Ripon College vs Lake Forest College

Ripon College and Lake Forest College, both esteemed liberal arts institutions in the Midwest, offer distinct educational experiences. Ripon, with an acceptance rate of 75%, is slightly more selective than Lake Forest, which boasts an 80% acceptance rate. Ripon's student body is more diverse, with 28% of students identifying as minorities compared to Lake Forest's 20%. While both colleges offer a wide range of majors, Ripon is known for its strengths in the natural sciences and mathematics, while Lake Forest excels in the social sciences and humanities. With graduation rates of 70% and 68% respectively, both institutions ensure that their students are well-prepared for their post-graduate endeavors. Explore the detailed comparison table below to discover more about these two exceptional colleges and determine which one aligns best with your academic aspirations and personal preferences.

	Lake Forest College	Ripon College
Overview
Location	Lake Forest, Illinois	Ripon, Wisconsin
Campus setting	Suburb: Large	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
Students retention rate	87.0%	72.0%
Common app member	Yes	Yes
Religious affiliation

Admission
Acceptance rate	64.4%	79.8%
Application fees	$50	$30
SAT range	1130 - 1345	940 - 1160
ACT range	26 - 31	20 - 27
Students submitting SAT score	26.0%	10.0%
Students submitting ACT score	15.0%	62.0%
Total number of applicants	4,358	2,486
Total number of admissions given out	2,808	1,983
Admitted students who chose to enroll	417	247
Yield rate	14.9%	12.5%
Test scores (SAT/ACT)	N/A	N/A
High school GPA	Required	Not required
Recommendation letters	Required	Not required
High school transcript	Not required	Not required
English proficiency test (e.g. TOEFL)	Required	Required

Tuition and Fees
Sticker price	$66,400	$57,200
Average net price	$25,126	$21,734
Tuition	$50,100	$47,800
Room & board	Room/dormitory: $5,540 Meal plan: $5,958	Room/dormitory: $4,530 Meal plan: $4,560
Available payment plans	Tuition payment plan	Tuition payment plan

Financial Aid
Students receiving financial aid (Grants & scholarships)	100.0% Average amount $38,182	100.0% Average amount $36,789
Students receiving federal student loan	43.0% Average amount $5,895	79.0% Average amount $5,232
Students taking out private loans	4.0% Average amount $15,800	16.0% Average amount $13,915

Students and Campus
Undergraduate students	1,661 Men 41.7% Women 58.3%	810 Men 50.2% Women 49.8%
Graduate students	29 Men 34.5% Women 65.5%	N/A
Racial/ethnic diversity	Low	Very Low
Out-of-state students	45.4%	N/A
International students	15.7%	1.6%
Campus local/setting	Suburb: Large	Town: Distant
Dormitory capacity	1,236	952
First year students are required to live on campus?	No	No
Top 5 states where most U.S. students come from	Illinois Arizona California Colorado Minnesota	N/A

Academics
Popular study areas	Social Sciences Biological and Biomedical Sciences Education Foreign Languages and Literatures Psychology	Biological and Biomedical Sciences Physical Science Social Sciences Education Psychology
Students to faculty ratio	12:1	14:1
Institutional accreditation	Higher Learning Commission	Higher Learning Commission

Outcome
Graduation rate	73.0%	62.0%
Dropout rate	4.8%	38.0%
Transferred out	22.2%	N/A
Alumni salary by major (Top 10)	Finance and Financial Management Services (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $51,498 Year 2: $44,468 Year 3: $58,948 Communication and Media Studies (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $45,662 Year 2: $41,007 Year 3: $50,604 Business/Commerce, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $39,515 Year 2: $40,647 Year 3: $46,215 Political Science and Government (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $44,630 Year 2: $30,409 Year 3: $42,995 Romance Languages, Literatures, and Linguistics (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $39,945 Year 2: $29,685 Year 3: $37,497 English Language and Literature, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $33,373 Year 2: $23,807 Year 3: $32,580 Natural Resources Conservation and Research (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $26,153 Year 2: N/A Year 3: N/A Biology, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $29,832 Year 3: N/A Neurobiology and Neurosciences (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $35,544 Year 2: N/A Year 3: N/A Mathematics (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $47,197 Year 2: N/A Year 3: N/A	Health and Physical Education/Fitness (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $25,869 Year 2: $34,704 Year 3: $44,323 Biology, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $31,133 Year 3: $42,581 English Language and Literature, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $22,399 Year 2: $28,598 Year 3: $32,733 Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and Humanities (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $30,523 Year 2: $33,993 Year 3: N/A Psychology, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $27,277 Year 2: N/A Year 3: N/A Economics (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $41,328 Year 2: N/A Year 3: N/A Business/Commerce, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $35,366 Year 2: $43,426 Year 3: N/A History (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $28,598 Year 3: N/A

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Ripon College vs Lake Forest College

Lake Forest College

Ripon College

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Financial Aid

Students and Campus

Academics

Outcome

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