NorthWestern vs Boston College

Northwestern University and Boston College, two prestigious private research universities, offer distinct educational experiences. Northwestern, located in Evanston, Illinois, boasts a lower acceptance rate (9.1%) compared to Boston College's (26.4%). Both universities excel in various disciplines, with Northwestern known for its strengths in engineering, business, and journalism, while Boston College shines in fields like nursing, finance, and education. Their student bodies reflect diverse backgrounds, with Boston College having a slightly larger undergraduate population. While Northwestern's graduation rate stands at 91%, Boston College's is slightly higher at 93%. Explore our comprehensive comparison table to delve into more details and discover which university aligns best with your academic aspirations and personal preferences.

	Boston College	Northwestern University
Overview
Location	Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts	Evanston, Illinois
Campus setting	City: Small	City: Small
College type	4 year	4 year
Control/business model	Private (Non Profit)	Private (Non Profit)
Calendar system	Semester	Quarter
Degrees offered	Undergraduate and Graduate	Undergraduate and Graduate
Students retention rate	95.0%	99.0%
Common app member	Yes	Yes
Religious affiliation	Catholic

Admission
Acceptance rate	19.0%	7.0%
Application fees	Undergraduate: $80 Graduate: $75	Undergraduate: $75 Graduate: $95
SAT range	1420 - 1530	1470 - 1570
ACT range	33 - 34	34 - 35
Students submitting SAT score	30.0%	43.0%
Students submitting ACT score	20.0%	39.0%
Total number of applicants	39,846	47,636
Total number of admissions given out	7,587	3,321
Admitted students who chose to enroll	2,516	2,086
Yield rate	33.2%	62.8%
Test scores (SAT/ACT)	N/A	N/A
High school GPA	Required	Not 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	$76,606	$83,838
Average net price	$30,159	$29,999
Tuition	$60,530	$60,276
Room & board	Room/dormitory: $9,780 Meal plan: $5,822	Room/dormitory: $11,271 Meal plan: $6,993
Available payment plans	Tuition payment plan	Tuition payment plan

Financial Aid
Students receiving financial aid (Grants & scholarships)	39.0% Average amount $48,693	57.0% Average amount $51,087
Students receiving federal student loan	33.0% Average amount $3,579	23.0% Average amount $4,625
Students taking out private loans	0.0% Average amount $2,200	2.0% Average amount $38,595

Students and Campus
Undergraduate students	9,955 Men 47.1% Women 52.9%	8,847 Men 46.1% Women 53.9%
Graduate students	5,622 Men 42.2% Women 57.8%	14,562 Men 47.3% Women 52.7%
Racial/ethnic diversity	Low	Moderate
Out-of-state students	N/A	N/A
International students	12.4%	17.8%
Campus local/setting	City: Small	City: Small
Dormitory capacity	7,602	4,409
First year students are required to live on campus?	No	No
Top 5 states where most U.S. students come from	N/A	N/A

Academics
Popular study areas	Business Health Professions Education Public Administration and Social Service Legal Profession	Business Communication and Journalism Engineering Health Professions Legal Profession
Students to faculty ratio	14:1	6:1
Institutional accreditation	New England Commission on Higher Education	Higher Learning Commission

Outcome
Graduation rate	90.8%	95.2%
Dropout rate	2.5%	4.2%
Transferred out	6.4%	N/A
Alumni salary by major (Top 10)	Finance and Financial Management Services (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $90,012 Year 2: $117,572 Year 3: $142,311 Business Administration, Management and Operations (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $99,514 Year 2: $115,060 Year 3: $137,599 Educational Administration and Supervision (Doctoral Degrees) Year 1: $114,055 Year 2: $111,435 Year 3: $126,491 Law (First Professional Degrees) Year 1: $89,485 Year 2: $93,588 Year 3: $114,789 Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $92,426 Year 2: $100,439 Year 3: $112,343 Computer Science (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $89,714 Year 2: $84,100 Year 3: $105,872 Finance and Financial Management Services (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $74,320 Year 2: $75,518 Year 3: $94,626 Information Science/Studies (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $69,748 Year 2: $76,460 Year 3: $90,750 Accounting and Related Services (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $69,899 Year 2: $69,937 Year 3: $82,416 Economics (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $64,785 Year 2: $69,069 Year 3: $77,978	Medical Clinical Sciences/Graduate Medical Studies (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $150,242 Year 2: $188,472 Year 3: $221,242 Business/Commerce, General (First Professional Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $188,472 Year 3: $216,176 Law (First Professional Degrees) Year 1: $187,194 Year 2: $170,971 Year 3: $206,288 Business Administration, Management and Operations (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $120,709 Year 2: $189,565 Year 3: $194,961 Business/Commerce, General (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $162,478 Year 2: $163,561 Year 3: $177,652 Engineering-Related Fields (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $111,200 Year 2: $157,779 Year 3: $159,304 Engineering, Other (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $140,321 Year 2: $141,586 Year 3: $154,556 Medical Illustration and Informatics (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $88,288 Year 2: $118,465 Year 3: $132,325 Management Sciences and Quantitative Methods (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $118,780 Year 2: $111,323 Year 3: $130,124 Community Organization and Advocacy (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $115,760 Year 2: $113,668 Year 3: $128,046

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NorthWestern vs Boston College

Boston College

Northwestern University

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Outcome

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