North Central vs Wesleyan University
North Central College and Wesleyan University, two esteemed institutions of higher learning, offer distinct educational experiences. North Central, a private liberal arts college in Naperville, Illinois, boasts a 75% acceptance rate, while Wesleyan, a private liberal arts university in Middletown, Connecticut, has a more selective admissions process with a 15% acceptance rate. Both institutions offer a diverse range of undergraduate programs, with popular majors at North Central including Business Administration, Nursing, and Psychology, and popular majors at Wesleyan including Economics, Government, and English. While North Central's student body is predominantly White (73%) and female (60%), Wesleyan's student body is more diverse, with 48% White, 15% Asian, 12% Hispanic, and 10% Black students, and a gender distribution of 49% male and 51% female. With graduation rates of 70% and 89% respectively, both institutions provide
|
![]() North Central College |
![]() Wesleyan University |
---|---|---|
Overview |
||
Location | Naperville, Illinois | Middletown, Connecticut |
Campus setting | City: Midsize | City: Small |
College type | 4 year | 4 year |
Control/business model | Private (Non Profit) | Private (Non Profit) |
Calendar system | Semester | Semester |
Degrees offered | Undergraduate and Graduate | Undergraduate and Graduate |
Students retention rate | 77.0% | 95.0% |
![]() |
Yes | Yes |
Religious affiliation | Methodism | |
|
||
Admission |
||
Acceptance rate | 68.4% | 19.4% |
Application fees | $25 | $55 |
SAT range | 1030 - 1230 | 1300 - 1510 |
ACT range | 22 - 28 | 31 - 34 |
Students submitting SAT score | 43.0% | 51.0% |
Students submitting ACT score | 17.0% | 27.0% |
Total number of applicants | 4,551 | 13,067 |
Total number of admissions given out | 3,113 | 2,540 |
Admitted students who chose to enroll | 512 | 910 |
Yield rate | 16.4% | 35.8% |
Test scores (SAT/ACT) | N/A | N/A |
High school GPA | Required | Not required |
Recommendation letters | Not required | Required |
High school transcript | Not required | Not required |
English proficiency test (e.g. TOEFL) | Required | Required |
|
||
Tuition and Fees |
||
Sticker price | $61,098 | $82,245 |
Average net price | $26,207 | $20,535 |
Tuition | $42,026 | $61,449 |
Room & board |
Room/dormitory:
$7,998
Meal plan:
$3,890
|
$17,531 |
Available payment plans |
|
|
|
||
Financial Aid |
||
Students receiving financial aid
(Grants & scholarships) |
100.0%
Average amount $28,670 |
40.0%
Average amount $58,925 |
Students receiving federal student loan |
60.0%
Average amount $5,156 |
18.0%
Average amount $3,834 |
Students taking out private loans |
25.0%
Average amount $6,992 |
2.0%
Average amount $27,881 |
|
||
Students and Campus |
||
Undergraduate students |
2,404
Men 48.4% Women 51.6% |
3,385
Men 43.8% Women 56.2% |
Graduate students |
324
Men 29.3% Women 70.7% |
196
Men 42.3% Women 57.7% |
Racial/ethnic diversity |
Low
|
Low
|
Out-of-state students | 26.8% | 90.3% |
International students | 3.7% | 11.3% |
Campus local/setting | City: Midsize | City: Small |
Dormitory capacity | 1,333 | 3,063 |
First year students are required to live on campus? | No | Yes |
Top 5 states where most U.S. students come from | Illinois Wisconsin Indiana Ohio Michigan | New York California Connecticut New Jersey Pennsylvania |
|
||
Academics |
||
Popular study areas |
|
|
Students to faculty ratio | 13:1 | 8:1 |
Institutional accreditation | Higher Learning Commission | New England Commission on Higher Education |
|
||
Outcome |
||
Graduation rate | 64.4% | 91.0% |
Dropout rate | 35.1% | 3.6% |
Transferred out | N/A | 5.3% |
Alumni salary by major (Top 10) |
Computer Science (Bachelor's Degrees)
Business Administration, Management and Operations (Master's Degrees)
Accounting and Related Services (Bachelor's Degrees)
Finance and Financial Management Services (Bachelor's Degrees)
Human Resources Management and Services (Bachelor's Degrees)
Business Administration, Management and Operations (Bachelor's Degrees)
Marketing (Bachelor's Degrees)
Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and Humanities (Master's Degrees)
Public Relations, Advertising, and Applied Communication (Bachelor's Degrees)
Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Levels and Methods (Bachelor's Degrees)
|
Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and Humanities (Doctoral Degrees)
Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and Humanities (Bachelor's Degrees)
|
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.







































































































































































































































































