There is some great information about schools with higher admit rates, but it’s often tucked into threads that are particular to a specific family’s situation. This thread is meant to be a general resource on schools with admit rates in the 20-59% range. There is a separate thread to discuss schools with admit rates in the 60-100% range.
What’s a college in the 20-59% admit range that you like? What do you like about it? This can be anything from positive experiences while attending the school, visiting the campus, outcomes of students, strength in a particular area of study, engagement of staff and faculty with students, etc. If you liked something about the school, please share it!
Schools may be mentioned more than one time if more than one poster liked it. Once again, if you like a school, please talk about it!
Looking forward to learning about the schools people like in this range!
MODERATOR NOTE: Colleges in this category will generally have many students with high GPAs, among others. Acceptance rates don’t necessarily equate to lower GPA’s. Acceptance rates stated are not fact checked and can vary.
Purdue! W L afayette, IN - acceptance rates vary greatly by major and instate/out of state but as of last cycle, all majors are still above 20% acceptance rate.
T10 in engineering, and strong in all things aviation, nursing, pre vet, and CS and making significant investments in their business school.
Amazing career services support - one of the biggest career fairs in the US, tons of industry partnership, great support for optional co op students.
COA frozen for the past 13 years (low $40k for out of state depending on major and housing). Very hands on, career readiness focus.
Wonderful honors college, great advising, beautiful campus, state of the art facilities.
(I could write a book and am happy to answer any Purdue specific questions via PM so I don’t drone on and on).
Lehigh University, Bethlehem, PA - acceptance rate 29%
Seriously one of the most beautiful campuses I’ve ever visited.
My daughter liked the ability to minor in entrepreneurship there and would have been able to continue with her music while still being an engineering major.
RPI - Troy, NY - acceptance rate around 59% (?)
Felt like a small version of Purdue to our D (which she obviously loved). Great emphasis on STEM, beautiful new facilities, great theater, lots of focus on internships and ARCH experience.
Fairfield (33%) - When we visited, my GS who is interested in engineering received personal attention from one of the professors who was very engaging and spent a lot of time with him. We were very impressed to meet a professor so engaging and student focused. Learning seemed to be very hands on. Campus is attractive and is in a beautiful area. Loved the beach housing option.
One of our favorites was the University of Pittsburgh (admit rate ~50%). Both my girls strongly considered but ended up going elsewhere so I cannot comment on the ultimate experience but everything about the application process/visit/communication was fantastic:
Rolling admissions so you can find out quite early if you complete the application early.
Accepted students events were fantastic - well planned, great chance to see a whole lot: dorms, sit in on classes, facilities, as well as the ability to see some of Pittsburgh - the school included lots of choices during the visit.
An incredible level of school spirit and enthusiasm. If I remember correctly, a band was playing as we entered the first event and there were lots of current students who participated and all were very enthusiastic. (While you would assume this is always the case, it was not our experience that the student ambassadors were always enthusiastic and positive about their schools).
The facilities: the Cathedral of Learning was one of the coolest buildings we saw on any campus!
Diversity of programs and classes was great. Lots of specialized programs and the ability to design programs/degrees to suit individual student desires.
Finally, Pittsburgh itself: a small, easily navigable city with lots to do - dining, entertainment, sporting events, etc.
St. Olaf: Acceptance rate just above 50%. One of the prettiest campuses we visited. Wonderful, personalized campus tour. Friendly welcoming “vibe” on campus. Personally know several students who attend who are very happy. Northfield is a really nice, quaint college town. And, they offer generous merit aid packages.
Macalester: Acceptance rate around 28%. Loved the inclusive atmosphere on campus, and a really nice campus tour experience. Kid sat in on a class when we visited and still talks about the class today -super impressed by the professor, students and general level of the class discussion. In a great neighborhood in St. Paul. One of the few small LACs in the country that is right in a large metropolitan area. Also gives out merit aid (but harder to get here then at St. Olaf.)
I think both schools pay a “Midwest penalty” in terms of student interest and admission percentages. If either of these schools were located in the Northeast, they would be much harder to get into!
