Hampshire College vs St Olaf College

Hampshire College and St Olaf College, two distinct institutions with unique offerings, present prospective students with a choice between contrasting educational experiences. Hampshire, a private liberal arts college in Amherst, Massachusetts, boasts an acceptance rate of 48%, while St Olaf, a private liberal arts college in Northfield, Minnesota, has a more selective admissions process with an acceptance rate of 38%. Hampshire's student body is diverse, with 44% of students identifying as students of color, compared to St Olaf's student body, which is predominantly white at 84%. Both colleges offer a range of popular majors, with Hampshire emphasizing interdisciplinary studies and St Olaf excelling in the sciences and music. While Hampshire's graduation rate stands at 78%, St Olaf boasts a higher graduation rate of 87%. Explore the detailed comparison table below to discover more distinctions between these two esteemed institutions and determine which one aligns best with your academic aspirations and personal preferences.

	Hampshire College	St Olaf College
Overview
Location	Amherst, Massachusetts	Northfield, Minnesota
Campus setting	Suburb: Large	Town: Distant
College type	4 year	4 year
Control/business model	Private (Non Profit)	Private (Non Profit)
Calendar system	Semester	4-1-4
Degrees offered	Undergraduate	Undergraduate
Students retention rate	72.0%	91.0%
Common app member	Yes	Yes
Religious affiliation		Evangelical

Admission
Acceptance rate	75.1%	47.4%
Application fees
SAT range	N/A	1240 - 1430
ACT range	N/A	28 - 33
Students submitting SAT score		16.0%
Students submitting ACT score		39.0%
Total number of applicants	1,340	6,494
Total number of admissions given out	1,007	3,080
Admitted students who chose to enroll	133	755
Yield rate	13.2%	24.5%
Test scores (SAT/ACT)	N/A	N/A
High school GPA	Not required	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	$66,658	$66,570
Average net price	$30,168	$27,729
Tuition	$51,000	$52,670
Room & board	Room/dormitory: $8,520 Meal plan: $5,912	Room/dormitory: $5,720 Meal plan: $6,280
Available payment plans	Tuition payment plan	Tuition payment plan

Financial Aid
Students receiving financial aid (Grants & scholarships)	100.0% Average amount $36,653	100.0% Average amount $37,281
Students receiving federal student loan	64.0% Average amount $4,793	49.0% Average amount $5,006
Students taking out private loans	1.0% Average amount $8,793	9.0% Average amount $15,087

Students and Campus
Undergraduate students	472 Men 38.1% Women 61.9%	2,988 Men 42.2% Women 57.8%
Graduate students	N/A	N/A
Racial/ethnic diversity	Low	Low
Out-of-state students	N/A	N/A
International students	6.4%	10.2%
Campus local/setting	Suburb: Large	Town: Distant
Dormitory capacity	1,180	2,703
First year students are required to live on campus?	No	No
Top 5 states where most U.S. students come from	N/A	N/A

Academics
Popular study areas	Visual & Performing Arts English Language and Literature Social Sciences Biological and Biomedical Sciences Ethnic Studies	Social Sciences Ethnic Studies Foreign Languages and Literatures Mathematics and Statistics Visual & Performing Arts
Students to faculty ratio	11:1	12:1
Institutional accreditation	New England Commission on Higher Education	Higher Learning Commission

Outcome
Graduation rate	62.4%	85.0%
Dropout rate	37.3%	3.9%
Transferred out	N/A	11.0%
Alumni salary by major (Top 10)	Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and Humanities (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $19,720 Year 2: $19,829 Year 3: $23,704	Computer Science (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $73,475 Year 2: $76,460 Year 3: $85,264 Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $62,389 Year 2: $60,623 Year 3: $67,970 Economics (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $56,177 Year 2: $52,107 Year 3: $61,505 Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Subject Areas (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $40,461 Year 2: $42,123 Year 3: $48,934 Mathematics (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $47,797 Year 2: $46,478 Year 3: $47,009 Chemistry (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $36,149 Year 2: $38,829 Year 3: $45,715 Psychology, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $27,228 Year 2: $35,060 Year 3: $44,563 Sociology and Anthropology (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $19,528 Year 2: $31,708 Year 3: $42,811 Political Science and Government (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $38,398 Year 2: $38,289 Year 3: $41,551 English Language and Literature, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $19,226 Year 2: $23,166 Year 3: $38,521

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