If you're wondering if you have the ACT scores you'll need to get into one of the top private universities in the United States, here's a side-by-side comparison of scores for the middle 50% of enrolled students. If your scores fall within or above these ranges, you're on target for admission to one of these top colleges.
Realize, of course, that ACT scores are just one part of the application. It's possible to have perfect 36s for each ACT subject and still get rejected if other parts of your application are weak. Similarly, some students with scores significantly below the ranges listed here gain admission because they demonstrate other strengths.
To see a full profile of each university, click on the names in the chart below. You can also check out these other ACT links (or SAT links):
ACT Comparison Charts: the Ivy League | top universities | top liberal arts colleges | more top liberal arts | top public universities | top public liberal arts colleges | University of California campuses | Cal State campuses | SUNY campuses | More ACT charts
2007-08 data from National Center for Educational Statistics
Top University ACT Score Comparison (mid 50%)
(learn what these numbers mean)
| ACT Scores | ||||||
| Composite | English | Math | ||||
| 25% | 75% | 25% | 75% | 25% | 75% | |
| Carnegie Mellon | 29 | 33 | 28 | 34 | 28 | 34 |
| Duke | 29 | 34 | 30 | 34 | 29 | 35 |
| Emory | 29 | 33 | - | - | - | - |
| Georgetown | 28 | 32 | 28 | 34 | 27 | 33 |
| Johns Hopkins | 29 | 33 | 24 | 31 | 28 | 34 |
| Northwestern | 30 | 34 | 30 | 35 | 29 | 34 |
| Notre Dame | 31 | 34 | - | - | - | - |
| Rice | 30 | 34 | - | - | - | - |
| Stanford | 30 | 34 | 30 | 34 | 29 | 35 |
| University of Chicago | 28 | 33 | 29 | 35 | 28 | 34 |
| Vanderbilt | 30 | 33 | 31 | 34 | 29 | 34 |
| Washington University | 31 | 34 | 32 | 35 | 31 | 35 |
