The Big Ten conference is home to some of the top-performing academic schools in the nation, but how do they fare when it comes to the ACT?
The ACT is a widely used standardized test used for college admissions in the United States that debuted in 1959, just over 30 years after the SAT was introduced.
Shockingly, there was quite a bit of movement here compared to the SAT scores. Northwestern held its ground, but a few other teams had a big rise or fall while a pair gave the Wildcats a run for their money.
Here is the ranking of ACT scores in the Big Ten, thanks to Niche, which ranks many aspects of college life and academia.
NOTE: There was no ACT Range for the University of California – Los Angeles, so they’re not included in this list.
No. 17: University of Iowa
ACT Range: 21-28
Acceptance Rate: 84%
In-state cost: $11,622
Undergraduate enrollment: 22,738
No. 16: University of Nebraska – Lincoln
ACT Range: 22-28
Acceptance Rate: 87%
In-state cost: $10,434
Undergraduate enrollment: 19,701
No. 15: University of Oregon
ACT Range: 23-30
Acceptance Rate: 88%
In-state cost: $15,904
Undergraduate enrollment: 20,622
No. 14: Michigan State University
ACT Range: 25-31
Acceptance Rate: 85%
In-state cost: $19,742
Undergraduate enrollment: 41,234
No. 13: University of Minnesota – Twin Cities
ACT Range: 26-31
Acceptance Rate: 80%
In-state cost: $18,482
Undergraduate enrollment: 41,303
No. 12: Penn State University – University Park
ACT Range: 27-32
Acceptance Rate: 61%
In-state cost: $21,098
Undergraduate enrollment: 42,619
No. 11: The Ohio State University
ACT Range: 28-32
Acceptance Rate: 61%
In-state cost: $13,641
Undergraduate enrollment: 46,815
T-No. 10: Indiana University – Bloomington
ACT Range: 27-33
Acceptance Rate: 78%
In-state cost: $12,144
Undergraduate enrollment: 38,093
T-No. 10: University of Washington
ACT Range: 27-33
Acceptance Rate: 39%
In-state cost: $13,406
Undergraduate enrollment: 40,754
No. 8: Rutgers University – New Brunswick
ACT Range: 28-33
Acceptance Rate: 41%
In-state cost: $18,827
Undergraduate enrollment: 37,985
No. 7: Purdue University – Main Campus
ACT Range: 27-34
Acceptance Rate: 50%
In-state cost: $9,992
Undergraduate enrollment: 44,819
No. 6: University of Wisconsin – Madison
ACT Range: 29-33
Acceptance Rate: 45%
In-state cost: $16,035
Undergraduate enrollment: 23,181
No. 5: University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign
ACT Range: 30-34
Acceptance Rate: 42%
In-state cost: $18,046
Undergraduate enrollment: 37,140
No. 4: University of Michigan – Ann Arbor
ACT Range: 31-34
Acceptance Rate: 16%
In-state cost: $19,497
Undergraduate enrollment: 34,454
T-No. 3: University of Maryland – College Park
ACT Range: 32-35
Acceptance Rate: 45%
In-state cost: $11,809
Undergraduate enrollment: 31,133
T-No. 3: University of Southern California
ACT Range: 32-35
Acceptance Rate: 10%
Cost: $75,162
Undergraduate enrollment: 20,630
No. 1: Northwestern University
ACT Range: 33-35
Acceptance Rate: 8%
Cost: $70,589
Undergraduate enrollment: 9,060
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This article originally appeared on Badgers Wire: All 18 Big Ten schools’ ACT scores ranked from worst to first in 2026
Reporting by Jordon Lawrenz, Badgers Wire / Badgers Wire
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Jordon Lawrenz, Badgers Wire | USA TODAY Network
