Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts (MCLA) vs Hamilton College

Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts and Hamilton College, while both esteemed institutions of higher learning, offer distinct educational experiences. MCLA, a public liberal arts college in North Adams, Massachusetts, boasts an acceptance rate of 88%, making it more accessible to a wider range of students. Hamilton, a private liberal arts college in Clinton, New York, is more selective, with an acceptance rate of 22%. MCLA's student body is predominantly female (62%), while Hamilton's is more evenly balanced (51% female, 49% male). Both colleges offer a diverse range of majors, with popular choices at MCLA including Psychology, Business Administration, and Criminal Justice, and popular choices at Hamilton including Economics, Government, and English. With graduation rates of 58% and 91% respectively, MCLA and Hamilton provide students with varying levels of support and resources to achieve their academic goals. Explore the comparison table below to delve deeper into the differences between these

	Hamilton College	Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts
Overview
Location	Clinton, New York	North Adams, Massachusetts
Campus setting	Suburb: Midsize	Town: Fringe
College type	4 year	4 year
Control/business model	Private (Non Profit)	Public
Calendar system	Semester	Semester
Degrees offered	Undergraduate	Undergraduate and Graduate
Students retention rate	94.0%	63.0%
Common app member	Yes	Yes
Religious affiliation

Admission
Acceptance rate	14.1%	91.0%
Application fees	$60	$50
SAT range	1410 - 1540	N/A
ACT range	33 - 35	N/A
Students submitting SAT score	32.0%
Students submitting ACT score	20.0%
Total number of applicants	9,380	1,371
Total number of admissions given out	1,320	1,247
Admitted students who chose to enroll	533	167
Yield rate	40.4%	13.4%
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)	Not required	Not required

Tuition and Fees
Sticker price	$76,700	In state: $25,928 Out of state: $34,873
Average net price	$26,803	$14,902
Tuition	$59,380	In state: $1,030 Out of state: $9,975
Room & board	Room/dormitory: $8,320 Meal plan: $6,910	Room/dormitory: $7,240 Meal plan: $5,044
Available payment plans	Tuition payment plan	Prepaid tuition plan Tuition payment plan

Financial Aid
Students receiving financial aid (Grants & scholarships)	55.0% Average amount $47,867	99.0% Average amount $8,496
Students receiving federal student loan	35.0% Average amount $4,331	97.0% Average amount $3,734
Students taking out private loans	4.0% Average amount $25,195	12.0% Average amount $9,492

Students and Campus
Undergraduate students	2,055 Men 45.8% Women 54.2%	870 Men 39.2% Women 60.8%
Graduate students	N/A	124 Men 33.1% Women 66.9%
Racial/ethnic diversity	Low	Low
Out-of-state students	N/A	N/A
International students	6.8%	N/A
Campus local/setting	Suburb: Midsize	Town: Fringe
Dormitory capacity	2,057	1,020
First year students are required to live on campus?	Yes	No
Top 5 states where most U.S. students come from	N/A	Mississippi New York Vermont Connecticut Rhode Island

Academics
Popular study areas	Visual & Performing Arts Social Sciences Foreign Languages and Literatures Physical Science Mathematics and Statistics	Business Education Computer and Information Science Health Professions Biological and Biomedical Sciences
Students to faculty ratio	9:1	9:1
Institutional accreditation	Middle States Commission on Higher Education	New England Commission on Higher Education

Outcome
Graduation rate	91.5%	58.4%
Dropout rate	0.8%	41.6%
Transferred out	6.8%	N/A
Alumni salary by major (Top 10)	Economics (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $56,571 Year 2: $63,501 Year 3: $84,359 Mathematics (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $57,593 Year 2: $59,045 Year 3: $74,628 Political Science and Government (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $48,577 Year 2: $53,894 Year 3: $56,960 Chemistry (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $51,273 Year 3: N/A Fine and Studio Arts (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $24,772 Year 3: N/A International Relations and National Security Studies (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $46,087 Year 3: N/A Public Policy Analysis (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $50,856 Year 3: N/A Research and Experimental Psychology (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $44,978 Year 2: N/A Year 3: N/A Psychology, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $46,087 Year 3: N/A Geological and Earth Sciences/Geosciences (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $30,771 Year 3: N/A	Computer and Information Sciences, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $64,895 Year 2: $63,005 Year 3: $73,830 Business Administration, Management and Operations (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $31,172 Year 2: $34,467 Year 3: $40,733 Biology, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $42,359 Year 2: $27,181 Year 3: $40,148 Education, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $32,284 Year 3: $35,408 English Language and Literature, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $24,617 Year 2: $32,569 Year 3: $34,741 Sociology (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $31,798 Year 2: $31,828 Year 3: $32,817 Psychology, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $28,438 Year 2: $28,236 Year 3: $32,425 Multi/Interdisciplinary Studies, Other (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $34,231 Year 2: $29,374 Year 3: $31,158 Education, General (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $46,032 Year 2: $43,798 Year 3: N/A Visual and Performing Arts, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $20,169 Year 2: $25,194 Year 3: N/A

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