Illinois Wesleyan University (IWU) vs Saint Ambrose University

Illinois Wesleyan University and Saint Ambrose University, both esteemed institutions of higher learning, offer distinct educational experiences. Illinois Wesleyan, a private liberal arts college, boasts a lower acceptance rate and a higher graduation rate compared to Saint Ambrose, a private Catholic university. While Illinois Wesleyan's student body is predominantly White, Saint Ambrose's student body is more diverse. Both universities offer a range of popular majors, including Business, Education, and Nursing, but Illinois Wesleyan has a stronger focus on the liberal arts. To help you make an informed decision about your academic journey, we've compiled a comprehensive comparison table highlighting key differences between these two universities. Explore the table to discover which institution aligns best with your academic aspirations and personal preferences.
Illinois Wesleyan University logo

Illinois Wesleyan University

Saint Ambrose University logo

Saint Ambrose University

Overview

Location Bloomington, Illinois Davenport, Iowa
Campus setting City: Small City: Midsize
College type 4 year 4 year
Control/business model Private (Non Profit) Private (Non Profit)
Calendar system 4-1-4 Semester
Degrees offered Undergraduate Undergraduate and Graduate
Students retention rate 85.0% 75.0%
Common app member Yes Yes
Religious affiliation Catholic

Admission

Acceptance rate 45.2% 72.4%
Application fees
SAT range 1110 - 1310 1030 - 1190
ACT range 24 - 29 20 - 27
Students submitting SAT score 33.0% 21.0%
Students submitting ACT score 31.0% 34.0%
Total number of applicants 4,543 4,005
Total number of admissions given out 2,055 2,900
Admitted students who chose to enroll 432 493
Yield rate 21.0% 17.0%
Test scores (SAT/ACT) N/A N/A
High school GPA Not required 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 $67,124 $51,924
Average net price $30,610 $24,844
Tuition $52,308 $33,290
Room & board
Room/dormitory: $7,584

Meal plan: $4,528
Room/dormitory: $7,196

Meal plan: $4,442
Available payment plans
  • Tuition payment plan
  • Tuition payment plan

Financial Aid

Students receiving financial aid

(Grants & scholarships)

100.0%
Average amount $34,810
100.0%
Average amount $22,790
Students receiving federal student loan 68.0%
Average amount $5,692
70.0%
Average amount $5,278
Students taking out private loans 35.0%
Average amount $6,781
18.0%
Average amount $14,015

Students and Campus

Undergraduate students 1,653
Men 49.4% Women 50.6%
2,228
Men 45.3% Women 54.7%
Graduate students N/A 685
Men 27.7% Women 72.3%
Racial/ethnic diversity
Low
Low
Out-of-state students N/A 63.9%
International students 3.4% 2.0%
Campus local/setting City: Small City: Midsize
Dormitory capacity 1,308 1,688
First year students are required to live on campus? No No
Top 5 states where most U.S. students come from N/A Illinois Iowa California Missouri Indiana

Academics

Popular study areas
  • Business
  • Biological and Biomedical Sciences
  • Health Professions
  • Education
  • Visual & Performing Arts
  • Health Professions
  • Business
  • Kinesiology & Leisure Studies
  • Public Administration and Social Service
  • Education
Students to faculty ratio 12:1 12:1
Institutional accreditation Higher Learning Commission Higher Learning Commission

Outcome

Graduation rate 81.1% 64.4%
Dropout rate 18.7% 15.9%
Transferred out N/A 19.7%
Alumni salary by major (Top 10)
Finance and Financial Management Services (Bachelor's Degrees)
  • Year 1: $57,305
  • Year 2: $53,358
  • Year 3: $77,743
Accounting and Related Services (Bachelor's Degrees)
  • Year 1: $61,838
  • Year 2: $62,792
  • Year 3: $73,001
Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Bachelor's Degrees)
  • Year 1: $66,460
  • Year 2: $62,775
  • Year 3: $69,764
Business Administration, Management and Operations (Bachelor's Degrees)
  • Year 1: $45,302
  • Year 2: $50,356
  • Year 3: $56,336
Biology, General (Bachelor's Degrees)
  • Year 1: N/A
  • Year 2: $26,739
  • Year 3: $46,139
Psychology, General (Bachelor's Degrees)
  • Year 1: $32,272
  • Year 2: $31,314
  • Year 3: $39,988
Drama/Theatre Arts and Stagecraft (Bachelor's Degrees)
  • Year 1: $18,075
  • Year 2: $20,140
  • Year 3: $30,321
Economics (Bachelor's Degrees)
  • Year 1: N/A
  • Year 2: $61,516
  • Year 3: N/A
Music (Bachelor's Degrees)
  • Year 1: N/A
  • Year 2: $27,439
  • Year 3: N/A
Sociology (Bachelor's Degrees)
  • Year 1: N/A
  • Year 2: $36,674
  • Year 3: N/A
Business Administration, Management and Operations (Master's Degrees)
  • Year 1: $83,289
  • Year 2: $78,657
  • Year 3: $82,825
Rehabilitation and Therapeutic Professions (Master's Degrees)
  • Year 1: $67,136
  • Year 2: $66,287
  • Year 3: $68,203
Accounting and Related Services (Master's Degrees)
  • Year 1: $70,519
  • Year 2: $49,019
  • Year 3: $66,569
Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Bachelor's Degrees)
  • Year 1: $57,077
  • Year 2: $59,377
  • Year 3: $61,530
Business Administration, Management and Operations (Bachelor's Degrees)
  • Year 1: $57,766
  • Year 2: $50,856
  • Year 3: $54,838
Accounting and Related Services (Bachelor's Degrees)
  • Year 1: $45,000
  • Year 2: $48,432
  • Year 3: $54,578
Communication Disorders Sciences and Services (Master's Degrees)
  • Year 1: $54,715
  • Year 2: $53,358
  • Year 3: $54,557
Finance and Financial Management Services (Bachelor's Degrees)
  • Year 1: $43,428
  • Year 2: $47,260
  • Year 3: $53,324
Marketing (Bachelor's Degrees)
  • Year 1: $40,216
  • Year 2: $39,729
  • Year 3: $52,751
Criminal Justice and Corrections (Bachelor's Degrees)
  • Year 1: $36,037
  • Year 2: $31,133
  • Year 3: $52,398

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