Wesleyan University vs Bucknell University

Wesleyan University and Bucknell University, both esteemed private institutions, offer distinct educational experiences. Wesleyan, located in Middletown, Connecticut, boasts a lower acceptance rate (13%) compared to Bucknell's (29%). Wesleyan's student body is slightly larger, with an undergraduate population of 2,900 compared to Bucknell's 3,600. While both universities offer a diverse range of majors, Wesleyan is known for its strengths in the humanities and social sciences, while Bucknell excels in engineering, business, and the natural sciences. Additionally, Wesleyan has a slightly higher graduation rate (93%) than Bucknell (91%). Explore the detailed comparison table below to discover more key differences and determine which university better aligns with your academic aspirations and personal preferences.

	Bucknell University	Wesleyan University
Overview
Location	Lewisburg, Pennsylvania	Middletown, Connecticut
Campus setting	Town: Distant	City: Small
College type	4 year	4 year
Control/business model	Private (Non Profit)	Private (Non Profit)
Calendar system	Semester	Semester
Degrees offered	Undergraduate and Graduate	Undergraduate and Graduate
Students retention rate	91.0%	95.0%
Common app member	Yes	Yes
Religious affiliation

Admission
Acceptance rate	34.5%	19.4%
Application fees	Undergraduate: $40 Graduate: $50	$55
SAT range	1295 - 1450	1300 - 1510
ACT range	29 - 33	31 - 34
Students submitting SAT score	35.0%	51.0%
Students submitting ACT score	17.0%	27.0%
Total number of applicants	11,263	13,067
Total number of admissions given out	3,886	2,540
Admitted students who chose to enroll	1,027	910
Yield rate	26.4%	35.8%
Test scores (SAT/ACT)	N/A	N/A
High school GPA	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	$77,740	$82,245
Average net price	$38,170	$20,535
Tuition	$59,474	$61,449
Room & board	Room/dormitory: $9,192 Meal plan: $5,682	$17,531
Available payment plans	Prepaid tuition plan Tuition payment plan	Tuition payment plan

Financial Aid
Students receiving financial aid (Grants & scholarships)	59.0% Average amount $37,752	40.0% Average amount $58,925
Students receiving federal student loan	32.0% Average amount $5,232	18.0% Average amount $3,834
Students taking out private loans	7.0% Average amount $23,169	2.0% Average amount $27,881

Students and Campus
Undergraduate students	3,724 Men 47.1% Women 52.9%	3,385 Men 43.8% Women 56.2%
Graduate students	33 Men 30.3% Women 69.7%	196 Men 42.3% Women 57.7%
Racial/ethnic diversity	Low	Low
Out-of-state students	76.9%	90.3%
International students	5.3%	11.3%
Campus local/setting	Town: Distant	City: Small
Dormitory capacity	3,394	3,063
First year students are required to live on campus?	No	Yes
Top 5 states where most U.S. students come from	Pennsylvania New Jersey New York Connecticut Maryland	New York California Connecticut New Jersey Pennsylvania

Academics
Popular study areas	Engineering Business Social Sciences Education Foreign Languages and Literatures	Social Sciences Psychology Ethnic Studies Visual & Performing Arts Physical Science
Students to faculty ratio	9:1	8:1
Institutional accreditation	Middle States Commission on Higher Education	New England Commission on Higher Education

Outcome
Graduation rate	88.0%	91.0%
Dropout rate	0.6%	3.6%
Transferred out	11.3%	5.3%
Alumni salary by major (Top 10)	Accounting and Related Services (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $68,290 Year 2: $66,147 Year 3: $82,360 Chemical Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $71,437 Year 2: $76,460 Year 3: $80,333 Mechanical Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $68,748 Year 2: $69,002 Year 3: $76,198 Business Administration, Management and Operations (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $61,343 Year 2: $49,683 Year 3: $69,149 Civil Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $66,231 Year 2: $65,610 Year 3: $68,732 Marketing (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $51,607 Year 3: $66,842 Economics (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $61,041 Year 2: $55,102 Year 3: $63,698 Romance Languages, Literatures, and Linguistics (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $45,358 Year 2: $49,136 Year 3: $60,608 Political Science and Government (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $49,507 Year 2: $52,941 Year 3: $57,352 International Relations and National Security Studies (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $44,905 Year 2: $55,964 Year 3: $55,173	Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and Humanities (Doctoral Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $53,775 Year 3: $53,847 Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and Humanities (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $38,232 Year 2: $36,334 Year 3: $45,541

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Wesleyan University vs Bucknell University

Bucknell University

Wesleyan University

Overview

Admission

Tuition and Fees

Financial Aid

Students and Campus

Academics

Outcome

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