What college is the hardest to get into? (2023)

What is the number 1 hardest college to get into?

1. Harvard University — 3.19% With a record-low admission rate of just 3.19% for the class of 2026, Harvard currently ranks as the most difficult school to get into. This rate reflects admission into Harvard College, the Ivy League university's undergraduate school.

Harvey Mudd College, in Claremont, California, has a 14% acceptance rate. Students who apply there also tend to apply to Claremont McKenna College and Pomona College. Engineering and applied mathematics are popular majors.

1. Stanford University. Topping the list of the hardest school to get into in the world is Stanford.

Most students admitted to Harvard have an unweighted GPA of 4.18 or above, so you'll need to have at least a 4.2 to be seriously evaluated. To meet the Harvard requirements, you'll have to score primarily A's on your high school courses.

In 2021, Harvard is first, followed by Caltech, Stanford, Imperial College London, and Karolinska Institute in Sweden. Last year's top five included Harvard, Caltech, Imperial College London, Stanford, and MIT.

The College of Staten Island — part of the City University of New York System — accepts 100% of applicants. CSI offers a variety of undergraduate and graduate programs in business, education, and health sciences.

What year of college is the hardest?

There is no question that the first semester of the freshman year of college is the most critical. Many studies show that freshman year is the time when students most likely drop out of college – if not permanently, then temporarily.

Cornell Admission Statistics

Cornell is considered the "easiest" Ivy League to get into because it has the highest Ivy League acceptance rate.

The Oxford University's All Souls Prize Fellowship Exam is a historic examination that has been conducted for decades. It is one of the top contenders in our list of toughest exams in the world. Only one or two out of eighty candidates are selected every year for a 7-year fellowship at the institution.

Harvard University

It has always been known as the hardest Ivy League school to get into. For 2020, it has an acceptance rate of 5.2% only. You will surely have to impress its admissions officers in a grand way if you want to spend your college years there. By the way, it's not just the hardest of the Ivies to go to.

You should also have a 3.96 GPA or higher. If your GPA is lower than this, you need to compensate with a higher SAT/ACT score. For a school as selective as Stanford, you'll also need to impress them with the rest of your application. We'll cover those details next.

One student even managed to land a stunning 10.03 GPA by taking 17 advanced classes at a school that awarded bonus points. If the different GPA scales seem a little confusing, check out our guide on how to calculate GPA for a straightforward explanation of weighted and unweighted GPAs.

To get to Harvard your GPA has to be at least a 4.0 and even then if you get in your lucky but they require at least a 4.18 GPA only .

Unweighted 4.0 GPA Scale

Essentially, the highest GPA you can earn is a 4.0, which indicates an A average in all of your classes. A 3.0 would indicate a B average, a 2.0 a C average, a 1.0 a D, and a 0.0 an F. This scale does not take the levels of your courses into account.

Unofficially, 2.0 is the lowest GPA accepted into a standard college, so while there's a chance that college admission is possible, it's not likely at more than a few institutions.

Truett McConnell University (96.86%)

What is the least hardest college to get into?

Harvard University is ranked #1 in Best Global Universities. Schools are ranked according to their performance across a set of widely accepted indicators of excellence.

The cheapest Ivy League school is Princeton University, with a $50,340 yearly tuition, and a net price (the average price students actually pay) of $16,192. Here are all eight Ivy League universities, ranked from least to most expensive.

1. Business. Business majors are among the most popular undergraduate degrees in the U.S. Nearly 1 in 5 bachelor's degrees, or 390,600, was awarded in business in 2018-19.

Florida, home to three universities that rank among the 100 Best Colleges nationally, ranks first in the nation for higher education. Washington places second in this subcategory, followed by California, Wyoming and Colorado.

Architecture Major

Architecture major is currently the hardest college major in the US. A study conducted by Indiana University (National Study of Student Engagement) has shown some of the reasons why major in architecture is so difficult.

What is the #1 University in the world?

In 2021, Harvard is first, followed by Caltech, Stanford, Imperial College London, and Karolinska Institute in Sweden. Last year's top five included Harvard, Caltech, Imperial College London, Stanford, and MIT.

Harvard is ranked #2 in National Universities and #1 in Global Universities by U.S. News, and #1 by the Round University Ranking. Oxford is ranked #1 in Best Global Universities in Europe and #5 in Best Global Universities by U.S. News, and #2 by the QS World University Rankings.