Willamette University vs St Olaf College

Willamette University and St Olaf College, both esteemed liberal arts institutions, offer distinct educational experiences. Willamette, located in Salem, Oregon, boasts a higher acceptance rate (69%) compared to St Olaf's selective admissions (34%). While St Olaf excels in the sciences, with popular majors in biology, chemistry, and biochemistry, Willamette's strengths lie in the social sciences, with majors like political science, psychology, and economics drawing many students. St Olaf's student body is predominantly white (86%) and female (57%), while Willamette's student body is more diverse, with a larger male population (52%) and a higher percentage of international students (10%). Both institutions boast impressive graduation rates, with Willamette's at 82% and St Olaf's at 86%. Explore the detailed comparison table below to discover more distinctions and determine which college aligns best with your academic aspirations and personal preferences.

	St Olaf College	Willamette University
Overview
Location	Northfield, Minnesota	Salem, Oregon
Campus setting	Town: Distant	City: Midsize
College type	4 year	4 year
Control/business model	Private (Non Profit)	Private (Non Profit)
Calendar system	4-1-4	Semester
Degrees offered	Undergraduate	Undergraduate and Graduate
Students retention rate	91.0%	80.0%
Common app member	Yes	Yes
Religious affiliation	Evangelical

Admission
Acceptance rate	47.4%	79.6%
Application fees
SAT range	1240 - 1430	N/A
ACT range	28 - 33	N/A
Students submitting SAT score	16.0%
Students submitting ACT score	39.0%
Total number of applicants	6,494	3,680
Total number of admissions given out	3,080	2,930
Admitted students who chose to enroll	755	260
Yield rate	24.5%	8.9%
Test scores (SAT/ACT)	N/A	N/A
High school GPA	Required	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	$66,570	$60,106
Average net price	$27,729	$37,400
Tuition	$52,670	$43,500
Room & board	Room/dormitory: $5,720 Meal plan: $6,280	Room/dormitory: $7,150 Meal plan: $6,650
Available payment plans	Tuition payment plan	Prepaid tuition plan Tuition payment plan

Financial Aid
Students receiving financial aid (Grants & scholarships)	100.0% Average amount $37,281	99.0% Average amount $30,413
Students receiving federal student loan	49.0% Average amount $5,006	50.0% Average amount $5,145
Students taking out private loans	9.0% Average amount $15,087	7.0% Average amount $15,973

Students and Campus
Undergraduate students	2,988 Men 42.2% Women 57.8%	1,236 Men 42.2% Women 57.8%
Graduate students	N/A	549 Men 49.2% Women 50.8%
Racial/ethnic diversity	Low	Low
Out-of-state students	N/A	N/A
International students	10.2%	2.4%
Campus local/setting	Town: Distant	City: Midsize
Dormitory capacity	2,703	1,228
First year students are required to live on campus?	No	No
Top 5 states where most U.S. students come from	N/A	N/A

Academics
Popular study areas	Social Sciences Ethnic Studies Foreign Languages and Literatures Mathematics and Statistics Visual & Performing Arts	Social Sciences Legal Profession Business Biological and Biomedical Sciences Natural Resources and Conservation
Students to faculty ratio	12:1	12:1
Institutional accreditation	Higher Learning Commission	Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities

Outcome
Graduation rate	85.0%	72.0%
Dropout rate	3.9%	28.0%
Transferred out	11.0%	N/A
Alumni salary by major (Top 10)	Computer Science (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $73,475 Year 2: $76,460 Year 3: $85,264 Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $62,389 Year 2: $60,623 Year 3: $67,970 Economics (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $56,177 Year 2: $52,107 Year 3: $61,505 Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Subject Areas (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $40,461 Year 2: $42,123 Year 3: $48,934 Mathematics (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $47,797 Year 2: $46,478 Year 3: $47,009 Chemistry (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $36,149 Year 2: $38,829 Year 3: $45,715 Psychology, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $27,228 Year 2: $35,060 Year 3: $44,563 Sociology and Anthropology (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $19,528 Year 2: $31,708 Year 3: $42,811 Political Science and Government (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $38,398 Year 2: $38,289 Year 3: $41,551 English Language and Literature, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $19,226 Year 2: $23,166 Year 3: $38,521	Business Administration, Management and Operations (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $66,562 Year 2: $73,530 Year 3: $85,115 Law (First Professional Degrees) Year 1: $53,741 Year 2: $49,102 Year 3: $65,240 Economics (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $31,509 Year 2: $39,909 Year 3: $57,544 Political Science and Government (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $33,011 Year 2: $36,848 Year 3: $48,905 Psychology, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $20,615 Year 2: $31,133 Year 3: $41,516 Chemistry (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $31,482 Year 2: $27,204 Year 3: $39,994 Biology, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $29,357 Year 2: $28,055 Year 3: $36,208 Anthropology (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $21,508 Year 3: $33,257 Romance Languages, Literatures, and Linguistics (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $23,292 Year 2: $32,925 Year 3: $32,785 Rhetoric and Composition/Writing Studies (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $25,658 Year 3: $29,070

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Willamette University vs St Olaf College

St Olaf College

Willamette University

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Tuition and Fees

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Students and Campus

Academics

Outcome

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