Saint Mary's College of California vs Swarthmore

Saint Mary's College of California and Swarthmore College, two esteemed institutions of higher learning, offer distinct educational experiences. Saint Mary's, a private Catholic college in Moraga, California, boasts a diverse student body and a strong focus on liberal arts. Swarthmore, a private liberal arts college in Swarthmore, Pennsylvania, is known for its rigorous academics and its commitment to social justice. With acceptance rates of 75% and 11%, respectively, these colleges attract students with varying academic backgrounds and aspirations. While Saint Mary's popular majors include business, psychology, and biology, Swarthmore students often pursue degrees in engineering, economics, and political science. Explore the comprehensive comparison table below to delve into further details about these colleges, including student body demographics, graduation rates, and more, to determine which institution aligns best with your academic goals and personal preferences.

	Saint Mary's College of California	Swarthmore College
Overview
Location	Moraga, California	Swarthmore, Pennsylvania
Campus setting	Suburb: Large	Suburb: Large
College type	4 year	4 year
Control/business model	Private (Non Profit)	Private (Non Profit)
Calendar system	4-1-4	Semester
Degrees offered	Undergraduate and Graduate	Undergraduate
Students retention rate	88.0%	95.0%
Common app member	Yes	Yes
Religious affiliation	Catholic

Admission
Acceptance rate	70.1%	7.8%
Application fees	Undergraduate: $60 Graduate: $50	$60
SAT range	N/A	1430 - 1560
ACT range	N/A	33 - 35
Students submitting SAT score		39.0%
Students submitting ACT score		21.0%
Total number of applicants	3,523	13,012
Total number of admissions given out	2,469	1,013
Admitted students who chose to enroll	421	454
Yield rate	17.1%	44.8%
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	Not required

Tuition and Fees
Sticker price	$71,116	$75,793
Average net price	$25,022	$19,733
Tuition	$51,568	$55,856
Room & board	$16,300	Room/dormitory: $8,796 Meal plan: $8,354
Available payment plans	Tuition payment plan	Tuition payment plan

Financial Aid
Students receiving financial aid (Grants & scholarships)	100.0% Average amount $37,096	76.0% Average amount $40,072
Students receiving federal student loan	75.0% Average amount $5,473	6.0% Average amount $5,191
Students taking out private loans	3.0% Average amount $19,233	1.0% Average amount $30,543

Students and Campus
Undergraduate students	2,199 Men 42.0% Women 58.0%	1,651 Men 49.7% Women 50.3%
Graduate students	966 Men 35.5% Women 64.5%	N/A
Racial/ethnic diversity	Moderate	Moderate
Out-of-state students	13.9%	89.9%
International students	2.9%	15.4%
Campus local/setting	Suburb: Large	Suburb: Large
Dormitory capacity	1,522	1,605
First year students are required to live on campus?	No	Yes
Top 5 states where most U.S. students come from	California Washington Colorado Oregon Hawaii	New York California Pennsylvania New Jersey Texas

Academics
Popular study areas	Education Business Psychology Liberal Arts Kinesiology & Leisure Studies	Visual & Performing Arts Computer and Information Science Engineering Social Sciences Mathematics and Statistics
Students to faculty ratio	9:1	8:1
Institutional accreditation	Western Association of Schools and Colleges Senior Colleges and University Commission	Middle States Commission on Higher Education

Outcome
Graduation rate	73.1%	94.1%
Dropout rate	26.3%	5.7%
Transferred out	N/A	N/A
Alumni salary by major (Top 10)	Business Administration, Management and Operations (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $96,339 Year 2: $108,331 Year 3: $119,946 Accounting and Related Services (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $70,181 Year 2: $68,219 Year 3: $87,697 Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and Humanities (Master's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $94,408 Year 3: $86,536 Educational Administration and Supervision (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $68,207 Year 2: $69,338 Year 3: $72,426 Accounting and Related Services (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $64,833 Year 2: $61,814 Year 3: $68,615 Business/Commerce, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $52,015 Year 2: $54,996 Year 3: $67,476 Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Levels and Methods (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $56,013 Year 2: $57,705 Year 3: $61,957 Economics (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $54,519 Year 2: $41,193 Year 3: $60,193 Student Counseling and Personnel Services (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $57,458 Year 2: $52,562 Year 3: $54,948 Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and Humanities (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $41,425 Year 2: $42,682 Year 3: $50,097	Computer and Information Sciences, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $97,897 Year 2: $94,408 Year 3: $113,966 Economics (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $56,029 Year 2: $81,702 Year 3: $88,391 Political Science and Government (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $43,119 Year 2: $39,369 Year 3: $44,841 Education, Other (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $47,260 Year 3: $42,944 Biology, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $34,425 Year 2: $25,194 Year 3: $36,220 Engineering, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $68,963 Year 2: N/A Year 3: N/A Mathematics (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $59,964 Year 2: $125,015 Year 3: N/A Psychology, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $43,426 Year 3: N/A

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Saint Mary's College of California

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