Minneapolis College of Art and Design vs NorthWestern

Minneapolis College of Art and Design (MCAD) and Northwestern University (NU) stand as two distinct institutions of higher learning, each offering unique educational experiences. MCAD, a private art and design college, fosters creativity and innovation in its students, while NU, a prestigious research university, emphasizes academic rigor and interdisciplinary exploration. With acceptance rates of 78% and 9%, respectively, MCAD welcomes a diverse student body passionate about the arts, while NU attracts top-achieving students from around the world. While MCAD's popular majors include Fine Arts, Graphic Design, and Illustration, NU offers a wide range of undergraduate and graduate programs, including Engineering, Business, and Communication. Explore the detailed comparison table to discover more about these institutions' graduation rates, student demographics, and other key differences, helping you make an informed decision about your academic journey.

	Minneapolis College of Art and Design	Northwestern University
Overview
Location	Minneapolis, Minnesota	Evanston, Illinois
Campus setting	City: Large	City: Small
College type	4 year	4 year
Control/business model	Private (Non Profit)	Private (Non Profit)
Calendar system	Semester	Quarter
Degrees offered	Undergraduate and Graduate	Undergraduate and Graduate
Students retention rate	77.0%	99.0%
Common app member	No	Yes
Religious affiliation

Admission
Acceptance rate	65.5%	7.0%
Application fees	Undergraduate: $50 Graduate: $50	Undergraduate: $75 Graduate: $95
SAT range	N/A	1470 - 1570
ACT range	N/A	34 - 35
Students submitting SAT score		43.0%
Students submitting ACT score		39.0%
Total number of applicants	638	47,636
Total number of admissions given out	418	3,321
Admitted students who chose to enroll	163	2,086
Yield rate	39.0%	62.8%
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	$55,702	$83,838
Average net price	$28,520	$29,999
Tuition	$41,344	$60,276
Room & board	Room/dormitory: $5,980 Meal plan: $1,200	Room/dormitory: $11,271 Meal plan: $6,993
Available payment plans	Tuition payment plan	Tuition payment plan

Financial Aid
Students receiving financial aid (Grants & scholarships)	100.0% Average amount $25,957	57.0% Average amount $51,087
Students receiving federal student loan	96.0% Average amount $5,416	23.0% Average amount $4,625
Students taking out private loans	20.0% Average amount $15,914	2.0% Average amount $38,595

Students and Campus
Undergraduate students	675 Men 31.6% Women 68.4%	8,847 Men 46.1% Women 53.9%
Graduate students	100 Men 22.0% Women 78.0%	14,562 Men 47.3% Women 52.7%
Racial/ethnic diversity	Low	Moderate
Out-of-state students	44.4%	N/A
International students	4.1%	17.8%
Campus local/setting	City: Large	City: Small
Dormitory capacity	288	4,409
First year students are required to live on campus?	No	No
Top 5 states where most U.S. students come from	Minnesota Wisconsin Illinois Iowa South Dakota	N/A

Academics
Popular study areas	Visual & Performing Arts Communications Technology Business Communication and Journalism Precision Production	Business Communication and Journalism Engineering Health Professions Legal Profession
Students to faculty ratio	9:1	6:1
Institutional accreditation	Higher Learning Commission	Higher Learning Commission

Outcome
Graduation rate	66.2%	95.2%
Dropout rate	18.6%	4.2%
Transferred out	15.2%	N/A
Alumni salary by major (Top 10)	Film/Video and Photographic Arts (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $25,967 Year 3: $34,987 Design and Applied Arts (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $23,412 Year 2: $25,967 Year 3: $34,268 Fine and Studio Arts (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $25,993 Year 2: $28,236 Year 3: $28,847 Graphic Communications (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $20,090 Year 2: $18,771 Year 3: $26,963 Fine and Studio Arts (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $23,098 Year 2: $22,192 Year 3: $25,223 Entrepreneurial and Small Business Operations (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $24,078 Year 2: N/A Year 3: N/A	Medical Clinical Sciences/Graduate Medical Studies (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $150,242 Year 2: $188,472 Year 3: $221,242 Business/Commerce, General (First Professional Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $188,472 Year 3: $216,176 Law (First Professional Degrees) Year 1: $187,194 Year 2: $170,971 Year 3: $206,288 Business Administration, Management and Operations (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $120,709 Year 2: $189,565 Year 3: $194,961 Business/Commerce, General (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $162,478 Year 2: $163,561 Year 3: $177,652 Engineering-Related Fields (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $111,200 Year 2: $157,779 Year 3: $159,304 Engineering, Other (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $140,321 Year 2: $141,586 Year 3: $154,556 Medical Illustration and Informatics (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $88,288 Year 2: $118,465 Year 3: $132,325 Management Sciences and Quantitative Methods (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $118,780 Year 2: $111,323 Year 3: $130,124 Community Organization and Advocacy (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $115,760 Year 2: $113,668 Year 3: $128,046

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Minneapolis College of Art and Design vs NorthWestern

Minneapolis College of Art and Design

Northwestern University

Overview

Admission

Tuition and Fees

Financial Aid

Students and Campus

Academics

Outcome

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