Fordham University (54%) and the University of San Francisco (51%). Let’s hear it for the moderately-selective Jesuit schools! What I love: both located in amazing cities (New York and San Francisco), solid education combined with the Jesuit belief in cura personalis - “care for the whole person,” Students are seen as whole people, not just as their GPA or as a list of their achievements. I feel like these schools make you both a better scholar AND a better person. And because of their locations, the opportunities for internships and career opportunities are excellent. The class sizes are generally small-ish and instruction is often personalized to the degree possible as genuine care about students is front and center. Their major drawback is their price tag - they are both prohibitively expensive if you don’t qualify for merit or need-based aid.
I also wanted to mention Pitt. So as not to be redundant, I will emphasize I think it has a really nice balance of strong departments, basically across all of natural sciences, social sciences, humanities, and engineering/tech.
You can also do up to one course a term at any of the other Pittsburgh Council on Higher Education (PCHE) institutions, including CMU (which is just across a bridge basically), and a bunch more that would be a short trip away. This is only for classes not offered at Pitt, and requires advisor approval, and some students never see the need. But it can become useful for students who develop a specific subfield interest where another institution has more variety/depth, or if you just want to check out a different college for the experience.
Obviously this is not a unique arrangement, but with the proximity and variety of the other PCHE colleges, I think it is among the more practically useful such groups.
St.Olaf 56%. It’s a CC favorite for a reason. It just feels like a special place. S23 was enamored with their honor code that extended to everything from the library to the cup exchange to bicycle rentals.
WPI 57% (They’ve been test optional for about 20 years. Now test blind). Top notch STEM programs with plenty of humanity offerings. We felt this was the most student-centered school we visited. S23 was impressed that they had students solve problems on campus (designing a parking garage, fixing the placement of a fountain) rather than bringing in a design firm. Known for project-based learning, including a junior year group social impact project (mostly international) and a senior year capstone project. NR (no record) program encourages kids to take classes of interest they might otherwise avoid if they are afraid of wrecking their GPA. Trimesters allow students to take more classes than typical semester schedules.
Michigan Tech 53%. There aren’t many schools like Michigan Tech. It offers great engineering programs in a beautiful remote setting. MUST LIKE SNOW! Because it is so rural, there is an abundance of outdoor activities and the community is close knit. Despite its location, it has one of the biggest career fairs in the country with over 400 companies and 2,000 recruiters coming to campus each year.
Clark University – lots of research opportunities packaged in a smaller liberal arts school. Free master’s! great game design program (took over the niche Becker program) and GIS/geography. small, classes with professors dedicated to teaching from all I have seen/been told by past parents
American - very campusy campus, but in a major city (if in a suburban part of it). Professors all seemed to be practioners as well, and have good, local connections to industry. Amazing guest speakers. One panel we attended the professors talked about meeting up with recent alums when they traveled. impressive. Obviously strong in international affairs, policy, political science etc.
Trinity University (TX) 26% - fabulous LAC on the rise. My daughter has had a great experience, excellent professors, beautiful campus, and great location in a nice part of San Antonio. TU gives great merit and is has a 1.9 bil endowment which is huge for it’s size and gives them the ability to operate like a very elite school.
Furman University 43% - Nice LAC on a beautiful campus in Greenville, SC. A little bigger than a lot of LACs with 2500 students (same as Trinity). Really interesting entrepreneurship program and great sciences. When my son visited, he attended a business class and spent 30 minutes speaking with the professor afterwards. Greenville is such a nice town with a really cool downtown.
Both of my kids attended colleges in this acceptance range:
Fordham – My S attended the Gabelli School of Business at Fordham (Rose Hill campus). He had a fabulous experience – many excellent professors, wonderful friends, loved NYC, great ECs including meaningful volunteer work in the surrounding area, and had a great outcome (into a T4 grad program in his discipline). Dorms were exceptionally nice all four years, class size were generally in the 30-40 range, and the campus is gorgeous. The extensive core can be a plus or a negative – I think my S benefited greatly from the core as it gave him a very strong humanities education while at a business school – but the negative was he had only one or two free electives. – Other colleges he looked at and liked included Marist, UScranton, Siena, and Quinnippiac but I have no first-hand information.
