The 2020 Hardest Colleges to Get Into ranking is based on acceptance rates and SAT/ACT test scores using data from the U.S. Department of Education. Learn where our data comes from.
| Factor | Description | Source | Weight |
|---|---|---|---|
| Acceptance Rate | Percent of applicants accepted. | U.S. Dept. of Education | 60.0% |
| SAT/ACT 25th Percentile | Composite SAT/ACT (normalized to the same scale) of the 25th percentile of enrolled students. | U.S. Dept. of Education | 10.0% |
| SAT/ACT 75th Percentile | Composite SAT/ACT (normalized to the same scale) of the 75th percentile of enrolled students. | U.S. Dept. of Education | 10.0% |
| Student SAT/ACT Scores 25th Percentile | Composite SAT/ACT scores (normalized to the same scale) of the 25th percentile of students. Scores are self-reported by students on Niche.com. | Self-reported by Niche users | 10.0% |
| Student SAT/ACT Scores 75th Percentile | Composite SAT/ACT scores (normalized to the same scale) of the 75th percentile of students. Scores are self-reported by students on Niche.com. | Self-reported by Niche users | 10.0% |
Statistics obtained from the U.S. Department of Education represent the most recent data available, as self-reported by the colleges. Niche also collects data directly from schools via our school data update form. If you work for a school and would like to update your data, please claim your school.
For more details about how we calculate our rankings, click here.