The Alt-Ivies: 15 Top U.S. Colleges With Blue-Chip Reputations

Because Swarthmore is part of the Quaker Consortium, students can cross-register at Penn, Bryn Mawr, and Haverford. So even though undergraduate enrollment is around 1,600, there are more than 600 courses to choose from, including an engineering program that grants a B.S. degree after four years - a rarity for a liberal arts college. Another unusual aspect is the honors program, which lets students design their own courses of study, work in very small seminars, and fulfill requirements by taking exams conducted by outside experts.

2008 Acceptance Rate: 15.7%
2018 Acceptance Rate: 9%