Columbia College vs Cornell

Columbia College and Cornell University, both esteemed institutions of higher learning, offer distinct educational experiences. Columbia College, nestled in the heart of New York City, boasts a highly selective admissions process with an acceptance rate of 6.1%, while Cornell University, situated in the picturesque town of Ithaca, New York, offers a more accessible admissions process with an acceptance rate of 10.3%. Columbia College is known for its strengths in the humanities and social sciences, with popular majors including economics, political science, and English, while Cornell University excels in a wide range of fields, including engineering, agriculture, and business. Explore the detailed comparison table below to delve into further differences between these two prestigious universities, including student body demographics, graduation rates, and more, to determine which institution best aligns with your academic aspirations and personal preferences.

	Columbia College	Cornell University
Overview
Location	Columbia, South Carolina	Ithaca, New York
Campus setting	City: Midsize	City: Small
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 and Graduate
Students retention rate	54.0%	97.0%
Common app member	Yes	Yes
Religious affiliation	Methodism

Admission
Acceptance rate	98.6%	8.7%
Application fees		Undergraduate: $80 Graduate: $105
SAT range	N/A	1450 - 1560
ACT range	N/A	33 - 35
Students submitting SAT score		41.0%
Students submitting ACT score		20.0%
Total number of applicants	1,278	67,380
Total number of admissions given out	1,260	5,852
Admitted students who chose to enroll	210	3,718
Yield rate	16.7%	63.5%
Test scores (SAT/ACT)	N/A	N/A
High school GPA	Required	Not required
Recommendation letters	Not required	Required
High school transcript	Required	Not required
English proficiency test (e.g. TOEFL)	Required	Required

Tuition and Fees
Sticker price	$41,142	$80,287
Average net price	$20,520	$24,262
Tuition	$20,080	$60,286
Room & board	Room/dormitory: $4,120 Meal plan: $4,200	Room/dormitory: $9,962 Meal plan: $6,434
Available payment plans	Tuition payment plan

Financial Aid
Students receiving financial aid (Grants & scholarships)	98.0% Average amount $13,663	50.0% Average amount $52,674
Students receiving federal student loan	77.0% Average amount $6,081	26.0% Average amount $3,924
Students taking out private loans	3.0% Average amount $10,833	16.0% Average amount $8,357

Students and Campus
Undergraduate students	1,065 Men 15.2% Women 84.8%	15,503 Men 46.1% Women 53.9%
Graduate students	324 Men 12.7% Women 87.3%	10,079 Men 51.0% Women 49.0%
Racial/ethnic diversity	Moderate	Moderate
Out-of-state students	15.0%	64.3%
International students	0.6%	24.4%
Campus local/setting	City: Midsize	City: Small
Dormitory capacity	618	7,422
First year students are required to live on campus?	No	No
Top 5 states where most U.S. students come from	South Carolina Georgia Florida North Carolina Alabama	New York California New Jersey Florida Pennsylvania

Academics
Popular study areas	Education Law Enforcement and Firefighting Business Health Professions Liberal Arts	Business Engineering Agriculture Computer and Information Science Legal Profession
Students to faculty ratio	11:1	9:1
Institutional accreditation	Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges	Middle States Commission on Higher Education

Outcome
Graduation rate	54.4%	94.1%
Dropout rate	16.3%	5.2%
Transferred out	29.4%	N/A
Alumni salary by major (Top 10)	Computer and Information Sciences and Support Services, Other (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $46,087 Year 3: $51,609 Criminal Justice and Corrections (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $44,941 Year 2: N/A Year 3: $48,181 Business Administration, Management and Operations (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $42,123 Year 3: $42,584 Education, Other (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $40,920 Year 2: $40,792 Year 3: $41,966 Communication and Media Studies (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $31,802 Year 2: $33,993 Year 3: $40,157 Social Work (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $31,014 Year 2: $30,926 Year 3: $35,159 Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and Humanities (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $28,598 Year 3: $33,769 Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Levels and Methods (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $31,329 Year 2: $30,305 Year 3: $32,187 Behavioral Sciences (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $25,194 Year 3: $31,896 Psychology, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $27,946 Year 2: $22,192 Year 3: $27,013	Law (Doctoral Degrees) Year 1: $185,154 Year 2: $172,867 Year 3: $207,272 Business Administration, Management and Operations (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $150,786 Year 2: $145,332 Year 3: $167,695 Computer Science (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $127,764 Year 2: $122,485 Year 3: $158,076 Computer Science (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $147,241 Year 2: $127,397 Year 3: $155,653 Allied Health Diagnostic, Intervention, and Treatment Professions (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $114,311 Year 2: $111,926 Year 3: $126,082 Operations Research (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $101,067 Year 2: $109,763 Year 3: $124,590 Electrical, Electronics and Communications Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $88,459 Year 2: $92,277 Year 3: $109,597 Electrical, Electronics and Communications Engineering (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $105,672 Year 2: $97,071 Year 3: $109,553 Systems Engineering (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $95,847 Year 2: $94,408 Year 3: $107,658 Human Resources Management and Services (Master's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $101,072 Year 3: $106,693

Compare Similar Colleges

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Columbia College

University of California-Berkeley