Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts (MCLA) vs Davidson College

Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts and Davidson College, while both offering a strong liberal arts education, present distinct experiences for prospective students. MCLA, a public college in North Adams, Massachusetts, boasts an acceptance rate of 88%, making it more accessible to a wider range of students. Davidson, a private college in Davidson, North Carolina, is more selective, with an acceptance rate of 24%. MCLA's student body is predominantly female (62%), while Davidson's is more evenly balanced (51% female, 49% male). Both colleges offer a variety of popular majors, including Business, Psychology, and Biology, but Davidson also offers a wider range of specialized programs, such as Engineering and Computer Science. With a graduation rate of 58%, MCLA provides ample support to help students complete their degrees, while Davidson's impressive 91% graduation rate reflects its commitment to student success. Explore the detailed comparison table below to discover more key differences and
Davidson College logo

Davidson College

Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts logo

Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts

Overview

Location Davidson, North Carolina North Adams, Massachusetts
Campus setting Suburb: Large Town: Fringe
College type 4 year 4 year
Control/business model Private (Non Profit) Public
Calendar system Semester Semester
Degrees offered Undergraduate Undergraduate and Graduate
Students retention rate 95.0% 63.0%
Common app member Yes Yes
Religious affiliation Presbyterian

Admission

Acceptance rate 17.8% 91.0%
Application fees $50 $50
SAT range N/A N/A
ACT range N/A N/A
Students submitting SAT score
Students submitting ACT score
Total number of applicants 6,434 1,371
Total number of admissions given out 1,145 1,247
Admitted students who chose to enroll 547 167
Yield rate 47.8% 13.4%
Test scores (SAT/ACT) N/A N/A
High school GPA Required Required
Recommendation letters Required Required
High school transcript Not required Not required
English proficiency test (e.g. TOEFL) Required Not required

Tuition and Fees

Sticker price $73,200
In state: $25,928

Out of state: $34,873
Average net price $25,794 $14,902
Tuition $54,460
In state: $1,030

Out of state: $9,975
Room & board
Room/dormitory: $7,700

Meal plan: $7,525
Room/dormitory: $7,240

Meal plan: $5,044
Available payment plans
  • Tuition payment plan
  • Prepaid tuition plan
  • Tuition payment plan

Financial Aid

Students receiving financial aid

(Grants & scholarships)

64.0%
Average amount $47,889
99.0%
Average amount $8,496
Students receiving federal student loan 10.0%
Average amount $5,095
97.0%
Average amount $3,734
Students taking out private loans 2.0%
Average amount $33,219
12.0%
Average amount $9,492

Students and Campus

Undergraduate students 1,973
Men 47.2% Women 52.8%
870
Men 39.2% Women 60.8%
Graduate students N/A 124
Men 33.1% Women 66.9%
Racial/ethnic diversity
Low
Low
Out-of-state students 76.8% N/A
International students 8.2% N/A
Campus local/setting Suburb: Large Town: Fringe
Dormitory capacity 1,830 1,020
First year students are required to live on campus? Yes No
Top 5 states where most U.S. students come from North Carolina Virginia Texas New Jersey Florida Mississippi New York Vermont Connecticut Rhode Island

Academics

Popular study areas
  • Psychology
  • Physical Science
  • Social Sciences
  • Foreign Languages and Literatures
  • Ethnic Studies
  • Business
  • Education
  • Computer and Information Science
  • Health Professions
  • Biological and Biomedical Sciences
Students to faculty ratio 10:1 9:1
Institutional accreditation Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges New England Commission on Higher Education

