location: Philadelphia
Applicants: 65,226
Acceptance rate: 5.4%
Student population: 29,384 students
2026-2027 Academic Year Tuition: $65,670
Most popular major: Business, Management and Related Support Services
- Brown University (tie)
Location: Providence, Rhode Island
Applicants: 48,904
Acceptance rate: 5.4%
Student population: 11,164 students
2026-2027 Academic Year Tuition: $74,568
Most popular major: Computer Science
- Northeastern University
Location: Boston
Applicants: 98,425
Acceptance rate: 5.2%
Student population: 47,367 students
2026-2027 Academic Year Tuition: $70,000
Most popular major: Business, Management, and Engineering
- Princeton University
Location: Princeton, New Jersey
Applicants: 40,468
Acceptance rate: 4.6%
Student population: 9,106 students
2026-2027 Academic Year Tuition: $68,140
Most popular degree: Economics
- Massachusetts Institute of Technology (tie)
Location: Cambridge, Massachusetts
Applicants: 28,232
Acceptance rate: 4.5%
Student population: 11,816 students
2026-2027 Academic Year Tuition: $92,760
Most popular major: Computer Science and Engineering
- University of Chicago (tie)
Location: Chicago
Applicants: 43,612
Acceptance rate: 4.5%
Student population: 19,140 students
2026-2027 Academic Year Tuition: $75,960
Most popular major: Economics
- Columbia University
Location: New York City
Applicants: 60,115
Acceptance rate: 4.0%
Student population: 35,173 students
2026-2027 Academic Year Tuition: $72,800
Most popular major: Computer Science
- Yale University
Location: New Haven, Connecticut
Applicants: 57,517
Acceptance rate: 3.9%
Student population: 15,657 students
2026-2027 Academic Year Tuition: $94,100
Most popular degree: Economics
- Harvard University (tie)
Location: Cambridge, Massachusetts
Applicants: 54,008
Acceptance rate: 3.6%
Student population: 24,317 students
2026-2027 Academic Year Tuition: $62,226
Most popular major: Economics
- Stanford University (tie)
Location: Stanford, California
Applicants: 57,326
Acceptance rate: 3.6%
Student population: 17,314 students
2026-2027 Academic Year Tuition: $67,731
Most popular major: Computer Science
- California Institute of Technology
Location: Pasadena, California
Applicants: 13,856
Acceptance rate: 2.6%
Student population: 2,368 students
2026-2027 Academic Year Tuition: $68,574
Most popular degree: Computer Science
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