College of the Holy Cross vs Xavier University

College of the Holy Cross and Xavier University, both esteemed institutions of higher learning, offer distinct educational experiences. Holy Cross, a Jesuit college in Worcester, Massachusetts, boasts a lower acceptance rate (33%) compared to Xavier's (69%) in Cincinnati, Ohio. Holy Cross students predominantly pursue degrees in the social sciences, humanities, and STEM fields, while Xavier's curriculum emphasizes business, health professions, and education. Holy Cross' student body is slightly larger, with an undergraduate population of 2,900 compared to Xavier's 4,200. Both universities boast impressive graduation rates, with Holy Cross at 93% and Xavier at 83%. Explore the detailed comparison table below to discover more about these institutions' similarities and differences, and make an informed decision about which one aligns best with your academic aspirations and personal preferences.
College of the Holy Cross logo

College of the Holy Cross

Xavier University logo

Xavier University

Overview

Location Worcester, Massachusetts Cincinnati, Ohio
Campus setting City: Midsize City: Large
College type 4 year 4 year
Control/business model Private (Non Profit) Private (Non Profit)
Calendar system Semester Semester
Degrees offered Undergraduate Undergraduate and Graduate
Students retention rate 96.0% 83.0%
Common app member Yes Yes
Religious affiliation Catholic Catholic

Admission

Acceptance rate 42.9% 84.0%
Application fees $60
SAT range 1240 - 1420 1090 - 1280
ACT range 28 - 32 22 - 28
Students submitting SAT score 40.0% 16.0%
Students submitting ACT score 19.0% 45.0%
Total number of applicants 6,498 15,199
Total number of admissions given out 2,786 12,770
Admitted students who chose to enroll 821 1,185
Yield rate 29.5% 9.3%
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 Not required

Tuition and Fees

Sticker price $74,520 $60,540
Average net price $29,198 $32,370
Tuition $55,800 $42,230
Room & board
Room/dormitory: $8,800

Meal plan: $7,280
Room/dormitory: $7,520

Meal plan: $6,060
Available payment plans
  • Tuition payment plan
  • Tuition payment plan

Financial Aid

Students receiving financial aid

(Grants & scholarships)

63.0%
Average amount $33,661
100.0%
Average amount $26,824
Students receiving federal student loan 38.0%
Average amount $5,151
57.0%
Average amount $5,523
Students taking out private loans 13.0%
Average amount $2,342
14.0%
Average amount $16,270

Students and Campus

Undergraduate students 3,029
Men 45.6% Women 54.4%
5,139
Men 43.5% Women 56.5%
Graduate students N/A 1,493
Men 37.4% Women 62.6%
Racial/ethnic diversity
Low
Low
Out-of-state students N/A N/A
International students 3.1% 1.2%
Campus local/setting City: Midsize City: Large
Dormitory capacity 2,619 2,303
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
  • Biological and Biomedical Sciences
  • Physical Science
  • Social Sciences
  • Foreign Languages and Literatures
  • Visual & Performing Arts
  • Health Professions
  • Business
  • Education
  • Psychology
  • Liberal Arts
Students to faculty ratio 10:1 11:1
Institutional accreditation New England Commission on Higher Education Higher Learning Commission

