Amherst College vs Colgate University

Amherst College and Colgate University, both esteemed liberal arts institutions, offer distinct educational experiences. Amherst, located in the heart of the Pioneer Valley, boasts a highly selective admissions process with an acceptance rate of 13.2%, while Colgate, nestled in the picturesque village of Hamilton, New York, offers a slightly higher acceptance rate of 26.4%. Amherst's student body is more diverse, with international students comprising 12.6% of the population compared to Colgate's 7.8%. In terms of academic offerings, Amherst excels in the social sciences, while Colgate is known for its strength in the natural sciences. Both institutions boast impressive graduation rates, with Amherst's at 94% and Colgate's at 92%. To help you make an informed decision, we've compiled a comprehensive comparison table highlighting key differences between these two exceptional colleges.

	Amherst College	Colgate University
Overview
Location	Amherst, Massachusetts	Hamilton, New York
Campus setting	Suburb: Large	Town: Distant
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	98.0%	93.0%
Common app member	Yes	Yes
Religious affiliation

Admission
Acceptance rate	8.7%	17.2%
Application fees	$60	Undergraduate: $60 Graduate: $50
SAT range	1370 - 1550	1350 - 1500
ACT range	32 - 34	32 - 34
Students submitting SAT score	36.0%	29.0%
Students submitting ACT score	31.0%	21.0%
Total number of applicants	13,999	17,540
Total number of admissions given out	1,224	3,015
Admitted students who chose to enroll	515	887
Yield rate	42.1%	29.4%
Test scores (SAT/ACT)	N/A	N/A
High school GPA	Not 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	$80,050	$80,160
Average net price	$18,809	$24,500
Tuition	$60,700	$61,594
Room & board	Room/dormitory: $8,700 Meal plan: $7,400	Room/dormitory: $7,496 Meal plan: $8,028
Available payment plans	Tuition payment plan	Prepaid tuition plan Tuition payment plan

Financial Aid
Students receiving financial aid (Grants & scholarships)	61.0% Average amount $58,644	41.0% Average amount $53,718
Students receiving federal student loan	10.0% Average amount $5,233	11.0% Average amount $4,253
Students taking out private loans	3.0% Average amount $16,803	3.0% Average amount $34,492

Students and Campus
Undergraduate students	1,971 Men 48.6% Women 51.4%	3,164 Men 45.0% Women 55.0%
Graduate students	N/A	12 Men 41.7% Women 58.3%
Racial/ethnic diversity	Moderate	Low
Out-of-state students	N/A	75.2%
International students	10.4%	8.8%
Campus local/setting	Suburb: Large	Town: Distant
Dormitory capacity	2,000	2,972
First year students are required to live on campus?	No	Yes
Top 5 states where most U.S. students come from	New York California New Jersey Connecticut Pennsylvania	New York New Jersey Connecticut California Pennsylvania

Academics
Popular study areas	Physical Science Social Sciences Mathematics and Statistics Biological and Biomedical Sciences Ethnic Studies	Social Sciences Foreign Languages and Literatures Physical Science Ethnic Studies Visual & Performing Arts
Students to faculty ratio	7:1	9:1
Institutional accreditation	New England Commission on Higher Education	Middle States Commission on Higher Education

Outcome
Graduation rate	92.4%	90.3%
Dropout rate	2.5%	2.8%
Transferred out	3.6%	6.7%
Alumni salary by major (Top 10)	Economics (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $78,775 Year 2: $74,576 Year 3: $94,870 Mathematics (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $64,970 Year 2: $67,660 Year 3: $85,992 History (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $43,271 Year 2: $74,576 Year 3: $84,030 Area Studies (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: N/A Year 3: $53,743 Political Science and Government (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $51,419 Year 2: $48,432 Year 3: $46,160 English Language and Literature, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $27,744 Year 2: $33,993 Year 3: $36,173 Ethnic, Cultural Minority, Gender, and Group Studies (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $36,896 Year 2: N/A Year 3: N/A Computer Science (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $96,310 Year 2: N/A Year 3: N/A Romance Languages, Literatures, and Linguistics (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $67,101 Year 3: N/A Legal Research and Advanced Professional Studies (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $37,208 Year 3: N/A	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

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Amherst College vs Colgate University

Amherst College

Colgate University

Overview

Admission

Tuition and Fees

Financial Aid

Students and Campus

Academics

Outcome

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