Macalester College vs Hillsdale College

Macalester College and Hillsdale College, two distinct institutions of higher learning, offer contrasting educational experiences. Macalester, a private liberal arts college in Saint Paul, Minnesota, boasts a diverse student body and a strong commitment to social justice. In contrast, Hillsdale, a private liberal arts college in Hillsdale, Michigan, emphasizes a classical education rooted in Western tradition. With acceptance rates of 33% and 44%, respectively, both colleges offer a selective admissions process. While Macalester students pursue popular majors in the social sciences, humanities, and natural sciences, Hillsdale students often choose majors in the humanities, social sciences, and business. Explore the detailed comparison table to discover further distinctions between these two esteemed institutions, and determine which college best aligns with your academic aspirations and personal values.

	Hillsdale College	Macalester College
Overview
Location	Hillsdale, Michigan	Saint Paul, Minnesota
Campus setting	Town: Distant	City: Large
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
Students retention rate	94.0%	96.0%
Common app member	Yes	No
Religious affiliation	Undenominational	Presbyterian

Admission
Acceptance rate	23.7%	31.3%
Application fees	Undergraduate: $35 Graduate: $25	$40
SAT range	1340 - 1510	1340 - 1515
ACT range	30 - 34	29 - 33
Students submitting SAT score	22.0%	35.0%
Students submitting ACT score	38.0%	39.0%
Total number of applicants	2,994	9,046
Total number of admissions given out	709	2,828
Admitted students who chose to enroll	397	601
Yield rate	56.0%	21.3%
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)	Not required	Required

Tuition and Fees
Sticker price	$45,382	$76,357
Average net price	$24,057	$30,939
Tuition	$28,730	$60,288
Room & board	Room/dormitory: $6,020 Meal plan: $6,120	Room/dormitory: $7,272 Meal plan: $6,270
Available payment plans	Tuition payment plan	Tuition payment plan

Financial Aid
Students receiving financial aid (Grants & scholarships)	100.0% Average amount $20,535	87.0% Average amount $42,832
Students receiving federal student loan	0.0% Average amount $0	39.0% Average amount $4,799
Students taking out private loans	34.0% Average amount $10,497	29.0% Average amount $4,321

Students and Campus
Undergraduate students	1,515 Men 50.6% Women 49.4%	2,244 Men 43.3% Women 56.7%
Graduate students	87 Men 67.8% Women 32.2%	N/A
Racial/ethnic diversity	N/A	Low
Out-of-state students	N/A	N/A
International students	N/A	13.5%
Campus local/setting	Town: Distant	City: Large
Dormitory capacity	1,124	1,332
First year students are required to live on campus?	No	Yes
Top 5 states where most U.S. students come from	N/A	N/A

Academics
Popular study areas	Business Social Sciences Biological and Biomedical Sciences Foreign Languages and Literatures Kinesiology & Leisure Studies	Mathematics and Statistics Foreign Languages and Literatures Multidisciplinary Studies Social Sciences Computer and Information Science
Students to faculty ratio	8:1	10:1
Institutional accreditation	Higher Learning Commission	Higher Learning Commission

Outcome
Graduation rate	87.6%	89.7%
Dropout rate	8.3%	10.0%
Transferred out	3.9%	N/A
Alumni salary by major (Top 10)	N/A	Economics (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $47,163 Year 2: $64,493 Year 3: $72,135 Mathematics (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $60,896 Year 2: $52,107 Year 3: $56,193 Political Science and Government (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $28,635 Year 2: $35,274 Year 3: $43,620 Geography and Cartography (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $28,253 Year 2: $32,569 Year 3: $39,047 International/Global Studies (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $22,368 Year 2: $34,526 Year 3: $36,933 Psychology, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $24,116 Year 2: $31,133 Year 3: $34,521 Natural Resources Conservation and Research (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $26,444 Year 2: N/A Year 3: N/A Communication and Media Studies (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $21,508 Year 3: N/A Computer and Information Sciences, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $73,129 Year 2: $71,575 Year 3: N/A Education, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $33,281 Year 3: N/A

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Macalester College vs Hillsdale College

Hillsdale College

Macalester College

Overview

Admission

Tuition and Fees

Financial Aid

Students and Campus

Academics

Outcome

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