Occidental College vs Furman University

Occidental College and Furman University, both esteemed private institutions, offer distinct educational experiences. Occidental, nestled in Los Angeles, California, boasts an acceptance rate of 34%, while Furman, located in Greenville, South Carolina, has a slightly higher acceptance rate of 42%. Occidental's student body is more diverse, with 48% of students identifying as students of color compared to Furman's 30%. Both institutions excel in liberal arts education, with popular majors including English, history, and political science. However, Occidental offers a wider range of majors, including interdisciplinary programs like Urban and Environmental Policy. While Furman has a slightly higher graduation rate of 87% compared to Occidental's 84%, both colleges provide ample opportunities for students to succeed. Explore the detailed comparison table to discover more distinctions and determine which college aligns best with your academic aspirations and personal preferences.

	Furman University	Occidental College
Overview
Location	Greenville, South Carolina	Los Angeles, California
Campus setting	Suburb: Large	City: Large
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	91.0%	92.0%
Common app member	Yes	Yes
Religious affiliation

Admission
Acceptance rate	71.4%	38.2%
Application fees	Undergraduate: $50 Graduate: $55	Undergraduate: $70 Graduate: $60
SAT range	1240 - 1422	1340 - 1490
ACT range	29 - 33	30 - 33
Students submitting SAT score	26.0%	29.0%
Students submitting ACT score	29.0%	22.0%
Total number of applicants	7,174	6,495
Total number of admissions given out	5,119	2,484
Admitted students who chose to enroll	656	535
Yield rate	12.8%	21.5%
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	$69,880	$77,878
Average net price	$33,999	$43,047
Tuition	$52,992	$57,830
Room & board	Room/dormitory: $7,496 Meal plan: $6,202	Room/dormitory: $9,512 Meal plan: $8,090
Available payment plans	Tuition payment plan	Prepaid tuition plan Tuition payment plan

Financial Aid
Students receiving financial aid (Grants & scholarships)	96.0% Average amount $33,191	100.0% Average amount $29,715
Students receiving federal student loan	28.0% Average amount $5,170	31.0% Average amount $4,603
Students taking out private loans	5.0% Average amount $20,783	17.0% Average amount $6,554

Students and Campus
Undergraduate students	2,307 Men 40.1% Women 59.9%	1,964 Men 42.1% Women 57.9%
Graduate students	156 Men 20.5% Women 79.5%	N/A
Racial/ethnic diversity	Low	Moderate
Out-of-state students	67.8%	62.5%
International students	3.3%	6.3%
Campus local/setting	Suburb: Large	City: Large
Dormitory capacity	2,406	1,650
First year students are required to live on campus?	No	Yes
Top 5 states where most U.S. students come from	South Carolina Georgia North Carolina Florida Texas	California Washington New York Illinois Mississippi

Academics
Popular study areas	Education Biological and Biomedical Sciences Social Sciences Visual & Performing Arts Health Professions	Social Sciences Biological and Biomedical Sciences Physical Science Multidisciplinary Studies Visual & Performing Arts
Students to faculty ratio	9:1	9:1
Institutional accreditation	Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges	Western Association of Schools and Colleges Senior Colleges and University Commission

Outcome
Graduation rate	81.9%	82.9%
Dropout rate	2.4%	4.1%
Transferred out	15.7%	12.6%
Alumni salary by major (Top 10)	Business Administration, Management and Operations (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $47,571 Year 2: $47,260 Year 3: $56,414 Communication and Media Studies (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $36,227 Year 2: $40,140 Year 3: $52,939 Political Science and Government (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $36,108 Year 2: $36,668 Year 3: $50,384 Educational Administration and Supervision (Graduate/Professional Certificates) Year 1: $61,615 Year 2: N/A Year 3: N/A Romance Languages, Literatures, and Linguistics (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $37,568 Year 3: N/A English Language and Literature, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $35,060 Year 3: N/A Biology, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $14,357 Year 2: N/A Year 3: N/A Religion/Religious Studies (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $33,993 Year 3: N/A Psychology, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $24,821 Year 2: N/A Year 3: N/A Economics (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $57,318 Year 3: N/A	Economics (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $46,544 Year 2: $55,078 Year 3: $63,231 Political Science and Government (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $42,360 Year 2: $37,779 Year 3: $49,843 International Relations and National Security Studies (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $38,329 Year 2: $36,132 Year 3: $45,083 Natural Resources Conservation and Research (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $29,948 Year 2: $37,208 Year 3: $43,488 Cultural Studies/Critical Theory and Analysis (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: N/A Year 3: $33,877 Fine and Studio Arts (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $25,967 Year 3: $31,152 Biology, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $25,035 Year 2: $26,933 Year 3: $31,095 Psychology, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $25,916 Year 2: $30,047 Year 3: $30,729 Area Studies (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $39,369 Year 3: N/A Romance Languages, Literatures, and Linguistics (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $15,793 Year 2: $35,060 Year 3: N/A

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Occidental College vs Furman University

Furman University

Occidental College

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Outcome

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