The average acceptance rate of the 9 South Dakota colleges that have competitive admission is 84.16% for the academic year 2023-2024. Compared to last year, the acceptance rate is higher by 2.82%. The acceptance rate at 5 South Dakota colleges increased and the rate of 4 colleges decreased.
Mount Marty University has the lowest (i.e. hard to admit) acceptance rate of 48.14%. Augustana University (59.25%) and University of Sioux Falls (82.08%) are following it in the list of Tightest South Dakota Colleges to get in.
This ranking is only based on acceptance rates and more admission stats such as SAT and ACT scores are helpful to measure the chances to get in more accurately.
Mount Marty University ranked 1st, up 1 place from 2nd last year. Augustana University ranked second, a drop from first place last year.
The average undergraduate tuition & fees of the schools is $18,920 and graduate tuition & fees is $16,160 for the academic year 2023-2024.
We note that the actual tightness of admission lies in considering other admission requirements such as SAT score.| School Name | Acceptance Rate | Yield | SAT Score | Undergraduate Tuition & Fees | Total Population | Graduation Rate | Students to Faculty Ratio | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 1 | Mount Marty University Yankton, SDPrivate, 4-year | 48.14% 20.25% | 26.25% | - | $33,100 | 1,252 | 56.00% | 13 to 1 |
| 2 1 | Augustana University Sioux Falls, SDPrivate, 4-year | 59.25% 6.54% | 23.11% | 1,160 | $39,190 | 2,086 | 75.00% | 12 to 1 |
| 3 - | University of Sioux Falls Sioux Falls, SDPrivate, 4-year | 82.08% 6.13% | 15.24% | - | $20,740 | 1,594 | 59.00% | 17 to 1 |
| 4 2 | South Dakota School of Mines and Technology Rapid City, SDPublic, 4-year | 85.25% 2.56% | 37.80% | 1,230 | $14,800 ($10,400) | 2,492 | 55.00% | 12 to 1 |
| 5 1 | Northern State University Aberdeen, SDPublic, 4-year | 92.79% 14.65% | 31.77% | - | $11,947 ($8,845) | 3,344 | 50.00% | 16 to 1 |
| 6 2 | Black Hills State University Spearfish, SDPublic, 4-year | 94.43% 2.21% | 32.02% | - | $12,018 ($8,916) | 3,425 | 44.00% | 18 to 1 |
| 7 2 | Dakota State University Madison, SDPublic, 4-year | 97.87% 18.96% | 40.74% | 1,190 | $12,735 ($9,633) | 3,241 | 48.00% | 18 to 1 |
| 8 1 | South Dakota State University Brookings, SDPublic, 4-year | 98.71% 12.63% | 39.15% | 1,150 | $12,809 ($9,299) | 11,327 | 59.00% | 18 to 1 |
| 9 - | University of South Dakota Vermillion, SDPublic, 4-year | 98.95% 0.51% | 25.68% | 1,195 | $12,942 ($9,432) | 9,856 | 57.00% | 14 to 1 |
| Average | 84.16% | 30.20% | 1,185 | $18,920 ($9,421) | 4,291 | 55.89% | 15 to 1 |