Washington and Lee vs Colgate University

Washington and Lee University and Colgate University, both esteemed liberal arts institutions, offer distinct educational experiences. Washington and Lee, located in Lexington, Virginia, boasts a lower acceptance rate (18%) compared to Colgate's (26%). While Colgate, situated in Hamilton, New York, enrolls a slightly larger student body, Washington and Lee maintains a smaller student-to-faculty ratio, fostering a more personalized learning environment. Both universities excel in academics, with popular majors including Economics, English, and Political Science at Washington and Lee, and Economics, Biology, and Psychology at Colgate. Discover more key differences, including graduation rates, student demographics, and additional academic offerings, in the comprehensive comparison table below to help you make an informed decision about your higher education journey.

	Colgate University	Washington and Lee University
Overview
Location	Hamilton, New York	Lexington, Virginia
Campus setting	Town: Distant	Town: Distant
College type	4 year	4 year
Control/business model	Private (Non Profit)	Private (Non Profit)
Calendar system	Semester	4-1-4
Degrees offered	Undergraduate and Graduate	Undergraduate and Graduate
Students retention rate	93.0%	96.0%
Common app member	Yes	Yes
Religious affiliation

Admission
Acceptance rate	17.2%	18.8%
Application fees	Undergraduate: $60 Graduate: $50	$60
SAT range	1350 - 1500	1410 - 1530
ACT range	32 - 34	32 - 35
Students submitting SAT score	29.0%	26.0%
Students submitting ACT score	21.0%	32.0%
Total number of applicants	17,540	6,621
Total number of admissions given out	3,015	1,248
Admitted students who chose to enroll	887	484
Yield rate	29.4%	38.8%
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	Not required

Tuition and Fees
Sticker price	$80,160	$80,300
Average net price	$24,500	$26,063
Tuition	$61,594	$58,260
Room & board	Room/dormitory: $7,496 Meal plan: $8,028	Room/dormitory: $8,600 Meal plan: $7,670
Available payment plans	Prepaid tuition plan Tuition payment plan	Tuition payment plan Other alternative tuition plan

Financial Aid
Students receiving financial aid (Grants & scholarships)	41.0% Average amount $53,718	56.0% Average amount $51,537
Students receiving federal student loan	11.0% Average amount $4,253	13.0% Average amount $4,878
Students taking out private loans	3.0% Average amount $34,492	6.0% Average amount $25,474

Students and Campus
Undergraduate students	3,164 Men 45.0% Women 55.0%	1,857 Men 48.7% Women 51.3%
Graduate students	12 Men 41.7% Women 58.3%	381 Men 48.8% Women 51.2%
Racial/ethnic diversity	Low	Low
Out-of-state students	75.2%	81.2%
International students	8.8%	5.0%
Campus local/setting	Town: Distant	Town: Distant
Dormitory capacity	2,972	1,520
First year students are required to live on campus?	Yes	Yes
Top 5 states where most U.S. students come from	New York New Jersey Connecticut California Pennsylvania	Virginia North Carolina Texas New York Georgia

Academics
Popular study areas	Social Sciences Foreign Languages and Literatures Physical Science Ethnic Studies Visual & Performing Arts	Legal Profession Social Sciences Biological and Biomedical Sciences Foreign Languages and Literatures Physical Science
Students to faculty ratio	9:1	8:1
Institutional accreditation	Middle States Commission on Higher Education	Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges

Outcome
Graduation rate	90.3%	93.6%
Dropout rate	2.8%	6.2%
Transferred out	6.7%	N/A
Alumni salary by major (Top 10)	Economics (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $72,196 Year 2: $67,995 Year 3: $86,742 International Relations and National Security Studies (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $53,775 Year 3: $67,401 Political Science and Government (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $42,813 Year 2: $53,358 Year 3: $60,399 Psychology, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $48,179 Year 2: $47,260 Year 3: $57,947 Romance Languages, Literatures, and Linguistics (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $39,895 Year 2: $47,260 Year 3: $51,701 History (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $35,416 Year 3: $50,739 English Language and Literature, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $44,610 Year 2: $36,848 Year 3: $43,419 Neurobiology and Neurosciences (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $33,641 Year 2: $32,925 Year 3: $40,037 Biology, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $34,181 Year 2: $24,421 Year 3: $21,648 Natural Resources Conservation and Research (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $44,942 Year 3: N/A	Business Administration, Management and Operations (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $56,231 Year 2: $56,641 Year 3: $85,103 Law (First Professional Degrees) Year 1: $63,586 Year 2: $72,642 Year 3: $83,304 Accounting and Related Services (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $66,449 Year 3: $79,551 Mathematics (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $76,460 Year 3: $69,951 Economics (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $51,643 Year 2: $55,964 Year 3: $68,713 Journalism (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $42,682 Year 3: $54,059 Political Science and Government (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $47,231 Year 2: $41,007 Year 3: $45,285 Computer Science (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $91,744 Year 3: N/A English Language and Literature, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $37,593 Year 3: N/A History (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $30,409 Year 3: N/A

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