Central College vs Bucknell University

Central College and Bucknell University, two esteemed institutions of higher learning, offer distinct educational experiences. Central College, a private liberal arts college in Pella, Iowa, boasts a tight-knit community with a focus on personalized attention and undergraduate research opportunities. Bucknell University, a private research university in Lewisburg, Pennsylvania, is known for its rigorous academics, strong alumni network, and commitment to sustainability. While both institutions provide a high-quality education, they differ in acceptance rates, popular majors, student body demographics, and graduation rates. Explore the comparison table below to discover which institution aligns best with your academic aspirations and personal preferences.

	Bucknell University	Central College
Overview
Location	Lewisburg, Pennsylvania	Pella, Iowa
Campus setting	Town: Distant	Town: Distant
College type	4 year	4 year
Control/business model	Private (Non Profit)	Private (Non Profit)
Calendar system	Semester	Semester
Degrees offered	Undergraduate and Graduate	Undergraduate
Students retention rate	91.0%	79.0%
Common app member	Yes	No
Religious affiliation		Protestant

Admission
Acceptance rate	34.5%	74.5%
Application fees	Undergraduate: $40 Graduate: $50	$25
SAT range	1295 - 1450	1000 - 1260
ACT range	29 - 33	19 - 25
Students submitting SAT score	35.0%	10.0%
Students submitting ACT score	17.0%	67.0%
Total number of applicants	11,263	2,202
Total number of admissions given out	3,886	1,641
Admitted students who chose to enroll	1,027	340
Yield rate	26.4%	20.7%
Test scores (SAT/ACT)	N/A	N/A
High school GPA	Required	Required
Recommendation letters	Required	Not required
High school transcript	Not required	Not required
English proficiency test (e.g. TOEFL)	Required	Required

Tuition and Fees
Sticker price	$77,740	$34,302
Average net price	$38,170	$22,966
Tuition	$59,474	$19,250
Room & board	Room/dormitory: $9,192 Meal plan: $5,682	Room/dormitory: $4,892 Meal plan: $5,660
Available payment plans	Prepaid tuition plan Tuition payment plan	Prepaid tuition plan Tuition payment plan

Financial Aid
Students receiving financial aid (Grants & scholarships)	59.0% Average amount $37,752	100.0% Average amount $10,353
Students receiving federal student loan	32.0% Average amount $5,232	73.0% Average amount $5,605
Students taking out private loans	7.0% Average amount $23,169	13.0% Average amount $12,712

Students and Campus
Undergraduate students	3,724 Men 47.1% Women 52.9%	1,139 Men 51.3% Women 48.7%
Graduate students	33 Men 30.3% Women 69.7%	N/A
Racial/ethnic diversity	Low	Very Low
Out-of-state students	76.9%	N/A
International students	5.3%	0.1%
Campus local/setting	Town: Distant	Town: Distant
Dormitory capacity	3,394	1,405
First year students are required to live on campus?	No	No
Top 5 states where most U.S. students come from	Pennsylvania New Jersey New York Connecticut Maryland	N/A

Academics
Popular study areas	Engineering Business Social Sciences Education Foreign Languages and Literatures	Biological and Biomedical Sciences Communication and Journalism Education Business English Language and Literature
Students to faculty ratio	9:1	12:1
Institutional accreditation	Middle States Commission on Higher Education	Higher Learning Commission

Outcome
Graduation rate	88.0%	66.1%
Dropout rate	0.6%	2.5%
Transferred out	11.3%	31.0%
Alumni salary by major (Top 10)	Accounting and Related Services (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $68,290 Year 2: $66,147 Year 3: $82,360 Chemical Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $71,437 Year 2: $76,460 Year 3: $80,333 Mechanical Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $68,748 Year 2: $69,002 Year 3: $76,198 Business Administration, Management and Operations (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $61,343 Year 2: $49,683 Year 3: $69,149 Civil Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $66,231 Year 2: $65,610 Year 3: $68,732 Marketing (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $51,607 Year 3: $66,842 Economics (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $61,041 Year 2: $55,102 Year 3: $63,698 Romance Languages, Literatures, and Linguistics (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $45,358 Year 2: $49,136 Year 3: $60,608 Political Science and Government (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $49,507 Year 2: $52,941 Year 3: $57,352 International Relations and National Security Studies (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $44,905 Year 2: $55,964 Year 3: $55,173	Accounting and Related Services (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $53,045 Year 3: $57,439 Business Administration, Management and Operations (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $43,169 Year 2: $44,542 Year 3: $50,519 Biology, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $32,119 Year 3: $48,234 Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Levels and Methods (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $38,721 Year 3: $41,814 Communication and Media Studies (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $36,848 Year 3: $40,707 Health and Physical Education/Fitness (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $32,925 Year 3: $37,077 Sociology (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $31,314 Year 3: $33,927 Mathematics (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $46,790 Year 3: N/A Psychology, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $25,194 Year 3: N/A Allied Health Diagnostic, Intervention, and Treatment Professions (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $21,508 Year 3: N/A

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