Carleton College vs Illinois Wesleyan University (IWU)

Carleton College and Illinois Wesleyan University, both esteemed liberal arts institutions, offer distinct educational experiences. Carleton, nestled in Northfield, Minnesota, boasts a highly selective admissions process with an acceptance rate of 18.5%, while Illinois Wesleyan, located in Bloomington, Illinois, maintains a more accessible acceptance rate of 70%. Carleton's student body is smaller and more diverse, with 2,100 undergraduates representing over 60 countries, while Illinois Wesleyan's larger student body of 2,000 undergraduates primarily hails from the Midwest. Both institutions excel in academics, with Carleton's popular majors including economics, political science, and biology, and Illinois Wesleyan's strengths lying in nursing, business, and psychology. Carleton's impressive 94% graduation rate surpasses Illinois Wesleyan's 80% graduation rate, indicating a higher likelihood of students completing their degrees. Explore the detailed comparison table to discover further distinctions between these two exceptional institutions and determine which aligns

	Carleton College	Illinois Wesleyan University
Overview
Location	Northfield, Minnesota	Bloomington, Illinois
Campus setting	Town: Distant	City: Small
College type	4 year	4 year
Control/business model	Private (Non Profit)	Private (Non Profit)
Calendar system	Trimester	4-1-4
Degrees offered	Undergraduate	Undergraduate
Students retention rate	95.0%	85.0%
Common app member	Yes	Yes
Religious affiliation

Admission
Acceptance rate	17.5%	45.2%
Application fees
SAT range	1408 - 1550	1110 - 1310
ACT range	31 - 35	24 - 29
Students submitting SAT score	35.0%	33.0%
Students submitting ACT score	34.0%	31.0%
Total number of applicants	7,915	4,543
Total number of admissions given out	1,389	2,055
Admitted students who chose to enroll	555	432
Yield rate	40.0%	21.0%
Test scores (SAT/ACT)	N/A	N/A
High school GPA	Not required	Not required
Recommendation letters	Required	Required
High school transcript	Not required	Not required
English proficiency test (e.g. TOEFL)	Required	Required

Tuition and Fees
Sticker price	$78,315	$67,124
Average net price	$31,718	$30,610
Tuition	$59,850	$52,308
Room & board	Room/dormitory: $8,115 Meal plan: $7,260	Room/dormitory: $7,584 Meal plan: $4,528
Available payment plans	Tuition payment plan	Tuition payment plan

Financial Aid
Students receiving financial aid (Grants & scholarships)	65.0% Average amount $45,715	100.0% Average amount $34,810
Students receiving federal student loan	45.0% Average amount $3,914	68.0% Average amount $5,692
Students taking out private loans	2.0% Average amount $14,334	35.0% Average amount $6,781

Students and Campus
Undergraduate students	2,044 Men 48.7% Women 51.3%	1,653 Men 49.4% Women 50.6%
Graduate students	N/A	N/A
Racial/ethnic diversity	Moderate	Low
Out-of-state students	81.5%	N/A
International students	10.2%	3.4%
Campus local/setting	Town: Distant	City: Small
Dormitory capacity	1,854	1,308
First year students are required to live on campus?	Yes	No
Top 5 states where most U.S. students come from	Minnesota California Illinois New York Texas	N/A

Academics
Popular study areas	Physical Science Social Sciences Ethnic Studies Mathematics and Statistics Visual & Performing Arts	Business Biological and Biomedical Sciences Health Professions Education Visual & Performing Arts
Students to faculty ratio	8:1	12:1
Institutional accreditation	Higher Learning Commission	Higher Learning Commission

Outcome
Graduation rate	91.4%	81.1%
Dropout rate	8.3%	18.7%
Transferred out	N/A	N/A
Alumni salary by major (Top 10)	Computer Science (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $76,876 Year 2: $76,460 Year 3: $101,936 Economics (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $60,032 Year 2: N/A Year 3: $66,207 Biology, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $28,526 Year 2: $23,034 Year 3: $30,071 Area Studies (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $27,669 Year 2: N/A Year 3: N/A English Language and Literature, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $27,425 Year 2: $22,329 Year 3: N/A Mathematics (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $46,952 Year 2: $37,568 Year 3: N/A Chemistry (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $30,227 Year 2: $36,141 Year 3: N/A Geological and Earth Sciences/Geosciences (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $20,625 Year 2: N/A Year 3: N/A Physics (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $42,774 Year 3: N/A Psychology, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $31,301 Year 2: $33,719 Year 3: N/A	Finance and Financial Management Services (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $57,305 Year 2: $53,358 Year 3: $77,743 Accounting and Related Services (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $61,838 Year 2: $62,792 Year 3: $73,001 Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $66,460 Year 2: $62,775 Year 3: $69,764 Business Administration, Management and Operations (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $45,302 Year 2: $50,356 Year 3: $56,336 Biology, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $26,739 Year 3: $46,139 Psychology, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $32,272 Year 2: $31,314 Year 3: $39,988 Drama/Theatre Arts and Stagecraft (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $18,075 Year 2: $20,140 Year 3: $30,321 Economics (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $61,516 Year 3: N/A Music (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $27,439 Year 3: N/A Sociology (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $36,674 Year 3: N/A

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Carleton College vs Illinois Wesleyan University (IWU)

Carleton College

Illinois Wesleyan University

Overview

Admission

Tuition and Fees

Financial Aid

Students and Campus

Academics

Outcome

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