Colgate University vs Oberlin College

Colgate University and Oberlin College, both esteemed liberal arts institutions, offer distinct educational experiences. Colgate, nestled in the picturesque village of Hamilton, New York, boasts a lower acceptance rate (13%) compared to Oberlin's (33%). While Colgate's student body is predominantly White (68%), Oberlin's is more diverse, with a significant population of international students (13%). Both institutions excel in academics, with Colgate's popular majors including Economics, Biology, and Political Science, while Oberlin's strengths lie in Comparative Literature, Music, and Environmental Studies. Colgate's higher graduation rate (92%) indicates a strong commitment to student success. To help you make an informed decision, we've compiled a comprehensive comparison table highlighting key differences between these two exceptional colleges. Dive in to discover which one aligns best with your academic aspirations and personal preferences.
Colgate University logo

Colgate University

Oberlin College logo

Oberlin College

Overview

Location Hamilton, New York Oberlin, Ohio
Campus setting Town: Distant Town: Fringe
College type 4 year 4 year
Control/business model Private (Non Profit) Private (Non Profit)
Calendar system Semester 4-1-4
Degrees offered Undergraduate and Graduate Undergraduate and Graduate
Students retention rate 93.0% 91.0%
Common app member Yes Yes
Religious affiliation

Admission

Acceptance rate 17.2% 34.3%
Application fees
Undergraduate: $60

Graduate: $50
Undergraduate: $100

Graduate: $100
SAT range 1350 - 1500 1338 - 1460
ACT range 32 - 34 30 - 34
Students submitting SAT score 29.0% 34.0%
Students submitting ACT score 21.0% 22.0%
Total number of applicants 17,540 10,597
Total number of admissions given out 3,015 3,639
Admitted students who chose to enroll 887 864
Yield rate 29.4% 23.7%
Test scores (SAT/ACT) N/A N/A
High school GPA Required Required
Recommendation letters Required Required
High school transcript Not required Not required
English proficiency test (e.g. TOEFL) Required Not required

Tuition and Fees

Sticker price $80,160 $73,914
Average net price $24,500 $44,689
Tuition $61,594 $59,384
Room & board
Room/dormitory: $7,496

Meal plan: $8,028
Room/dormitory: $8,858

Meal plan: $8,996
Available payment plans
  • Prepaid tuition plan
  • Tuition payment plan
  • Tuition payment plan

Financial Aid

Students receiving financial aid

(Grants & scholarships)

41.0%
Average amount $53,718
93.0%
Average amount $34,607
Students receiving federal student loan 11.0%
Average amount $4,253
34.0%
Average amount $5,142
Students taking out private loans 3.0%
Average amount $34,492
4.0%
Average amount $4,519

Students and Campus

Undergraduate students 3,164
Men 45.0% Women 55.0%
2,942
Men 41.6% Women 58.4%
Graduate students 12
Men 41.7% Women 58.3%
11
Men 72.7% Women 27.3%
Racial/ethnic diversity
Low
Low
Out-of-state students 75.2% N/A
International students 8.8% 11.1%
Campus local/setting Town: Distant Town: Fringe
Dormitory capacity 2,972 2,694
First year students are required to live on campus? Yes No
Top 5 states where most U.S. students come from New York New Jersey Connecticut California Pennsylvania N/A

Academics

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

Outcome

Graduation rate 90.3% 82.3%
Dropout rate 2.8% 17.3%
Transferred out 6.7% N/A
Alumni salary by major (Top 10)
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
Computer and Information Sciences, General (Bachelor's Degrees)
  • Year 1: $70,028
  • Year 2: $76,460
  • Year 3: $101,858
Economics (Bachelor's Degrees)
  • Year 1: $57,721
  • Year 2: $41,205
  • Year 3: $56,067
Natural Resources Conservation and Research (Bachelor's Degrees)
  • Year 1: $21,275
  • Year 2: $21,508
  • Year 3: $32,173
English Language and Literature, General (Bachelor's Degrees)
  • Year 1: N/A
  • Year 2: $19,045
  • Year 3: $28,960
Area Studies (Bachelor's Degrees)
  • Year 1: $19,436
  • Year 2: $16,345
  • Year 3: $26,082
Drama/Theatre Arts and Stagecraft (Bachelor's Degrees)
  • Year 1: N/A
  • Year 2: $22,771
  • Year 3: $22,024
Music (Bachelor's Degrees)
  • Year 1: $20,910
  • Year 2: $19,531
  • Year 3: $19,799
History (Bachelor's Degrees)
  • Year 1: $28,902
  • Year 2: N/A
  • Year 3: N/A
Fine and Studio Arts (Bachelor's Degrees)
  • Year 1: $16,622
  • Year 2: $18,771
  • Year 3: N/A
Film/Video and Photographic Arts (Bachelor's Degrees)
  • Year 1: N/A
  • Year 2: $16,992
  • Year 3: N/A

