Messiah University vs Principia College

Messiah University and Principia College, both rooted in strong religious affiliations, offer distinct educational experiences. Messiah, a Christian university, boasts a higher acceptance rate (78%) compared to Principia's selective admissions (38%). Messiah's student body is more diverse, with a larger international student population, while Principia's student body is predominantly white. Both institutions excel in certain academic areas: Messiah is known for its strong programs in nursing, business, and education, while Principia is recognized for its engineering, computer science, and aviation programs. With similar graduation rates, both universities prepare their students well for their chosen careers. Explore the detailed comparison table to discover more about these institutions' unique offerings and make an informed decision that aligns with your academic aspirations and personal preferences.

	Messiah University	Principia College
Overview
Location	Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania	Elsah, Illinois
Campus setting	Suburb: Large	Rural: Fringe
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	85.0%	81.0%
Common app member	Yes	Yes
Religious affiliation	Interdenominational

Admission
Acceptance rate	77.4%	84.1%
Application fees	$50
SAT range	1100 - 1340	1028 - 1193
ACT range	23 - 31	21 - 28
Students submitting SAT score	57.0%	30.0%
Students submitting ACT score	11.0%	13.0%
Total number of applicants	2,458	138
Total number of admissions given out	1,902	116
Admitted students who chose to enroll	551	79
Yield rate	29.0%	68.1%
Test scores (SAT/ACT)	N/A	N/A
High school GPA	Required	Required
Recommendation letters	Not required	Not required
High school transcript	Not required	Not required
English proficiency test (e.g. TOEFL)	Required	Not required

Tuition and Fees
Sticker price	$54,340	$42,820
Average net price	$23,895	$19,816
Tuition	$37,430	$29,970
Room & board	Room/dormitory: $5,970 Meal plan: $5,250	Room/dormitory: $5,810 Meal plan: $6,460
Available payment plans	Tuition payment plan	Tuition payment plan

Financial Aid
Students receiving financial aid (Grants & scholarships)	100.0% Average amount $26,620	94.0% Average amount $25,174
Students receiving federal student loan	65.0% Average amount $5,510	0.0% Average amount $0
Students taking out private loans	24.0% Average amount $11,228	94.0% Average amount $2,016

Students and Campus
Undergraduate students	2,495 Men 39.0% Women 61.0%	321 Men 53.0% Women 47.0%
Graduate students	781 Men 28.6% Women 71.4%	N/A
Racial/ethnic diversity	Low	Low
Out-of-state students	34.6%	92.7%
International students	2.8%	24.3%
Campus local/setting	Suburb: Large	Rural: Fringe
Dormitory capacity	2,403	585
First year students are required to live on campus?	No	No
Top 5 states where most U.S. students come from	Pennsylvania Maryland New Jersey New York Delaware	Missouri California Texas Illinois Ohio

Academics
Popular study areas	Health Professions Education Business Visual & Performing Arts Engineering	Visual & Performing Arts Communication and Journalism Computer and Information Science Social Sciences Business
Students to faculty ratio	12:1	5:1
Institutional accreditation	Middle States Commission on Higher Education	Higher Learning Commission

Outcome
Graduation rate	77.0%	85.9%
Dropout rate	4.8%	14.1%
Transferred out	18.3%	N/A
Alumni salary by major (Top 10)	Engineering, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $57,515 Year 2: $60,623 Year 3: $64,027 Accounting and Related Services (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $56,062 Year 2: $53,608 Year 3: $62,810 Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $62,117 Year 2: $62,546 Year 3: $62,631 Music (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $59,416 Year 2: $55,693 Year 3: $56,809 Business Administration, Management and Operations (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $41,254 Year 2: $49,214 Year 3: $53,924 Educational Administration and Supervision (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $32,970 Year 2: $37,568 Year 3: $47,853 Marketing (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $37,875 Year 2: $37,054 Year 3: $47,113 Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Levels and Methods (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $41,733 Year 2: $40,621 Year 3: $45,156 Health Professions and Related Clinical Sciences, Other (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $43,616 Year 2: $39,523 Year 3: $44,488 Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Subject Areas (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $42,316 Year 2: $35,594 Year 3: $41,855	N/A

Compare Similar Colleges

The list of suggested college comparisons provided below is generated automatically by our system, utilizing statistics gathered from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) and various online sources. If you don't find the colleges you wish to compare, please visit our comparison page. There, you can search for the specific colleges and initiate your comparison.

Messiah University vs Principia College

Messiah University

Principia College

Overview

Admission

Tuition and Fees

Financial Aid

Students and Campus

Academics

Outcome

Compare Similar Colleges

Find Colleges By State

Resources

About