Macalester College vs Berea College

Macalester College and Berea College, both esteemed liberal arts institutions, offer distinct educational experiences. Macalester, located in Saint Paul, Minnesota, boasts a diverse student body with a strong international presence, while Berea, nestled in Berea, Kentucky, stands out for its commitment to affordability and its work-study program. With acceptance rates of 29% and 48%, respectively, these colleges attract academically talented students seeking a well-rounded education. While Macalester's popular majors include Economics, Political Science, and Biology, Berea's strengths lie in Nursing, Business Administration, and Social Work. Explore the comprehensive comparison table to delve into further details about these colleges, including graduation rates, financial aid opportunities, and campus life, to determine which institution aligns best with your academic aspirations and personal preferences.

	Berea College	Macalester College
Overview
Location	Berea, Kentucky	Saint Paul, Minnesota
Campus setting	Town: Distant	City: Large
College type	4 year	4 year
Control/business model	Private (Non Profit)	Private (Non Profit)
Calendar system	Semester	Semester
Degrees offered	Undergraduate	Undergraduate
Students retention rate	84.0%	96.0%
Common app member	No	No
Religious affiliation		Presbyterian

Admission
Acceptance rate	33.0%	31.3%
Application fees		$40
SAT range	1118 - 1268	1340 - 1515
ACT range	23 - 28	29 - 33
Students submitting SAT score	8.0%	35.0%
Students submitting ACT score	46.0%	39.0%
Total number of applicants	1,736	9,046
Total number of admissions given out	573	2,828
Admitted students who chose to enroll	338	601
Yield rate	59.0%	21.3%
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	$54,396	$76,357
Average net price	$3,354	$30,939
Tuition	$42,900	$60,288
Room & board	Room/dormitory: $3,886 Meal plan: $3,598	Room/dormitory: $7,272 Meal plan: $6,270
Available payment plans		Tuition payment plan

Financial Aid
Students receiving financial aid (Grants & scholarships)	100.0% Average amount $52,253	87.0% Average amount $42,832
Students receiving federal student loan	4.0% Average amount $3,016	39.0% Average amount $4,799
Students taking out private loans	2.0% Average amount $758	29.0% Average amount $4,321

Students and Campus
Undergraduate students	1,468 Men 40.7% Women 59.3%	2,244 Men 43.3% Women 56.7%
Graduate students	N/A	N/A
Racial/ethnic diversity	Moderate	Low
Out-of-state students	N/A	N/A
International students	7.8%	13.5%
Campus local/setting	Town: Distant	City: Large
Dormitory capacity	1,653	1,332
First year students are required to live on campus?	No	Yes
Top 5 states where most U.S. students come from	Tennessee Alabama Georgia Ohio	N/A

Academics
Popular study areas	Business Social Sciences Visual & Performing Arts Biological and Biomedical Sciences Family and Consumer Sciences	Mathematics and Statistics Foreign Languages and Literatures Multidisciplinary Studies Social Sciences Computer and Information Science
Students to faculty ratio	9:1	10:1
Institutional accreditation	Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges	Higher Learning Commission

Outcome
Graduation rate	65.6%	89.7%
Dropout rate	13.7%	10.0%
Transferred out	19.8%	N/A
Alumni salary by major (Top 10)	Computer and Information Sciences, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $39,226 Year 2: $50,856 Year 3: $57,402 Engineering Technology, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $24,355 Year 2: $26,353 Year 3: $42,731 Business/Commerce, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $32,950 Year 2: $33,993 Year 3: $42,254 Communication and Media Studies (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $19,670 Year 2: $27,590 Year 3: $36,495 Psychology, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $25,658 Year 3: $31,668 Family and Consumer Sciences/Human Sciences, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $21,939 Year 2: $19,455 Year 3: $28,681 Agriculture, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $21,131 Year 2: $18,315 Year 3: $26,792 English Language and Literature, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $18,315 Year 3: $24,639 Biology, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $17,023 Year 2: $20,687 Year 3: $24,324 History (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $24,035 Year 3: N/A	Economics (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $47,163 Year 2: $64,493 Year 3: $72,135 Mathematics (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $60,896 Year 2: $52,107 Year 3: $56,193 Political Science and Government (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $28,635 Year 2: $35,274 Year 3: $43,620 Geography and Cartography (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $28,253 Year 2: $32,569 Year 3: $39,047 International/Global Studies (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $22,368 Year 2: $34,526 Year 3: $36,933 Psychology, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $24,116 Year 2: $31,133 Year 3: $34,521 Natural Resources Conservation and Research (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $26,444 Year 2: N/A Year 3: N/A Communication and Media Studies (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $21,508 Year 3: N/A Computer and Information Sciences, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $73,129 Year 2: $71,575 Year 3: N/A Education, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $33,281 Year 3: N/A

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