Swarthmore vs Washington and Lee

Swarthmore College and Washington and Lee University, both esteemed institutions of higher learning, offer distinct educational experiences. Swarthmore, a liberal arts college in Pennsylvania, boasts a highly selective admissions process with an acceptance rate of 10%, while Washington and Lee, a private university in Virginia, has a slightly higher acceptance rate of 20%. Swarthmore's student body is more diverse, with 48% of students identifying as students of color compared to Washington and Lee's 30%. Both institutions excel in academics, with Swarthmore's popular majors including engineering, social sciences, and humanities, and Washington and Lee's strengths lying in business, social sciences, and engineering. While Swarthmore's graduation rate stands at an impressive 94%, Washington and Lee's is slightly lower at 89%. Explore the detailed comparison table below to discover more about these two exceptional institutions and determine which one aligns best with your academic aspirations and personal preferences

	Swarthmore College	Washington and Lee University
Overview
Location	Swarthmore, Pennsylvania	Lexington, Virginia
Campus setting	Suburb: Large	Town: Distant
College type	4 year	4 year
Control/business model	Private (Non Profit)	Private (Non Profit)
Calendar system	Semester	4-1-4
Degrees offered	Undergraduate	Undergraduate and Graduate
Students retention rate	95.0%	96.0%
Common app member	Yes	Yes
Religious affiliation

Admission
Acceptance rate	7.8%	18.8%
Application fees	$60	$60
SAT range	1430 - 1560	1410 - 1530
ACT range	33 - 35	32 - 35
Students submitting SAT score	39.0%	26.0%
Students submitting ACT score	21.0%	32.0%
Total number of applicants	13,012	6,621
Total number of admissions given out	1,013	1,248
Admitted students who chose to enroll	454	484
Yield rate	44.8%	38.8%
Test scores (SAT/ACT)	N/A	N/A
High school GPA	Not required	Not required
Recommendation letters	Required	Required
High school transcript	Not required	Not required
English proficiency test (e.g. TOEFL)	Not required	Not required

Tuition and Fees
Sticker price	$75,793	$80,300
Average net price	$19,733	$26,063
Tuition	$55,856	$58,260
Room & board	Room/dormitory: $8,796 Meal plan: $8,354	Room/dormitory: $8,600 Meal plan: $7,670
Available payment plans	Tuition payment plan	Tuition payment plan Other alternative tuition plan

Financial Aid
Students receiving financial aid (Grants & scholarships)	76.0% Average amount $40,072	56.0% Average amount $51,537
Students receiving federal student loan	6.0% Average amount $5,191	13.0% Average amount $4,878
Students taking out private loans	1.0% Average amount $30,543	6.0% Average amount $25,474

Students and Campus
Undergraduate students	1,651 Men 49.7% Women 50.3%	1,857 Men 48.7% Women 51.3%
Graduate students	N/A	381 Men 48.8% Women 51.2%
Racial/ethnic diversity	Moderate	Low
Out-of-state students	89.9%	81.2%
International students	15.4%	5.0%
Campus local/setting	Suburb: Large	Town: Distant
Dormitory capacity	1,605	1,520
First year students are required to live on campus?	Yes	Yes
Top 5 states where most U.S. students come from	New York California Pennsylvania New Jersey Texas	Virginia North Carolina Texas New York Georgia

Academics
Popular study areas	Visual & Performing Arts Computer and Information Science Engineering Social Sciences Mathematics and Statistics	Legal Profession Social Sciences Biological and Biomedical Sciences Foreign Languages and Literatures Physical Science
Students to faculty ratio	8:1	8:1
Institutional accreditation	Middle States Commission on Higher Education	Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges

Outcome
Graduation rate	94.1%	93.6%
Dropout rate	5.7%	6.2%
Transferred out	N/A	N/A
Alumni salary by major (Top 10)	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	Business Administration, Management and Operations (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $56,231 Year 2: $56,641 Year 3: $85,103 Law (First Professional Degrees) Year 1: $63,586 Year 2: $72,642 Year 3: $83,304 Accounting and Related Services (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $66,449 Year 3: $79,551 Mathematics (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $76,460 Year 3: $69,951 Economics (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $51,643 Year 2: $55,964 Year 3: $68,713 Journalism (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $42,682 Year 3: $54,059 Political Science and Government (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $47,231 Year 2: $41,007 Year 3: $45,285 Computer Science (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $91,744 Year 3: N/A English Language and Literature, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $37,593 Year 3: N/A History (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $30,409 Year 3: N/A

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Swarthmore vs Washington and Lee

Swarthmore College

Washington and Lee University

Overview

Admission

Tuition and Fees

Financial Aid

Students and Campus

Academics

Outcome

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