Colleges with the Highest ACT Scores
Midpoint of the enrolled class's composite ACT scores, where reported.
Ranked by median composite act · 899 of 2,406 institutions report this measure · Compiled 2026-09-01
Chase these schools
Top schools on this list that also show up elsewhere — hop lists without leaving the trail.
#1
Harvey Mudd College
Claremont, CA
#2
Northwestern University
Evanston, IL
#3
Harvard University
Cambridge, MA
- 1Harvey Mudd CollegeClaremont, CA · Private35Compare nearby
- 2Northwestern UniversityEvanston, IL · Private35Compare nearby
Also on 11 other lists
- 3Harvard UniversityCambridge, MA · Private35Compare nearby
Also on 13 other lists
- Highest Four-Year Graduation Rates#2
- Most Selective Colleges in America#2
- Psychology#3
- the Highest SAT Averages#3
- Biological Sciences#4
- Computer Science#4
- Mathematics & Statistics#6
- English Language & Literature#8
- History#8
- Best Early-Career Earnings, 6 Years After Enrolling#10
- Are Least Likely to Leave#18
- Social Sciences#21
- Best Earnings-to-Debt Ratio#24
- 4Columbia University in the City of New YorkNew York, NY · Private35Compare nearby
Also on 14 other lists
- Most Expensive Colleges by Sticker Price#3
- Most Selective Colleges in America#4
- Foreign Languages#5
- the Highest SAT Averages#8
- Philosophy & Religious Studies#9
- History#16
- Mathematics & Statistics#16
- Highest Four-Year Graduation Rates#18
- Area & Ethnic Studies#19
- Best Early-Career Earnings, 6 Years After Enrolling#21
- Graduates Earn the Most 10 Years Out#25
- Computer Science#25
- Social Sciences#25
- Best Student-to-Faculty Ratios#25
- 5Vanderbilt UniversityNashville, TN · Private35Compare nearby
- 6Rice UniversityHouston, TX · Private35Compare nearby
- 7Stanford UniversityStanford, CA · Private35Compare nearby
Also on 15 other lists
- Computer Science#2
- Biological Sciences#3
- Engineering Technology#3
- Most Selective Colleges in America#3
- Best Earnings-to-Debt Ratio#4
- Psychology#6
- the Highest SAT Averages#6
- Best Early-Career Earnings, 6 Years After Enrolling#7
- Graduates Earn the Most 10 Years Out#7
- Area & Ethnic Studies#8
- Social Sciences#8
- Engineering#10
- English Language & Literature#18
- Multidisciplinary Studies#22
- Are Least Likely to Leave#24
- 8Claremont McKenna CollegeClaremont, CA · Private34Compare nearby
- 9Pomona CollegeClaremont, CA · Private34Compare nearby
- 10University of Southern CaliforniaLos Angeles, CA · Private34Compare nearby
- 11Yale UniversityNew Haven, CT · Private34Compare nearby
Also on 13 other lists
- History#1
- English Language & Literature#5
- Most Selective Colleges in America#5
- Most Expensive Colleges by Sticker Price#7
- Highest Four-Year Graduation Rates#7
- Computer Science#9
- Social Sciences#9
- Multidisciplinary Studies#10
- Are Least Likely to Leave#15
- the Highest SAT Averages#15
- Best Student-to-Faculty Ratios#16
- Best Earnings-to-Debt Ratio#17
- Psychology#24
- 12Georgetown UniversityWashington, DC · Private34Compare nearby
- 13University of ChicagoChicago, IL · Private34Compare nearby
Also on 10 other lists
- 14University of Notre DameNotre Dame, IN · Private34Compare nearby
- 15Boston CollegeChestnut Hill, MA · Private34Compare nearby
- 16Northeastern UniversityBoston, MA · Private34Compare nearby
- 17Tufts UniversityMedford, MA · Private34Compare nearby
- 18Washington University in St LouisSaint Louis, MO · Private34Compare nearby
- 19Dartmouth CollegeHanover, NH · Private34Compare nearby
Also on 11 other lists
- Philosophy & Religious Studies#1
- Physical Sciences#1
- Mathematics & Statistics#3
- Highest Four-Year Graduation Rates#9
- History#11
- Most Selective Colleges in America#12
- Computer Science#14
- English Language & Literature#14
- the Highest SAT Averages#16
- Most Expensive Colleges by Sticker Price#17
- Are Least Likely to Leave#25
- 20Princeton UniversityPrinceton, NJ · Private34Compare nearby
Also on 11 other lists
- Engineering#1
- English Language & Literature#1
- Best Earnings-to-Debt Ratio#3
- Highest Four-Year Graduation Rates#3
- Most Selective Colleges in America#6
- Public Administration#10
- Best Student-to-Faculty Ratios#11
- Graduates Earn the Most 10 Years Out#14
- the Highest SAT Averages#14
- Psychology#15
- Best Early-Career Earnings, 6 Years After Enrolling#24
- 21Cornell UniversityIthaca, NY · Private34Compare nearby
Also on 15 other lists
- Public Administration#1
- Mathematics & Statistics#11
- Psychology#11
- Communications#13
- Highest Four-Year Graduation Rates#17
- Graduates Earn the Most 10 Years Out#19
- Philosophy & Religious Studies#19
- Computer Science#20
- Architecture#21
- Best Earnings-to-Debt Ratio#22
- Best Early-Career Earnings, 6 Years After Enrolling#23
- Are Least Likely to Leave#23
- the Highest SAT Averages#23
- Most Selective Colleges in America#23
- Area & Ethnic Studies#25
- 22Hamilton CollegeClinton, NY · Private34Compare nearby
- 23New York UniversityNew York, NY · Private34Compare nearby
- 24Duke UniversityDurham, NC · Private34Compare nearby
- 25Case Western Reserve UniversityCleveland, OH · Private34Compare nearby
How this list was built
- Measure
- Median composite ACT — sorted highest to lowest
- Source variable
ACTCMMID- Dataset
- U.S. Department of Education, College Scorecard, Most-Recent-Cohorts-Institution (05-19-2025 release)
- Four-year, main-campus institutions awarding bachelor's degrees or higher (2,406 schools).
- Institutions enrolling fewer than 500 undergraduates are excluded so that small-cohort medians do not distort the ranking.
- 899 of 2,406 institutions report this measure; the rest are omitted rather than estimated.
A single measure is a narrow way to judge a college. Read this alongside the others, and see the methodology for what these figures do and do not capture.
Keep exploring
- Re-rank with your weightsTune affordability, earnings, and fit yourself
- Showdown: Harvey Mudd College vs Northwestern UniversityHigher-or-lower on Scorecard metrics — round 1 is these two
- Live leaderboardReshuffle Top 10–50 on one Scorecard measure
- Explore games & mapsShowdown, Name That College, sports, and more lists
- Sports at Harvey Mudd CollegeEADA programs for the #1 school on this list
Keep going
Colleges with the Highest SAT Averages
Average SAT score of enrolled students. Reported by fewer than half of institutions as test-optional admissions has spread.
The Most Selective Colleges in America
Lowest share of applicants admitted. Selectivity measures demand and class size, not teaching quality.
Highest Four-Year Graduation Rates
Share of first-time, full-time students who finish a bachelor's degree within four years.