Bates College vs Spelman College

Bates College and Spelman College, two esteemed institutions of higher learning, offer distinct educational experiences. Bates, a liberal arts college in Lewiston, Maine, boasts a 14% acceptance rate and a diverse student body, with 48% female and 52% male students. Spelman, a historically Black women's college in Atlanta, Georgia, has a 49% acceptance rate and a predominantly female student body. Both colleges excel in academics, with Bates offering popular majors in economics, biology, and psychology, while Spelman's strengths lie in biology, psychology, and sociology. While Bates has a higher graduation rate of 89%, Spelman's 78% graduation rate is still commendable. Explore the detailed comparison table to discover more about these colleges' unique offerings and determine which one aligns best with your academic aspirations and personal preferences.

	Bates College	Spelman College
Overview
Location	Lewiston, Maine	Atlanta, Georgia
Campus setting	City: Small	City: Large
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
Students retention rate	92.0%	91.0%
Common app member	Yes	Yes
Religious affiliation

Admission
Acceptance rate	17.3%	50.8%
Application fees	$60	$40
SAT range	N/A	N/A
ACT range	N/A	N/A
Students submitting SAT score
Students submitting ACT score
Total number of applicants	7,319	11,176
Total number of admissions given out	1,267	5,673
Admitted students who chose to enroll	553	794
Yield rate	43.6%	14.0%
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	$77,870	$48,244
Average net price	$26,231	$28,527
Tuition	$59,062	$25,249
Room & board	$16,658	$15,063
Available payment plans	Tuition payment plan	Tuition payment plan

Financial Aid
Students receiving financial aid (Grants & scholarships)	36.0% Average amount $50,509	96.0% Average amount $10,839
Students receiving federal student loan	12.0% Average amount $4,182	76.0% Average amount $5,707
Students taking out private loans	3.0% Average amount $23,825	5.0% Average amount $13,717

Students and Campus
Undergraduate students	1,821 Men 48.6% Women 51.4%	2,417 Men 0.0% Women 100.0%
Graduate students	N/A	N/A
Racial/ethnic diversity	Low	Very Low
Out-of-state students	N/A	76.0%
International students	8.7%	0.7%
Campus local/setting	City: Small	City: Large
Dormitory capacity	1,816	1,401
First year students are required to live on campus?	Yes	No
Top 5 states where most U.S. students come from	N/A	Georgia Maryland Texas California New York

Academics
Popular study areas	Physical Science Social Sciences Ethnic Studies Foreign Languages and Literatures Psychology	Social Sciences Biological and Biomedical Sciences Psychology Health Professions English Language and Literature
Students to faculty ratio	10:1	11:1
Institutional accreditation	New England Commission on Higher Education	Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges

Outcome
Graduation rate	91.7%	76.2%
Dropout rate	2.3%	9.2%
Transferred out	5.8%	13.7%
Alumni salary by major (Top 10)	Economics (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $55,768 Year 2: $69,338 Year 3: $73,497 History (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $51,273 Year 3: $55,661 Political Science and Government (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $50,568 Year 2: $38,289 Year 3: $53,638 Natural Resources Conservation and Research (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $22,883 Year 2: $26,353 Year 3: $35,020 Romance Languages, Literatures, and Linguistics (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $22,192 Year 3: N/A English Language and Literature, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $30,771 Year 3: N/A Biology, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $33,170 Year 2: N/A Year 3: N/A Neurobiology and Neurosciences (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $36,112 Year 2: N/A Year 3: N/A Mathematics (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $39,731 Year 2: N/A Year 3: N/A Psychology, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $39,657 Year 2: $25,194 Year 3: N/A	Economics (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $48,695 Year 2: $48,667 Year 3: $59,027 International/Global Studies (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $26,667 Year 2: $37,748 Year 3: $52,483 English Language and Literature, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $28,355 Year 2: $38,289 Year 3: $44,720 Ethnic, Cultural Minority, Gender, and Group Studies (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $23,573 Year 2: $35,600 Year 3: $39,388 Psychology, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $23,944 Year 2: $25,525 Year 3: $39,024 Political Science and Government (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $38,532 Year 2: $35,060 Year 3: $38,350 Biology, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $23,318 Year 2: N/A Year 3: $20,552 Mathematics (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $61,181 Year 2: N/A Year 3: N/A Sociology (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $29,685 Year 3: N/A Drama/Theatre Arts and Stagecraft (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $15,552 Year 3: N/A

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