Outcome

Graduation rate 92.6% 75.2%
Dropout rate 1.8% 24.3%
Transferred out 4.7% N/A
Alumni salary by major (Top 10)
Economics (Bachelor's Degrees)
  • Year 1: $61,612
  • Year 2: $66,519
  • Year 3: $81,782
Mathematics (Bachelor's Degrees)
  • Year 1: $50,599
  • Year 2: $52,733
  • Year 3: $72,640
Romance Languages, Literatures, and Linguistics (Bachelor's Degrees)
  • Year 1: $34,229
  • Year 2: $42,682
  • Year 3: $60,341
English Language and Literature, General (Bachelor's Degrees)
  • Year 1: $31,588
  • Year 2: $44,590
  • Year 3: $59,114
Political Science and Government (Bachelor's Degrees)
  • Year 1: $44,436
  • Year 2: $46,357
  • Year 3: $58,346
History (Bachelor's Degrees)
  • Year 1: $43,146
  • Year 2: $42,363
  • Year 3: $57,920
Multi/Interdisciplinary Studies, Other (Bachelor's Degrees)
  • Year 1: $40,425
  • Year 2: $42,309
  • Year 3: $54,005
Biology, General (Bachelor's Degrees)
  • Year 1: $36,352
  • Year 2: $38,289
  • Year 3: $50,696
Chemistry (Bachelor's Degrees)
  • Year 1: $41,359
  • Year 2: $45,175
  • Year 3: $49,457
Sociology (Bachelor's Degrees)
  • Year 1: $34,474
  • Year 2: $42,458
  • Year 3: $47,527
Business Administration, Management and Operations (Master's Degrees)
  • Year 1: $83,035
  • Year 2: $84,284
  • Year 3: $93,915
Health and Medical Administrative Services (Master's Degrees)
  • Year 1: $68,868
  • Year 2: $70,456
  • Year 3: $78,925
Finance and Financial Management Services (Master's Degrees)
  • Year 1: $73,760
  • Year 2: $78,971
  • Year 3: $75,573
Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Master's Degrees)
  • Year 1: $72,036
  • Year 2: $66,653
  • Year 3: $74,949
Human Resources Management and Services (Master's Degrees)
  • Year 1: N/A
  • Year 2: $67,660
  • Year 3: $69,641
Rehabilitation and Therapeutic Professions (Master's Degrees)
  • Year 1: $65,433
  • Year 2: $65,956
  • Year 3: $68,481
Accounting and Related Services (Bachelor's Degrees)
  • Year 1: $54,403
  • Year 2: $57,318
  • Year 3: $63,851
Finance and Financial Management Services (Bachelor's Degrees)
  • Year 1: $53,018
  • Year 2: $49,918
  • Year 3: $62,881
Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Bachelor's Degrees)
  • Year 1: $58,980
  • Year 2: $57,115
  • Year 3: $59,905
Human Resources Management and Services (Bachelor's Degrees)
  • Year 1: $41,518
  • Year 2: $49,468
  • Year 3: $57,319

