Announcing: The Montana College That is the Hardest to Get Into

Not long ago, I taught writing at a college in Montana. In the five years since I left teaching, changes to people's perception of and experience in college have shifted dramatically.

• College enrollment is down according to multiple sources including Fortune.
• Tradeschool enrollment is up according to The Hechinger Report.
• Tuition for both private and public schools is up according to a U.S. News survey.

Along with the changes for students, colleges are facing greater challenges, too. Goddard College in Vermont recently announced on Facebook that the college is closing due to "declining enrollment and inflationary pressures."

Yet, a four-year college education is still common for many young people, including Montanans, and attending a quality university can be a top priority. As tuition costs increase Montana students may be inclined to stay in state for a post-secondary education. Parents helping to foot the bill may also be interested to know which college in Montana is the hardest to get into.

READ MORE: Open Letter to Montana's Students About Academic Honesty and Using AI to Write Essays 

The financial site 24/Wall St. created a special report of the hardest colleges to get into in every state. No surprise, for California it's Standford University, for Colorado it's the United States Air Force Academy, and for Massachusetts, it's the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).

Before we tell you what Montana's is, what would you have guessed?

• Carroll College?
• Montana Tech?
• The University of Montana?

This may not come as a surprise either, but the hardest college to get into in Montana is Montana State University in Bozeman. According to the 24/7 Wall St. report Montana State University only has a 73.3% admission rate whereas according to U.S. News the University of Montana admits 95% of applicants.

Both MSU and U of M are included on U.S News' list of top public schools and national universities ranked, though neither breaks the top 100.