College Acceptance Rates, Tuition & Rankings
Should you apply? Is it worth the cost? Compare acceptance rates, true tuition costs, and graduate salaries for 50 top universities — ranked by outcomes, not prestige.
College Rankings 2026
View full rankings →Ranked by graduate outcomes and value — not reputation surveys or peer assessments.
| # | University | Acceptance Rate | Median Salary | Fit Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | UCLA Los Angeles, CA | 9.0% | $82,511 | 100/100 |
| 2 | Yale University New Haven, CT | 4.5% | — | 58/100 |
| 3 | University of Chicago Chicago, IL | 4.8% | — | 58/100 |
| 4 | Stanford University Stanford, CA | 3.9% | — | 58/100 |
| 5 | Princeton University Princeton, NJ | 4.5% | — | 58/100 |
| 6 | MIT Cambridge, MA | 4.7% | — | 58/100 |
| 7 | Harvard University Cambridge, MA | 3.5% | — | 58/100 |
| 8 | Columbia University New York, NY | 4.2% | — | 58/100 |
| 9 | Caltech Pasadena, CA | 3.1% | — | 58/100 |
| 10 | University of Pennsylvania Philadelphia, PA | 5.9% | — | 57/100 |
Ivy League Acceptance Rates
All 8 Ivy League schools with current acceptance rates and what they actually cost after financial aid.
Popular College Comparisons
Side-by-side data on acceptance rates, costs, and graduate outcomes.
Best Colleges by Major
Find the highest-paying programs. We rank by graduate salary, not department reputation.
Best Colleges by State
Top-ranked colleges and universities in each state, sorted by graduate outcomes.
UC System Acceptance Rates
Compare all University of California campuses — acceptance rates, costs, and top programs.
College Decision Resources
College Rankings
50 universities ranked by graduate outcomes, not peer surveys.
Best Colleges in the USA
Find your best-fit school by acceptance rate, cost, and ROI.
College Scholarships & Aid
Which schools give the most financial aid? True net cost by income.
Browse All Colleges
Full list of 50 top universities with data-driven analysis.
How We Rank Colleges
Most college rankings — including US News rankings — rely heavily on peer reputation surveys. A university president's opinion of another school tells you nothing about whether you should go there.
DeepColleges ranks every school using four data-driven dimensions:
- Overall Fit Score — How selective is it, and does the school graduate the students it admits?
- ROI Score — Do graduates earn enough to justify the true cost?
- Transfer Score — How accessible is the school for transfer students?
- AP Weight — How much does the school value AP coursework in admissions?
All data comes from public federal sources: the College Scorecard (U.S. Department of Education), IPEDS (National Center for Education Statistics), and Common Data Set reports published by each university.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the hardest college to get into?
Based on acceptance rate data, the most selective colleges include MIT (4.7%), Harvard University (3.5%), and Stanford University (3.9%). However, acceptance rate alone doesn't tell the full story — CDS admission factor weights reveal what each school values most in applicants.
How much does college actually cost?
The sticker price (published tuition) is not what most families pay. After financial aid, the average net cost at top private universities ranges from $15,000 to $30,000/year for middle-income families. Use our tuition pages to see true net cost by income bracket for any school.
Is an expensive college worth the cost?
It depends on the school and your major. Our salary-by-major data shows that some expensive schools deliver strong ROI (e.g., MIT engineering graduates earning $120K+ within 10 years), while others may not justify the investment for certain programs.
What GPA do I need for Ivy League schools?
Most admitted Ivy League students have unweighted GPAs of 3.8+. However, GPA is just one factor. Our CDS weight analysis shows that some Ivies weight extracurriculars and essays more heavily than pure academics.