Lafayette College - My D wanted a LAC and this was a great fit. Similar to my S, she had an exceptional experience with wonderful professors, many close friendships, lots of ECs, and a great outcome (into an Ivy League college’s grad program). Lovely campus, dorms were hit or miss but that wasn’t a big deal to D. As a STEM student she had the chance to do a great deal of research and one article was published in a peer reviewed journal. She wanted a small college experience and got just that – only a one or two of her classes were lectures (60 students max), many classes with 20 or so students, and a few with only 6-10 students. Lafayette seems to get a well rounded mix of kids which is nice in a small school like this. --Other colleges she looked at and liked were Union, Dickinson, and Franklin & Marshall but again, no first hand information.
University of Rochester - admit rate 36%. Secluded campus on the edge of a small city. Snow! Tunnels! It allowed me, a shy 17 year old from Missouri, to blossom and flourish.
Santa Clara University admits in the 40% range. Gorgeous campus and fabulous weather. Jesuit college, and my opinion is the Jesuits have higher education well crafted.
George Washington, 44%. We like DC and my daughter is attracted to urban schools. Student admission presenter and tour guide were enthusiastic, down to earth, and seemed well prepared. They conveyed the spirit that they are in the middle of one of the most exciting places on earth, and GW students partake in all of it. Similar to BU with a more welcoming acceptance rate.
Santa Clara, also in the 40% range. This place is gorgeous and facilities are top notch. Daughter planned to apply after our visit, but when it came time to complete applications, it fell off the list. We are east coast and at first she had no concerns about going to school across the country, but as it gets closer, she seems drawn closer to home. (Just not too close.) I have no doubt that they provide a solid education and career bridge for all who attend.
Oberlin (35ish%). My kid is a first year there, and I have been incredibly impressed. My kid arrived on campus and immediately had a bunch of opportunities to jump right in and get involved. The campus is lovely and is surrounded by a really fun small town. One of my kid’s professors, in particular, has gone out of her way to provide my kid with opportunities, which has really increased their confidence and even has them considering a major that had been 100% off their radar before they went to college. Socially, the scene feels diverse, quirky and welcoming. So far, the school has been everything I could have wanted for my kid. I will say, the dining options aren’t fantastic and buildings are a little old/outdated inside, but neither seems to bother C24 too much.
Binghamton University ended up being great for my son. He has successfully launched himself in the working world, in part because Bing has a good reputation.
The current acceptance rate is 42%. It is very rigorous. It is probably the most popular SUNY overall, with the highest yield and retention rates of the SUNY schools. He loved the student culture at Bing and took advantage of Bing’s thriving downtown scene once he moved off campus. His friends who lived on campus also had a great time.
It was very affordable for us instate, but is good value for OOS students too.
Another vote for Lafayette College. 32% admit rate. They provide great merit scholarships, unrelated to financial need. No need to apply or fill out any forms – they just include it with the acceptance notification. Also, they have a strong focus on externships and getting students placed.
Case-Western in Cleveland, with an admit rate in the upper 20s.
It’s best known for pre-med, but is also known for its strength in engineering, which gives it a pre-professional vibe compared to a lot of colleges.
But because Case has a relatively low yield rate, demonstrated interest is very important. It wants academically capable students that want to be at Case.
Another shout out to Fairfield University, CT. Since its move from a Regional U to a National U on the USNWR rankings, it has garnered more interest and the acceptance rate is now at 33%. Our visit was great, starting with a helpful admissions staff circulating and answering questions while we waited for the tour to begin. We were switched to an engineering specific tour after initially signing up for the regular info session which turned out to be great. Nice engineering facilities, professors were attentive and informative and the students leading the engineering panel and tour were pleasant, bright and welcoming. New dorms were being built, and the campus was very nice and walkable and even has a beach down the road. The town close by had cute cafes and restaurants. Easy access to NYC. Kid applied EA and received great merit, which would have been a big draw for us, if the ED school hadn’t worked out.