Grinnell College vs Northwestern College

Grinnell College and Northwestern College, both esteemed institutions of higher learning, offer distinct educational experiences. Grinnell, a private liberal arts college in Iowa, boasts a highly selective admissions process with an acceptance rate of 20%, while Northwestern, a private Christian college in Minnesota, maintains a more open admissions policy with an acceptance rate of 90%. Grinnell's student body is diverse, with 48% identifying as students of color, while Northwestern's student body is predominantly White, with students of color comprising 18% of the population. Both colleges offer a range of popular majors, with Grinnell excelling in the social sciences and humanities, and Northwestern specializing in business, education, and nursing. With graduation rates of 84% and 65% respectively, both institutions are committed to student success. Explore the detailed comparison table to discover more about these colleges and determine which one aligns best with your academic aspirations and personal preferences.

	Grinnell College	Northwestern College
Overview
Location	Grinnell, Iowa	Orange City, Iowa
Campus setting	Town: Remote	Town: Distant
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	93.0%	83.0%
Common app member	Yes	No
Religious affiliation		Protestant

Admission
Acceptance rate	10.5%	83.0%
Application fees
SAT range	1370 - 1530	940 - 1240
ACT range	30 - 34	20 - 27
Students submitting SAT score	29.0%	8.0%
Students submitting ACT score	33.0%	82.0%
Total number of applicants	10,513	1,172
Total number of admissions given out	1,108	973
Admitted students who chose to enroll	471	268
Yield rate	42.5%	27.5%
Test scores (SAT/ACT)	N/A	N/A
High school GPA	Not required	Not required
Recommendation letters	Required	Not required
High school transcript	Not required	Not required
English proficiency test (e.g. TOEFL)	Required	Required

Tuition and Fees
Sticker price	$76,098	$47,650
Average net price	$37,423	$24,848
Tuition	$58,156	$33,350
Room & board	Room/dormitory: $6,779 Meal plan: $7,572	$10,000
Available payment plans	Tuition payment plan	Prepaid tuition plan Tuition payment plan

Financial Aid
Students receiving financial aid (Grants & scholarships)	100.0% Average amount $35,821	100.0% Average amount $21,873
Students receiving federal student loan	36.0% Average amount $3,952	69.0% Average amount $5,257
Students taking out private loans	12.0% Average amount $5,903	21.0% Average amount $10,813

Students and Campus
Undergraduate students	1,748 Men 47.5% Women 52.5%	1,053 Men 48.7% Women 51.3%
Graduate students	N/A	460 Men 24.3% Women 75.7%
Racial/ethnic diversity	Low	Very Low
Out-of-state students	91.5%	N/A
International students	19.4%	2.2%
Campus local/setting	Town: Remote	Town: Distant
Dormitory capacity	1,450	995
First year students are required to live on campus?	Yes	No
Top 5 states where most U.S. students come from	California Illinois Iowa Minnesota Texas	N/A

Academics
Popular study areas	Social Sciences Foreign Languages and Literatures Physical Science Visual & Performing Arts Computer and Information Science	Education Health Professions Biological and Biomedical Sciences Business Visual & Performing Arts
Students to faculty ratio	9:1	12:1
Institutional accreditation	Higher Learning Commission	Higher Learning Commission

Outcome
Graduation rate	86.9%	70.8%
Dropout rate	12.9%	6.5%
Transferred out	N/A	22.7%
Alumni salary by major (Top 10)	Economics (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $56,661 Year 2: $52,941 Year 3: $55,487 Political Science and Government (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $31,893 Year 2: $34,704 Year 3: $49,481 English Language and Literature, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $20,499 Year 2: $29,141 Year 3: $41,882 Sociology (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $27,517 Year 2: $33,993 Year 3: $40,572 Psychology, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $26,353 Year 3: $37,882 Ethnic, Cultural Minority, Gender, and Group Studies (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $21,508 Year 3: $37,613 Romance Languages, Literatures, and Linguistics (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $23,718 Year 2: $19,227 Year 3: $29,237 Fine and Studio Arts (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $20,140 Year 3: $28,680 Computer Science (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $70,658 Year 2: $91,744 Year 3: N/A Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and Humanities (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $29,239 Year 2: N/A Year 3: N/A	Educational Administration and Supervision (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $55,719 Year 2: N/A Year 3: N/A Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Levels and Methods (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $37,017 Year 2: N/A Year 3: N/A Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Levels and Methods (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $49,993 Year 2: N/A Year 3: N/A Biology, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $20,925 Year 2: N/A Year 3: N/A Health and Physical Education/Fitness (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $33,080 Year 2: N/A Year 3: N/A Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $59,227 Year 2: $61,516 Year 3: N/A Business Administration, Management and Operations (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $38,185 Year 2: $41,193 Year 3: N/A

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Grinnell College vs Northwestern College

Grinnell College

Northwestern College

Overview

Admission

Tuition and Fees

Financial Aid

Students and Campus

Academics

Outcome

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