2018 Hardest Colleges To Get Into In America

~ drpaulloweadmissionsexpert

College admissions decisions will be released in late March through early April.  Many top high schools seniors will be disappointed when they check their emails to discover that they will be rejected from the Ivies and highly-selective colleges.  Even with having a high GPA, top SAT scores, high grades and a “manufactured” application and personal statement will be rejected from these schools.  Year after year, I hear the horror stories from parents whose kids got in nowhere because they thought the college admissions race was just about grades, SAT scores, their perceived  ‘unique’ applications, generic essays and perfect connections.

Niche, a company that researches and compiles information on educational institutions released its latest list of the hardest colleges to get into in America.  The hardest colleges ranking is based on acceptance (rejection) rates and SAT/ACT test scores using data from the U.S. Department of Education.  The rejection rates of these colleges range from 85% to 95%.

Here is a list of the top 25:

  1. Harvard University:  95%
  2. Stanford University:  95%
  3. Yale University:  94%
  4. Massachusetts Institute of Technology:  92%
  5. California Institute of Technology:  92%
  6. Princeton University:  93%
  7. University of Chicago:  92%
  8. Columbia University:  93%
  9. Vanderbilt University:  89%
  10. Brown University:  91%
  11. University of Pennsylvania:  91%
  12. Duke University:  88%
  13. Dartmouth College:  88%
  14. Harvey Mudd College:  87%
  15. Pomona College:  91%
  16. Northwestern University:  88%
  17. Rice University:  89%
  18. Johns Hopkins University:  87%
  19. Swarthmore College:  87%
  20. Claremont McKenna College
  21. Washington University in St. Louis:  83%
  22. Cornell University:  87%
  23. Amherst College:  86%
  24. Bowdoin College:  85%
  25. Tufts University:  86%

Ivy League and highly selective colleges use holistic, committee-based and team-based approaches and review processes when evaluating applicants for admission.  That means admission to these colleges is not based on a simple formula of grades and test scores.  Instead, these colleges consider a variety of factors including but not limited to:  the student’s academic record, extracurricular interests, intellectual achievements, character, emotional intelligence and cultural intelligence and personal background to decide who will be rejected or accepted.

Dr. Paul Reginald Lowe, founder and managing director of Pinnacle Educational Center Admissions Advisors Group, provides comprehensive counseling advice, exclusively for admissions to top private schools; Ivy League and highly-selective colleges/universities; BS/MD programs;  graduate and medical schools and top visual and performing arts programs.  He also specializes in helping students who have been wait-listed, deferred or rejected gain admission into their top-choice schools: College Application Rejected. and student who wish to transfer to another college:  College Transfer Admissions Advisors.

Published by drpaulloweadmissionsexpert

Dr. Paul Reginald Lowe, Sr. is the co-founder and CEO of Pinnacle Educational Center; and is one of the world's leading independent educational consultants and expert admissions advisors. Pinnacle Educational Center which has expanded into a network of admissions advisory services: Pinnacle Educational Center Admissions Advisors Group. As a global admissions expert, Dr. Lowe and his team help students gain admissions to top private schools, Ivy league and highly selective colleges, medical schools and BS/MD programs. Dr. Lowe also specializes in helping students get into their top choice private school and colleges after they have been waitlisted, deferred or rejected.