Outcome

Graduation rate 89.6% 58.4%
Dropout rate 10.0% 41.6%
Transferred out N/A N/A
Alumni salary by major (Top 10)
Economics (Undergraduate Certificates or Diplomas)
  • Year 1: $60,797
  • Year 2: $69,338
  • Year 3: $80,388
Political Science and Government (Undergraduate Certificates or Diplomas)
  • Year 1: $42,752
  • Year 2: $45,715
  • Year 3: $53,747
Romance Languages, Literatures, and Linguistics (Undergraduate Certificates or Diplomas)
  • Year 1: N/A
  • Year 2: $43,240
  • Year 3: N/A
English Language and Literature, General (Undergraduate Certificates or Diplomas)
  • Year 1: $41,099
  • Year 2: $35,330
  • Year 3: N/A
Biology, General (Undergraduate Certificates or Diplomas)
  • Year 1: N/A
  • Year 2: $31,670
  • Year 3: N/A
Psychology, General (Undergraduate Certificates or Diplomas)
  • Year 1: $34,292
  • Year 2: $28,598
  • Year 3: N/A
Anthropology (Undergraduate Certificates or Diplomas)
  • Year 1: N/A
  • Year 2: $29,685
  • Year 3: N/A
History (Undergraduate Certificates or Diplomas)
  • Year 1: N/A
  • Year 2: $22,075
  • Year 3: N/A
Computer and Information Sciences, General (Bachelor's Degrees)
  • Year 1: $64,895
  • Year 2: $63,005
  • Year 3: $73,830
Business Administration, Management and Operations (Bachelor's Degrees)
  • Year 1: $31,172
  • Year 2: $34,467
  • Year 3: $40,733
Biology, General (Bachelor's Degrees)
  • Year 1: $42,359
  • Year 2: $27,181
  • Year 3: $40,148
Education, General (Bachelor's Degrees)
  • Year 1: N/A
  • Year 2: $32,284
  • Year 3: $35,408
English Language and Literature, General (Bachelor's Degrees)
  • Year 1: $24,617
  • Year 2: $32,569
  • Year 3: $34,741
Sociology (Bachelor's Degrees)
  • Year 1: $31,798
  • Year 2: $31,828
  • Year 3: $32,817
Psychology, General (Bachelor's Degrees)
  • Year 1: $28,438
  • Year 2: $28,236
  • Year 3: $32,425
Multi/Interdisciplinary Studies, Other (Bachelor's Degrees)
  • Year 1: $34,231
  • Year 2: $29,374
  • Year 3: $31,158
Education, General (Master's Degrees)
  • Year 1: $46,032
  • Year 2: $43,798
  • Year 3: N/A
Visual and Performing Arts, General (Bachelor's Degrees)
  • Year 1: $20,169
  • Year 2: $25,194
  • Year 3: N/A