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.
College of the Holy Cross College of the Holy Cross vs Colorado College Colorado College
College of the Holy Cross College of the Holy Cross vs Fairfield University Fairfield University
College of the Holy Cross College of the Holy Cross vs Trinity College Trinity College
College of the Holy Cross College of the Holy Cross vs Loyola University Chicago Loyola University Chicago
College of the Holy Cross College of the Holy Cross vs Principia College Principia College
College of the Holy Cross College of the Holy Cross vs Wheaton College Wheaton College
College of the Holy Cross College of the Holy Cross vs University of Notre Dame University of Notre Dame
College of the Holy Cross College of the Holy Cross vs Loyola University Maryland Loyola University Maryland
College of the Holy Cross College of the Holy Cross vs Boston College Boston College
College of the Holy Cross College of the Holy Cross vs Emmanuel College Emmanuel College
College of the Holy Cross College of the Holy Cross vs Endicott College Endicott College
College of the Holy Cross College of the Holy Cross vs Stonehill College Stonehill College
College of the Holy Cross College of the Holy Cross vs Hillsdale College Hillsdale College
College of the Holy Cross College of the Holy Cross vs Macalester College Macalester College
College of the Holy Cross College of the Holy Cross vs St Olaf College St Olaf College
College of the Holy Cross College of the Holy Cross vs Saint Peter's University Saint Peter's University
College of the Holy Cross College of the Holy Cross vs Canisius College Canisius College
College of the Holy Cross College of the Holy Cross vs Iona College Iona College
College of the Holy Cross College of the Holy Cross vs Le Moyne College Le Moyne College
College of the Holy Cross College of the Holy Cross vs Manhattan College Manhattan College
College of the Holy Cross College of the Holy Cross vs Niagara University Niagara University
College of the Holy Cross College of the Holy Cross vs St Lawrence University St Lawrence University
College of the Holy Cross College of the Holy Cross vs Siena College Siena College
College of the Holy Cross College of the Holy Cross vs SUNY College at Geneseo SUNY College at Geneseo
College of the Holy Cross College of the Holy Cross vs Xavier University Xavier University
College of the Holy Cross College of the Holy Cross vs Duquesne University Duquesne University
College of the Holy Cross College of the Holy Cross vs Franklin and Marshall College Franklin and Marshall College
College of the Holy Cross College of the Holy Cross vs Gettysburg College Gettysburg College
College of the Holy Cross College of the Holy Cross vs La Salle University La Salle University
College of the Holy Cross College of the Holy Cross vs Saint Joseph's University Saint Joseph's University
College of the Holy Cross College of the Holy Cross vs Villanova University Villanova University
College of the Holy Cross College of the Holy Cross vs Salve Regina University Salve Regina University
College of the Holy Cross College of the Holy Cross vs Furman University Furman University
College of the Holy Cross College of the Holy Cross vs Rhodes College Rhodes College
College of the Holy Cross College of the Holy Cross vs Saint Michael's College Saint Michael's College
College of the Holy Cross College of the Holy Cross vs University of Richmond University of Richmond
College of the Holy Cross College of the Holy Cross vs Gonzaga University Gonzaga University
College of the Holy Cross College of the Holy Cross vs Marquette University Marquette University
Xavier University Xavier University vs University of California-Berkeley University of California-Berkeley
Xavier University Xavier University vs Loyola Marymount University Loyola Marymount University
Xavier University Xavier University vs Georgetown University Georgetown University
Xavier University Xavier University vs The University of Tampa The University of Tampa
Xavier University Xavier University vs Emory University Emory University
Xavier University Xavier University vs Bradley University Bradley University
Xavier University Xavier University vs Loyola University Chicago Loyola University Chicago
Xavier University Xavier University vs Northwestern University Northwestern University
Xavier University Xavier University vs Saint Xavier University Saint Xavier University
Xavier University Xavier University vs Butler University Butler University
Xavier University Xavier University vs University of Evansville University of Evansville
Xavier University Xavier University vs University of Indianapolis University of Indianapolis
Xavier University Xavier University vs Marian University Marian University
Xavier University Xavier University vs Indiana Wesleyan University-Marion Indiana Wesleyan University-Marion
Xavier University Xavier University vs University of Notre Dame University of Notre Dame
Xavier University Xavier University vs Valparaiso University Valparaiso University
Xavier University Xavier University vs Johns Hopkins University Johns Hopkins University
Xavier University Xavier University vs Loyola University Maryland Loyola University Maryland
Xavier University Xavier University vs Boston College Boston College
Xavier University Xavier University vs Harvard University Harvard University
Xavier University Xavier University vs Massachusetts Institute of Technology Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Xavier University Xavier University vs Andrews University Andrews University
Xavier University Xavier University vs Lawrence Technological University Lawrence Technological University
Xavier University Xavier University vs Creighton University Creighton University
Xavier University Xavier University vs Duke University Duke University
Xavier University Xavier University vs University of Dayton University of Dayton
Xavier University Xavier University vs John Carroll University John Carroll University
Xavier University Xavier University vs Otterbein University Otterbein University
Xavier University Xavier University vs La Salle University La Salle University
Xavier University Xavier University vs University of Scranton University of Scranton
Xavier University Xavier University vs Villanova University Villanova University
Xavier University Xavier University vs Widener University Widener University
Xavier University Xavier University vs Vanderbilt University Vanderbilt University
Xavier University Xavier University vs University of the Incarnate Word University of the Incarnate Word
Xavier University Xavier University vs Rice University Rice University
Xavier University Xavier University vs University of Virginia-Main Campus University of Virginia-Main Campus
Xavier University Xavier University vs Gonzaga University Gonzaga University
Xavier University Xavier University vs Seattle Pacific University Seattle Pacific University
Xavier University Xavier University vs Seattle University Seattle University
Xavier University Xavier University vs Stanford University Stanford University
Xavier University Xavier University vs University of North Texas at Dallas University of North Texas at Dallas