Compare Similar Colleges

The list of suggested college comparisons provided below is generated automatically by our system, utilizing statistics gathered from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) and various online sources. If you don't find the colleges you wish to compare, please visit our comparison page. There, you can search for the specific colleges and initiate your comparison.
Colgate University Colgate University vs Colorado College Colorado College
Colgate University Colgate University vs Connecticut College Connecticut College
Colgate University Colgate University vs Trinity College Trinity College
Colgate University Colgate University vs Wesleyan University Wesleyan University
Colgate University Colgate University vs Georgetown University Georgetown University
Colgate University Colgate University vs University of Miami University of Miami
Colgate University Colgate University vs Emory University Emory University
Colgate University Colgate University vs Principia College Principia College
Colgate University Colgate University vs Butler University Butler University
Colgate University Colgate University vs University of Notre Dame University of Notre Dame
Colgate University Colgate University vs Tulane University of Louisiana Tulane University of Louisiana
Colgate University Colgate University vs Bates College Bates College
Colgate University Colgate University vs Bowdoin College Bowdoin College
Colgate University Colgate University vs Colby College Colby College
Colgate University Colgate University vs Boston College Boston College
Colgate University Colgate University vs Harvard University Harvard University
Colgate University Colgate University vs College of the Holy Cross College of the Holy Cross
Colgate University Colgate University vs Massachusetts Institute of Technology Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Colgate University Colgate University vs Hillsdale College Hillsdale College
Colgate University Colgate University vs Macalester College Macalester College
Colgate University Colgate University vs St Olaf College St Olaf College
Colgate University Colgate University vs Siena College Siena College
Colgate University Colgate University vs Skidmore College Skidmore College
Colgate University Colgate University vs SUNY College at Geneseo SUNY College at Geneseo
Colgate University Colgate University vs United States Military Academy United States Military Academy
Colgate University Colgate University vs Elon University Elon University
Colgate University Colgate University vs Oberlin College Oberlin College
Colgate University Colgate University vs Dickinson College Dickinson College
Colgate University Colgate University vs Gettysburg College Gettysburg College
Colgate University Colgate University vs Villanova University Villanova University
Colgate University Colgate University vs Furman University Furman University
Colgate University Colgate University vs The University of the South The University of the South
Colgate University Colgate University vs Stanford University Stanford University
Oberlin College Oberlin College vs Occidental College Occidental College
Oberlin College Oberlin College vs Pomona College Pomona College
Oberlin College Oberlin College vs Scripps College Scripps College
Oberlin College Oberlin College vs Connecticut College Connecticut College
Oberlin College Oberlin College vs Trinity College Trinity College
Oberlin College Oberlin College vs Wesleyan University Wesleyan University
Oberlin College Oberlin College vs Lake Forest College Lake Forest College
Oberlin College Oberlin College vs Butler University Butler University
Oberlin College Oberlin College vs DePauw University DePauw University
Oberlin College Oberlin College vs Earlham College Earlham College
Oberlin College Oberlin College vs Wabash College Wabash College
Oberlin College Oberlin College vs Grinnell College Grinnell College
Oberlin College Oberlin College vs Bates College Bates College
Oberlin College Oberlin College vs Colby College Colby College
Oberlin College Oberlin College vs Hampshire College Hampshire College
Oberlin College Oberlin College vs College of the Holy Cross College of the Holy Cross
Oberlin College Oberlin College vs Mount Holyoke College Mount Holyoke College
Oberlin College Oberlin College vs Smith College Smith College
Oberlin College Oberlin College vs Wellesley College Wellesley College
Oberlin College Oberlin College vs Williams College Williams College
Oberlin College Oberlin College vs Hillsdale College Hillsdale College
Oberlin College Oberlin College vs Kalamazoo College Kalamazoo College
Oberlin College Oberlin College vs Carleton College Carleton College
Oberlin College Oberlin College vs Macalester College Macalester College
Oberlin College Oberlin College vs St Olaf College St Olaf College
Oberlin College Oberlin College vs Millsaps College Millsaps College
Oberlin College Oberlin College vs Bard College Bard College
Oberlin College Oberlin College vs Hamilton College Hamilton College
Oberlin College Oberlin College vs Sarah Lawrence College Sarah Lawrence College
Oberlin College Oberlin College vs Skidmore College Skidmore College
Oberlin College Oberlin College vs Union College Union College
Oberlin College Oberlin College vs Vassar College Vassar College
Oberlin College Oberlin College vs Davidson College Davidson College
Oberlin College Oberlin College vs Kenyon College Kenyon College
Oberlin College Oberlin College vs Ohio Wesleyan University Ohio Wesleyan University
Oberlin College Oberlin College vs Ursuline College Ursuline College
Oberlin College Oberlin College vs Wittenberg University Wittenberg University
Oberlin College Oberlin College vs The College of Wooster The College of Wooster
Oberlin College Oberlin College vs Lewis & Clark College Lewis & Clark College
Oberlin College Oberlin College vs Dickinson College Dickinson College
Oberlin College Oberlin College vs Franklin and Marshall College Franklin and Marshall College
Oberlin College Oberlin College vs Lafayette College Lafayette College
Oberlin College Oberlin College vs Furman University Furman University
Oberlin College Oberlin College vs Rhodes College Rhodes College
Oberlin College Oberlin College vs Trinity University Trinity University
Oberlin College Oberlin College vs Bennington College Bennington College
Oberlin College Oberlin College vs University of Richmond University of Richmond
Oberlin College Oberlin College vs Shenandoah University Shenandoah University
Oberlin College Oberlin College vs Lawrence University Lawrence University