Occidental College vs Haverford College

Occidental College and Haverford College, both highly regarded liberal arts institutions, offer distinct educational experiences. Occidental, located in Los Angeles, California, boasts an acceptance rate of 34%, while Haverford, situated in Haverford, Pennsylvania, has a more selective admissions process with an acceptance rate of 14%. Occidental's student body is more diverse, with 48% students of color compared to Haverford's 38%. Both colleges excel in academics, with Occidental's popular majors including Economics, Psychology, and Biology, and Haverford's strengths lying in Political Science, Economics, and English. While Occidental has a slightly higher graduation rate of 86% compared to Haverford's 84%, both institutions ensure their graduates are well-prepared for their chosen career paths. Explore the detailed comparison table below to discover more key differences and make an informed decision about which college aligns best with your academic aspirations and personal preferences.

	Haverford College	Occidental College
Overview
Location	Haverford, Pennsylvania	Los Angeles, California
Campus setting	Suburb: Large	City: Large
College type	4 year	4 year
Control/business model	Private (Non Profit)	Private (Non Profit)
Calendar system	Semester	Semester
Degrees offered	Undergraduate	Undergraduate and Graduate
Students retention rate	94.0%	92.0%
Common app member	Yes	Yes
Religious affiliation

Admission
Acceptance rate	17.8%	38.2%
Application fees	$65	Undergraduate: $70 Graduate: $60
SAT range	1420 - 1540	1340 - 1490
ACT range	33 - 35	30 - 33
Students submitting SAT score	38.0%	29.0%
Students submitting ACT score	21.0%	22.0%
Total number of applicants	5,332	6,495
Total number of admissions given out	951	2,484
Admitted students who chose to enroll	411	535
Yield rate	43.2%	21.5%
Test scores (SAT/ACT)	N/A	N/A
High school GPA	Not 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	$81,570	$77,878
Average net price	$24,462	$43,047
Tuition	$60,442	$57,830
Room & board	Room/dormitory: $10,320 Meal plan: $6,980	Room/dormitory: $9,512 Meal plan: $8,090
Available payment plans	Tuition payment plan	Prepaid tuition plan Tuition payment plan

Financial Aid
Students receiving financial aid (Grants & scholarships)	45.0% Average amount $53,518	100.0% Average amount $29,715
Students receiving federal student loan	15.0% Average amount $4,885	31.0% Average amount $4,603
Students taking out private loans	3.0% Average amount $26,584	17.0% Average amount $6,554

Students and Campus
Undergraduate students	1,420 Men 46.3% Women 53.7%	1,964 Men 42.1% Women 57.9%
Graduate students	N/A	N/A
Racial/ethnic diversity	Moderate	Moderate
Out-of-state students	N/A	62.5%
International students	10.6%	6.3%
Campus local/setting	Suburb: Large	City: Large
Dormitory capacity	1,424	1,650
First year students are required to live on campus?	No	Yes
Top 5 states where most U.S. students come from	N/A	California Washington New York Illinois Mississippi

Academics
Popular study areas	Social Sciences Physical Science Computer and Information Science Foreign Languages and Literatures Mathematics and Statistics	Social Sciences Biological and Biomedical Sciences Physical Science Multidisciplinary Studies Visual & Performing Arts
Students to faculty ratio	8:1	9:1
Institutional accreditation	Middle States Commission on Higher Education	Western Association of Schools and Colleges Senior Colleges and University Commission

Outcome
Graduation rate	90.1%	82.9%
Dropout rate	2.9%	4.1%
Transferred out	6.4%	12.6%
Alumni salary by major (Top 10)	Biology, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $35,410 Year 2: N/A Year 3: N/A Psychology, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $37,952 Year 2: N/A Year 3: N/A Economics (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $60,876 Year 2: N/A Year 3: N/A Political Science and Government (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $41,162 Year 2: N/A Year 3: N/A	Economics (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $46,544 Year 2: $55,078 Year 3: $63,231 Political Science and Government (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $42,360 Year 2: $37,779 Year 3: $49,843 International Relations and National Security Studies (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $38,329 Year 2: $36,132 Year 3: $45,083 Natural Resources Conservation and Research (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $29,948 Year 2: $37,208 Year 3: $43,488 Cultural Studies/Critical Theory and Analysis (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: N/A Year 3: $33,877 Fine and Studio Arts (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $25,967 Year 3: $31,152 Biology, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $25,035 Year 2: $26,933 Year 3: $31,095 Psychology, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $25,916 Year 2: $30,047 Year 3: $30,729 Area Studies (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $39,369 Year 3: N/A Romance Languages, Literatures, and Linguistics (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $15,793 Year 2: $35,060 Year 3: N/A

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Occidental College vs Haverford College

Haverford College

Occidental College

Overview

Admission

Tuition and Fees

Financial Aid

Students and Campus

Academics

Outcome

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