Claremont McKenna College vs Lafayette College

Claremont McKenna College and Lafayette College, both esteemed liberal arts institutions, offer distinct educational experiences. Claremont McKenna, nestled in the vibrant city of Claremont, California, boasts a highly selective admissions process with an acceptance rate of 13%, while Lafayette, situated in the historic town of Easton, Pennsylvania, maintains a slightly higher acceptance rate of 24%. Claremont McKenna's student body is more diverse, with international students comprising 14% of the population compared to Lafayette's 6%. In terms of academic offerings, Claremont McKenna excels in economics and political science, while Lafayette shines in engineering and psychology. Both colleges boast impressive graduation rates, with Claremont McKenna's at 93% and Lafayette's at 88%. To help you make an informed decision, we've compiled a comprehensive comparison table below, highlighting key differences between these two exceptional institutions.

	Claremont McKenna College	Lafayette College
Overview
Location	Claremont, California	Easton, Pennsylvania
Campus setting	Suburb: Large	Suburb: Large
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	98.0%	91.0%
Common app member	Yes	Yes
Religious affiliation		Presbyterian

Admission
Acceptance rate	11.2%	40.7%
Application fees	$70	$65
SAT range	1420 - 1530	1300 - 1460
ACT range	32 - 35	30 - 33
Students submitting SAT score	28.0%	28.0%
Students submitting ACT score	25.0%	13.0%
Total number of applicants	5,632	8,262
Total number of admissions given out	633	3,366
Admitted students who chose to enroll	358	782
Yield rate	56.6%	23.2%
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)	Not required	Required

Tuition and Fees
Sticker price	$79,347	$75,934
Average net price	$21,663	$38,754
Tuition	$57,876	$55,874
Room & board	Room/dormitory: $9,626 Meal plan: $8,280	Room/dormitory: $10,308 Meal plan: $6,362
Available payment plans	Tuition payment plan	Prepaid tuition plan Tuition payment plan

Financial Aid
Students receiving financial aid (Grants & scholarships)	65.0% Average amount $33,141	61.0% Average amount $34,668
Students receiving federal student loan	17.0% Average amount $3,535	26.0% Average amount $4,491
Students taking out private loans	22.0% Average amount $7,870	7.0% Average amount $23,831

Students and Campus
Undergraduate students	1,416 Men 49.2% Women 50.8%	2,725 Men 51.2% Women 48.8%
Graduate students	6 Men 66.7% Women 33.3%	N/A
Racial/ethnic diversity	Moderate	Low
Out-of-state students	52.1%	82.6%
International students	15.5%	7.8%
Campus local/setting	Suburb: Large	Suburb: Large
Dormitory capacity	1,354	2,510
First year students are required to live on campus?	No	Yes
Top 5 states where most U.S. students come from	California New York Washington Texas Colorado	New Jersey New York Pennsylvania Mississippi Connecticut

Academics
Popular study areas	Social Sciences Biological and Biomedical Sciences Business Psychology Computer and Information Science	Engineering Biological and Biomedical Sciences Social Sciences Physical Science Visual & Performing Arts
Students to faculty ratio	8:1	10:1
Institutional accreditation	Western Association of Schools and Colleges Senior Colleges and University Commission	Middle States Commission on Higher Education

Outcome
Graduation rate	92.7%	87.9%
Dropout rate	7.3%	2.5%
Transferred out	N/A	9.6%
Alumni salary by major (Top 10)	Economics (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $95,566 Year 2: $87,754 Year 3: $91,488 Political Science and Government (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $41,025 Year 3: N/A Finance and Financial Management Services (Master's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $100,075 Year 3: N/A	Chemical Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $64,532 Year 2: $68,379 Year 3: $80,306 Civil Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $67,033 Year 2: $65,238 Year 3: $78,021 Electrical, Electronics and Communications Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $77,247 Year 2: $71,575 Year 3: $76,714 Mechanical Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $67,784 Year 2: $65,486 Year 3: $76,536 Engineering, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $67,714 Year 2: $72,403 Year 3: $75,320 Economics (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $63,927 Year 2: $58,943 Year 3: $72,455 International Relations and National Security Studies (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $47,229 Year 2: $48,198 Year 3: $60,266 Political Science and Government (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $46,408 Year 2: $44,468 Year 3: $57,092 English Language and Literature, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $37,680 Year 2: $32,391 Year 3: $50,156 Psychology, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $44,170 Year 3: $48,201

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