Coe College vs St Olaf College

Coe College and St. Olaf College, both esteemed liberal arts institutions, offer distinct educational experiences. Coe, located in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, boasts a higher acceptance rate (75%) compared to St. Olaf's selective admissions (38%). While St. Olaf, nestled in Northfield, Minnesota, excels in the sciences, Coe shines in business and social sciences. St. Olaf's student body is predominantly white (83%) and female (57%), while Coe's student population is more diverse, with a higher percentage of male students (53%) and a larger international student body (10%). Both colleges boast impressive graduation rates, with St. Olaf's slightly higher at 86% compared to Coe's 82%. Explore the detailed comparison table below to discover more distinctions and determine which college aligns best with your academic aspirations and personal preferences.

	Coe College	St Olaf College
Overview
Location	Cedar Rapids, Iowa	Northfield, Minnesota
Campus setting	City: Midsize	Town: Distant
College type	4 year	4 year
Control/business model	Private (Non Profit)	Private (Non Profit)
Calendar system	Semester	4-1-4
Degrees offered	Undergraduate	Undergraduate
Students retention rate	74.0%	91.0%
Common app member	Yes	Yes
Religious affiliation	Presbyterian	Evangelical

Admission
Acceptance rate	72.7%	47.4%
Application fees	$30
SAT range	N/A	1240 - 1430
ACT range	N/A	28 - 33
Students submitting SAT score		16.0%
Students submitting ACT score		39.0%
Total number of applicants	6,997	6,494
Total number of admissions given out	5,084	3,080
Admitted students who chose to enroll	397	755
Yield rate	7.8%	24.5%
Test scores (SAT/ACT)	N/A	N/A
High school GPA	Required	Required
Recommendation letters	Not required	Required
High school transcript	Not required	Not required
English proficiency test (e.g. TOEFL)	Required	Required

Tuition and Fees
Sticker price	$63,012	$66,570
Average net price	$19,141	$27,729
Tuition	$48,472	$52,670
Room & board	Room/dormitory: $5,004 Meal plan: $5,516	Room/dormitory: $5,720 Meal plan: $6,280
Available payment plans	Tuition payment plan	Tuition payment plan

Financial Aid
Students receiving financial aid (Grants & scholarships)	100.0% Average amount $40,622	100.0% Average amount $37,281
Students receiving federal student loan	76.0% Average amount $5,579	49.0% Average amount $5,006
Students taking out private loans	20.0% Average amount $7,568	9.0% Average amount $15,087

Students and Campus
Undergraduate students	1,371 Men 43.5% Women 56.5%	2,988 Men 42.2% Women 57.8%
Graduate students	N/A	N/A
Racial/ethnic diversity	Low	Low
Out-of-state students	N/A	N/A
International students	3.5%	10.2%
Campus local/setting	City: Midsize	Town: Distant
Dormitory capacity	1,237	2,703
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	Health Professions Business Biological and Biomedical Sciences Visual & Performing Arts English Language and Literature	Social Sciences Ethnic Studies Foreign Languages and Literatures Mathematics and Statistics Visual & Performing Arts
Students to faculty ratio	9:1	12:1
Institutional accreditation	Higher Learning Commission	Higher Learning Commission

Outcome
Graduation rate	64.5%	85.0%
Dropout rate	35.3%	3.9%
Transferred out	N/A	11.0%
Alumni salary by major (Top 10)	Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $57,706 Year 2: $58,402 Year 3: $59,431 Business Administration, Management and Operations (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $42,141 Year 2: $42,458 Year 3: $52,979 Biology, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $29,685 Year 2: $36,560 Year 3: $45,245 Communication and Media Studies (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: N/A Year 3: $44,220 Health and Physical Education/Fitness (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $36,042 Year 3: $43,123 Public Relations, Advertising, and Applied Communication (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $38,344 Year 2: $37,568 Year 3: $42,265 Psychology, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $31,588 Year 2: $27,280 Year 3: $34,567 Computer Science (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $61,516 Year 3: N/A Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Levels and Methods (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $42,235 Year 3: N/A Romance Languages, Literatures, and Linguistics (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $29,685 Year 3: N/A	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

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