Average ACT Scores at Top Colleges

The ACT—like its counterpart, the SAT—has long served as a key indicator of academic readiness for college-bound students, despite the growing number of test-optional policies. As we move into the 2025 testing season, a year already marked by significant shifts in higher education, the ACT itself is also undergoing notable changes. It’s important for prospective students to understand how these updates may impact both their testing strategies and college applications.

In this post, we’ll break down the major 2025 changes to the ACT and take a look at the average ACT scores at top U.S. colleges.

ACT 2025: KEY CHANGES

If you decide to take the digital ACT, you’ll notice a new, shorter format (a reduced number of questions overall plus reduced test length) allowing more time to answer each question and the option to skip the science section altogether. These updates will also be implemented in the paper-pencil version starting in September 2025. Your Composite score will now only include English, math, and reading, with science scores reported separately for those who choose to take it. For all 2025 ACT “Enhancements” see their official site.

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AVERAGE ACT SCORES AT TOP SCHOOLS

The list below is based on the U.S. News & World Report rankings for the top 25 national universities in the U.S., along with the top 25 Liberal Arts Colleges. Keep in mind, the ACT scores below represent the “middle 50% of scores,” meaning 25% of students scored lower and 25% of students scored higher.

NATIONAL UNIVERSITIES: AVERAGE ACT SCORES

(Class of 2028 data unless otherwise noted.)

Rank	Schools	ACT
1	Princeton University (NJ)	34-35
2	MIT (MA)	35-36
3	Harvard University (MA)**	34-36
4	Stanford University (CA)	34-35
5	Yale University (CT)	33-35
6	California Institute of Technology*	NA
6	Duke University (NC)	34-35
6	Johns Hopkins University (MD)	34-36
6	Northwestern University (IL)**	33-35
10	University of Pennsylvania **	34-35
11	Cornell University (NY)	33-35
11	University of Chicago **	34-35
13	Brown University (RI)	34-35
13	Columbia University (NY)**	34-35
15	Dartmouth College (NH)*	32-35
15	University of California, Los Angeles*	NA
17	University of California, Berkeley*	NA
18	Rice University (TX)	34-35
18	University of Notre Dame (IN)	33-35
18	Vanderbilt University (TN)**	34-35
21	Carnegie Mellon University (PA)	34-35
21	University of Michigan—Ann Arbor	31-34
21	Washington University in St. Louis (MO)**	33-34
24	Emory University (GA)	33-35
24	Georgetown University (DC)**	32-35
24	University of Virginia	32-35
27	University of North Carolina—Chapel Hill	28-34

LIBERAL ARTS COLLEGES: AVERAGE ACT SCORES

Rank	Schools	ACT
1	Williams College (MA)**	33-35
2	Amherst College (MA)	33-35
3	Swarthmore College (PA)	33-35
4	United States Naval Academy (MD)*	NA
5	Bowdoin College (ME)	33-35
5	Pomona College (CA)	34
7	Wellesley College (MA)	33-35
8	Carleton College (MN)**	33
8	Claremont McKenna College (CA)	33-35
8	United States Air Force Academy #	28-33
8	United States Military Academy#	27-33
12	Harvey Mudd College (CA)	34-36
12	Vassar College (NY)**	33-35
14	Barnard College (NY)**	32-34
14	Davidson College (NC)	31-34
14	Hamilton College (NY)**	32-35
14	Smith College (MA)	32-35
14	Wesleyan University (CT)	31-34
19	Grinnell College (IA)	31-34
19	Middlebury College (VT)**	33-34
19	Washington and Lee University (VA)**	33-34
22	Colgate University (NY)**	29-34
22	University of Richmond (VA)	33-35
24	Haverford College (PA)	33-35
25	Colby College (ME)*	34
26	Bates College (ME)**	31-33

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