Northwestern College vs Harvard

Northwestern College and Harvard University, two esteemed institutions of higher learning, stand apart in their offerings and student experiences. Northwestern College, a private Christian liberal arts college in Orange City, Iowa, boasts a close-knit community and a focus on undergraduate education. Harvard University, an Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, is renowned for its academic rigor, extensive resources, and global reputation. While both institutions provide excellent education, their acceptance rates, popular majors, student body demographics, and graduation rates vary significantly. Explore the detailed comparison table below to discover which university aligns best with your academic aspirations and personal preferences.

	Harvard University	Northwestern College
Overview
Location	Cambridge, Massachusetts	Orange City, Iowa
Campus setting	City: Midsize	Town: Distant
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	96.0%	83.0%
Common app member	Yes	No
Religious affiliation		Protestant

Admission
Acceptance rate	4.0%	83.0%
Application fees	Undergraduate: $75 Graduate: $105
SAT range	1480 - 1580	940 - 1240
ACT range	33 - 36	20 - 27
Students submitting SAT score	54.0%	8.0%
Students submitting ACT score	31.0%	82.0%
Total number of applicants	57,786	1,172
Total number of admissions given out	2,318	973
Admitted students who chose to enroll	1,951	268
Yield rate	84.2%	27.5%
Test scores (SAT/ACT)	N/A	N/A
High school GPA	Not required	Not required
Recommendation letters	Required	Not required
High school transcript	Not required	Not required
English proficiency test (e.g. TOEFL)	Not required	Required

Tuition and Fees
Sticker price	$78,028	$47,650
Average net price	$13,910	$24,848
Tuition	$51,143	$33,350
Room & board	Room/dormitory: $11,705 Meal plan: $7,236	$10,000
Available payment plans	Prepaid tuition plan Tuition payment plan	Prepaid tuition plan Tuition payment plan

Financial Aid
Students receiving financial aid (Grants & scholarships)	56.0% Average amount $59,840	100.0% Average amount $21,873
Students receiving federal student loan	3.0% Average amount $5,180	69.0% Average amount $5,257
Students taking out private loans	2.0% Average amount $8,080	21.0% Average amount $10,813

Students and Campus
Undergraduate students	9,579 Men 49.0% Women 51.0%	1,053 Men 48.7% Women 51.3%
Graduate students	21,766 Men 46.3% Women 53.7%	460 Men 24.3% Women 75.7%
Racial/ethnic diversity	Moderate	Very Low
Out-of-state students	N/A	N/A
International students	23.9%	2.2%
Campus local/setting	City: Midsize	Town: Distant
Dormitory capacity	12,874	995
First year students are required to live on campus?	Yes	No
Top 5 states where most U.S. students come from	New York California Texas Illinois New Jersey	N/A

Academics
Popular study areas	Business Health Professions Social Sciences Education Legal Profession	Education Health Professions Biological and Biomedical Sciences Business Visual & Performing Arts
Students to faculty ratio	7:1	12:1
Institutional accreditation	New England Commission on Higher Education	Higher Learning Commission

Outcome
Graduation rate	96.7%	70.8%
Dropout rate	2.0%	6.5%
Transferred out	N/A	22.7%
Alumni salary by major (Top 10)	Statistics (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $78,193 Year 2: $128,716 Year 3: $240,408 Law (First Professional Degrees) Year 1: $184,307 Year 2: $165,340 Year 3: $199,043 Business Administration, Management and Operations (First Professional Degrees) Year 1: $171,333 Year 2: $171,907 Year 3: $187,553 Computer Science (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $140,072 Year 2: $128,737 Year 3: $163,896 Advanced/Graduate Dentistry and Oral Sciences (Graduate/Professional Certificates) Year 1: $151,371 Year 2: $174,023 Year 3: $163,512 Public Health (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $123,508 Year 2: $117,916 Year 3: $129,281 Ecology, Evolution, Systematics, and Population Biology (Master's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $106,421 Year 3: $121,832 Applied Mathematics (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $102,707 Year 2: $90,856 Year 3: $121,771 Education, General (Doctoral Degrees) Year 1: $97,905 Year 2: $98,670 Year 3: $107,389 Dentistry (First Professional Degrees) Year 1: $68,745 Year 2: $71,486 Year 3: $106,375	Educational Administration and Supervision (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $55,719 Year 2: N/A Year 3: N/A Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Levels and Methods (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $37,017 Year 2: N/A Year 3: N/A Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Levels and Methods (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $49,993 Year 2: N/A Year 3: N/A Biology, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $20,925 Year 2: N/A Year 3: N/A Health and Physical Education/Fitness (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $33,080 Year 2: N/A Year 3: N/A Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $59,227 Year 2: $61,516 Year 3: N/A Business Administration, Management and Operations (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $38,185 Year 2: $41,193 Year 3: N/A

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