Eckerd College vs Ave Maria

Eckerd College and Ave Maria University, two distinct institutions of higher learning, offer unique educational experiences to their students. Eckerd College, a private liberal arts college in St. Petersburg, Florida, boasts a diverse student body and a strong focus on environmental studies and marine science. In contrast, Ave Maria University, a private Catholic university in Ave Maria, Florida, emphasizes a classical liberal arts education rooted in the Catholic intellectual tradition. While both institutions offer a range of undergraduate and graduate programs, they differ in their acceptance rates, popular majors, student body demographics, and graduation rates. Explore the comprehensive comparison table below to discover which university aligns best with your academic aspirations and personal preferences.

	Ave Maria University	Eckerd College
Overview
Location	Ave Maria, Florida	Saint Petersburg, Florida
Campus setting	Rural: Distant	City: Large
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
Students retention rate	76.0%	81.0%
Common app member	Yes	Yes
Religious affiliation	Catholic	Presbyterian

Admission
Acceptance rate	64.0%	70.4%
Application fees		$40
SAT range	N/A	N/A
ACT range	N/A	N/A
Students submitting SAT score
Students submitting ACT score
Total number of applicants	3,705	5,580
Total number of admissions given out	2,373	3,927
Admitted students who chose to enroll	377	650
Yield rate	15.9%	16.6%
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	$41,977	$65,636
Average net price	$18,643	$37,494
Tuition	$23,521	$47,044
Room & board	Room/dormitory: $7,562 Meal plan: $5,528	Room/dormitory: $7,052 Meal plan: $6,430
Available payment plans	Prepaid tuition plan Tuition payment plan	Tuition payment plan

Financial Aid
Students receiving financial aid (Grants & scholarships)	100.0% Average amount $21,230	99.0% Average amount $27,244
Students receiving federal student loan	55.0% Average amount $5,696	52.0% Average amount $5,157
Students taking out private loans	9.0% Average amount $11,852	13.0% Average amount $22,106

Students and Campus
Undergraduate students	1,259 Men 45.1% Women 54.9%	2,036 Men 30.4% Women 69.6%
Graduate students	43 Men 69.8% Women 30.2%	N/A
Racial/ethnic diversity	Low	Low
Out-of-state students	N/A	83.2%
International students	1.3%	3.8%
Campus local/setting	Rural: Distant	City: Large
Dormitory capacity	1,244	1,760
First year students are required to live on campus?	No	No
Top 5 states where most U.S. students come from	N/A	Florida New Jersey New York Pennsylvania Texas

Academics
Popular study areas	Health Professions Business Theology Social Sciences Education	Biological and Biomedical Sciences Social Sciences Foreign Languages and Literatures Business Psychology
Students to faculty ratio	18:1	12:1
Institutional accreditation	Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges	Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges

Outcome
Graduation rate	60.9%	68.2%
Dropout rate	39.1%	29.8%
Transferred out	N/A	N/A
Alumni salary by major (Top 10)	Business Administration, Management and Operations (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $32,648 Year 2: $33,993 Year 3: $36,766 Biology, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $29,250 Year 3: $34,401 Psychology, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $26,800 Year 2: $30,988 Year 3: $30,767 Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and Humanities (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $31,762 Year 2: N/A Year 3: N/A Theological and Ministerial Studies (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $31,775 Year 2: $28,598 Year 3: N/A Economics (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $48,041 Year 3: N/A	Business Administration, Management and Operations (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $61,218 Year 3: $60,577 Business/Commerce, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $32,708 Year 3: $48,571 Psychology, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $25,169 Year 2: $28,816 Year 3: $35,583 Research and Experimental Psychology (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $28,555 Year 2: $28,960 Year 3: $32,408 Biology, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $21,909 Year 2: $22,268 Year 3: $27,862 Ecology, Evolution, Systematics, and Population Biology (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $22,542 Year 2: $22,814 Year 3: $25,771 Natural Resources Conservation and Research (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $21,172 Year 2: $20,322 Year 3: $25,523 Romance Languages, Literatures, and Linguistics (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $25,596 Year 3: $24,653 Communication and Media Studies (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $32,382 Year 3: N/A Computer Science (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $47,260 Year 3: N/A

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