Kalamazoo College vs Carleton College

Kalamazoo College and Carleton College, both highly regarded liberal arts institutions, offer distinct educational experiences. Kalamazoo, located in Michigan, boasts a higher acceptance rate (68%) compared to Carleton's selective admissions (22%). While Carleton's student body is slightly larger, both colleges share a commitment to small class sizes, ensuring personalized attention. Kalamazoo's popular majors include biology, business, and psychology, while Carleton students often pursue majors in economics, political science, and English. Both institutions boast impressive graduation rates, with Kalamazoo at 83% and Carleton at 93%. Explore the detailed comparison table to discover more about these colleges' unique strengths and determine which one aligns best with your academic aspirations and personal preferences.

	Carleton College	Kalamazoo College
Overview
Location	Northfield, Minnesota	Kalamazoo, Michigan
Campus setting	Town: Distant	City: Small
College type	4 year	4 year
Control/business model	Private (Non Profit)	Private (Non Profit)
Calendar system	Trimester	Quarter
Degrees offered	Undergraduate	Undergraduate
Students retention rate	95.0%	85.0%
Common app member	Yes	Yes
Religious affiliation

Admission
Acceptance rate	17.5%	79.6%
Application fees
SAT range	1408 - 1550	1160 - 1380
ACT range	31 - 35	24 - 30
Students submitting SAT score	35.0%	26.0%
Students submitting ACT score	34.0%	11.0%
Total number of applicants	7,915	3,350
Total number of admissions given out	1,389	2,666
Admitted students who chose to enroll	555	382
Yield rate	40.0%	14.3%
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	Required

Tuition and Fees
Sticker price	$78,315	$68,832
Average net price	$31,718	$27,395
Tuition	$59,850	$53,976
Room & board	Room/dormitory: $8,115 Meal plan: $7,260	Room/dormitory: $5,316 Meal plan: $5,916
Available payment plans	Tuition payment plan	Tuition payment plan

Financial Aid
Students receiving financial aid (Grants & scholarships)	65.0% Average amount $45,715	99.0% Average amount $40,208
Students receiving federal student loan	45.0% Average amount $3,914	32.0% Average amount $5,066
Students taking out private loans	2.0% Average amount $14,334	3.0% Average amount $13,150

Students and Campus
Undergraduate students	2,044 Men 48.7% Women 51.3%	1,241 Men 43.7% Women 56.3%
Graduate students	N/A	N/A
Racial/ethnic diversity	Moderate	Low
Out-of-state students	81.5%	N/A
International students	10.2%	5.2%
Campus local/setting	Town: Distant	City: Small
Dormitory capacity	1,854	834
First year students are required to live on campus?	Yes	No
Top 5 states where most U.S. students come from	Minnesota California Illinois New York Texas	N/A

Academics
Popular study areas	Physical Science Social Sciences Ethnic Studies Mathematics and Statistics Visual & Performing Arts	Social Sciences Foreign Languages and Literatures Psychology Visual & Performing Arts Ethnic Studies
Students to faculty ratio	8:1	10:1
Institutional accreditation	Higher Learning Commission	Higher Learning Commission

Outcome
Graduation rate	91.4%	76.4%
Dropout rate	8.3%	23.1%
Transferred out	N/A	N/A
Alumni salary by major (Top 10)	Computer Science (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $76,876 Year 2: $76,460 Year 3: $101,936 Economics (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $60,032 Year 2: N/A Year 3: $66,207 Biology, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $28,526 Year 2: $23,034 Year 3: $30,071 Area Studies (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $27,669 Year 2: N/A Year 3: N/A English Language and Literature, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $27,425 Year 2: $22,329 Year 3: N/A Mathematics (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $46,952 Year 2: $37,568 Year 3: N/A Chemistry (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $30,227 Year 2: $36,141 Year 3: N/A Geological and Earth Sciences/Geosciences (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $20,625 Year 2: N/A Year 3: N/A Physics (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $42,774 Year 3: N/A Psychology, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $31,301 Year 2: $33,719 Year 3: N/A	Business/Commerce, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $43,367 Year 2: $47,729 Year 3: $52,173 Psychology, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $21,169 Year 2: $22,920 Year 3: $42,343 English Language and Literature, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $31,536 Year 2: $20,140 Year 3: $39,152 Social Sciences, Other (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $27,345 Year 2: $31,038 Year 3: $31,277 Biology, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $21,784 Year 2: $19,045 Year 3: $30,710 Chemistry (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $28,535 Year 2: $41,565 Year 3: N/A Economics (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $34,802 Year 2: $55,964 Year 3: N/A Fine and Studio Arts (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $17,180 Year 2: N/A Year 3: N/A History (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $21,568 Year 2: N/A Year 3: N/A

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