Compare Similar Colleges

The list of suggested college comparisons provided below is generated automatically by our system, utilizing statistics gathered from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) and various online sources. If you don't find the colleges you wish to compare, please visit our comparison page. There, you can search for the specific colleges and initiate your comparison.
Davidson College Davidson College vs Birmingham-Southern College Birmingham-Southern College
Davidson College Davidson College vs Samford University Samford University
Davidson College Davidson College vs Claremont McKenna College Claremont McKenna College
Davidson College Davidson College vs Pomona College Pomona College
Davidson College Davidson College vs Colorado College Colorado College
Davidson College Davidson College vs Wesleyan University Wesleyan University
Davidson College Davidson College vs University of Miami University of Miami
Davidson College Davidson College vs Emory University Emory University
Davidson College Davidson College vs Spelman College Spelman College
Davidson College Davidson College vs Principia College Principia College
Davidson College Davidson College vs Grinnell College Grinnell College
Davidson College Davidson College vs Berea College Berea College
Davidson College Davidson College vs Tulane University of Louisiana Tulane University of Louisiana
Davidson College Davidson College vs Bates College Bates College
Davidson College Davidson College vs Bowdoin College Bowdoin College
Davidson College Davidson College vs Colby College Colby College
Davidson College Davidson College vs St. Mary's College of Maryland St. Mary's College of Maryland
Davidson College Davidson College vs College of the Holy Cross College of the Holy Cross
Davidson College Davidson College vs Williams College Williams College
Davidson College Davidson College vs Hillsdale College Hillsdale College
Davidson College Davidson College vs Carleton College Carleton College
Davidson College Davidson College vs Macalester College Macalester College
Davidson College Davidson College vs Millsaps College Millsaps College
Davidson College Davidson College vs Colgate University Colgate University
Davidson College Davidson College vs Hamilton College Hamilton College
Davidson College Davidson College vs Sarah Lawrence College Sarah Lawrence College
Davidson College Davidson College vs Union College Union College
Davidson College Davidson College vs Johnson C Smith University Johnson C Smith University
Davidson College Davidson College vs Methodist University Methodist University
Davidson College Davidson College vs Kenyon College Kenyon College
Davidson College Davidson College vs Lewis & Clark College Lewis & Clark College
Davidson College Davidson College vs Reed College Reed College
Davidson College Davidson College vs Bucknell University Bucknell University
Davidson College Davidson College vs Dickinson College Dickinson College
Davidson College Davidson College vs Franklin and Marshall College Franklin and Marshall College
Davidson College Davidson College vs Citadel Military College of South Carolina Citadel Military College of South Carolina
Davidson College Davidson College vs Claflin University Claflin University
Davidson College Davidson College vs Vanderbilt University Vanderbilt University
Davidson College Davidson College vs Rice University Rice University
Davidson College Davidson College vs Trinity University Trinity University
Davidson College Davidson College vs University of Richmond University of Richmond
Davidson College Davidson College vs Whitman College Whitman College
Davidson College Davidson College vs Ave Maria University Ave Maria University
Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts MCLA vs Occidental College Occidental College
Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts MCLA vs Pomona College Pomona College
Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts MCLA vs Scripps College Scripps College
Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts MCLA vs Adams State University Adams State University
Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts MCLA vs Connecticut College Connecticut College
Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts MCLA vs Eastern Connecticut State University Eastern Connecticut State University
Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts MCLA vs Trinity College Trinity College
Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts MCLA vs Wesleyan University Wesleyan University
Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts MCLA vs Knox College Knox College
Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts MCLA vs Principia College Principia College
Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts MCLA vs Earlham College Earlham College
Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts MCLA vs Grinnell College Grinnell College
Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts MCLA vs Colby College Colby College
Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts MCLA vs University of Maine at Farmington University of Maine at Farmington
Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts MCLA vs University of Maine at Fort Kent University of Maine at Fort Kent
Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts MCLA vs Dean College Dean College
Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts MCLA vs Fisher College Fisher College
Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts MCLA vs Framingham State University Framingham State University
Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts MCLA vs Williams College Williams College
Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts MCLA vs Carleton College Carleton College
Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts MCLA vs Macalester College Macalester College
Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts MCLA vs St Olaf College St Olaf College
Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts MCLA vs Bard College Bard College
Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts MCLA vs Hamilton College Hamilton College
Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts MCLA vs Skidmore College Skidmore College
Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts MCLA vs Union College Union College
Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts MCLA vs Vassar College Vassar College
Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts MCLA vs Davidson College Davidson College
Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts MCLA vs Kenyon College Kenyon College
Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts MCLA vs Shawnee State University Shawnee State University
Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts MCLA vs Lewis & Clark College Lewis & Clark College
Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts MCLA vs Reed College Reed College
Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts MCLA vs Dickinson College Dickinson College
Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts MCLA vs Franklin and Marshall College Franklin and Marshall College
Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts MCLA vs Haverford College Haverford College
Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts MCLA vs Swarthmore College Swarthmore College
Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts MCLA vs Bennington College Bennington College
Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts MCLA vs Middlebury College Middlebury College
Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts MCLA vs Bluefield State College Bluefield State College
Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts MCLA vs Glenville State University Glenville State University
Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts MCLA vs Lawrence University Lawrence University
Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts MCLA vs New College of Florida New College of Florida