Westmont College vs Lafayette College

Westmont College and Lafayette College, two esteemed institutions of higher learning, offer distinct educational experiences. Westmont, a Christian liberal arts college in Santa Barbara, California, boasts a tight-knit community and a focus on integrating faith and learning. Lafayette, a private liberal arts college in Easton, Pennsylvania, emphasizes experiential learning and global engagement. With acceptance rates of 38% and 29%, respectively, both colleges are selective in their admissions. Westmont's student body is predominantly White (63%) and female (59%), while Lafayette's is more diverse, with a larger international student population (13%) and a more even gender distribution (51% female, 49% male). Explore the comparison table below to delve into further details about these colleges, including popular majors, graduation rates, and more, to determine which one aligns best with your academic aspirations and personal preferences.

	Lafayette College	Westmont College
Overview
Location	Easton, Pennsylvania	Santa Barbara, California
Campus setting	Suburb: Large	Suburb: Midsize
College type	4 year	4 year
Control/business model	Private (Non Profit)	Private (Non Profit)
Calendar system	Semester	Semester
Degrees offered	Undergraduate	Undergraduate
Students retention rate	91.0%	85.0%
Common app member	Yes	Yes
Religious affiliation	Presbyterian

Admission
Acceptance rate	40.7%	79.0%
Application fees	$65
SAT range	1300 - 1460	1160 - 1460
ACT range	30 - 33	26 - 31
Students submitting SAT score	28.0%	18.0%
Students submitting ACT score	13.0%	12.0%
Total number of applicants	8,262	2,344
Total number of admissions given out	3,366	1,851
Admitted students who chose to enroll	782	333
Yield rate	23.2%	18.0%
Test scores (SAT/ACT)	N/A	N/A
High school GPA	Required	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	$75,934	$61,110
Average net price	$38,754	$33,554
Tuition	$55,874	$47,450
Room & board	Room/dormitory: $10,308 Meal plan: $6,362	Room/dormitory: $9,400 Meal plan: $5,970
Available payment plans	Prepaid tuition plan Tuition payment plan	Tuition payment plan

Financial Aid
Students receiving financial aid (Grants & scholarships)	61.0% Average amount $34,668	99.0% Average amount $32,308
Students receiving federal student loan	26.0% Average amount $4,491	50.0% Average amount $5,052
Students taking out private loans	7.0% Average amount $23,831	25.0% Average amount $4,810

Students and Campus
Undergraduate students	2,725 Men 51.2% Women 48.8%	1,238 Men 39.5% Women 60.5%
Graduate students	N/A	N/A
Racial/ethnic diversity	Low	Low
Out-of-state students	82.6%	31.1%
International students	7.8%	1.9%
Campus local/setting	Suburb: Large	Suburb: Midsize
Dormitory capacity	2,510	1,207
First year students are required to live on campus?	Yes	No
Top 5 states where most U.S. students come from	New Jersey New York Pennsylvania Mississippi Connecticut	California Washington Oregon Colorado Texas

Academics
Popular study areas	Engineering Biological and Biomedical Sciences Social Sciences Physical Science Visual & Performing Arts	Kinesiology & Leisure Studies Visual & Performing Arts Social Sciences Physical Science Philosophy and Religious Studies
Students to faculty ratio	10:1	10:1
Institutional accreditation	Middle States Commission on Higher Education	Western Association of Schools and Colleges Senior Colleges and University Commission

Outcome
Graduation rate	87.9%	73.4%
Dropout rate	2.5%	26.6%
Transferred out	9.6%	N/A
Alumni salary by major (Top 10)	Chemical Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $64,532 Year 2: $68,379 Year 3: $80,306 Civil Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $67,033 Year 2: $65,238 Year 3: $78,021 Electrical, Electronics and Communications Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $77,247 Year 2: $71,575 Year 3: $76,714 Mechanical Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $67,784 Year 2: $65,486 Year 3: $76,536 Engineering, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $67,714 Year 2: $72,403 Year 3: $75,320 Economics (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $63,927 Year 2: $58,943 Year 3: $72,455 International Relations and National Security Studies (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $47,229 Year 2: $48,198 Year 3: $60,266 Political Science and Government (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $46,408 Year 2: $44,468 Year 3: $57,092 English Language and Literature, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $37,680 Year 2: $32,391 Year 3: $50,156 Psychology, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $44,170 Year 3: $48,201	Business/Managerial Economics (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $42,792 Year 2: $53,775 Year 3: $66,978 Communication and Media Studies (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $37,638 Year 2: $40,402 Year 3: $40,054 Health and Physical Education/Fitness (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $31,114 Year 2: $24,808 Year 3: $34,035 English Language and Literature, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $31,823 Year 2: $32,925 Year 3: N/A Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and Humanities (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $37,883 Year 2: N/A Year 3: N/A Biology, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $31,121 Year 2: $22,192 Year 3: N/A Psychology, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $32,369 Year 2: $25,596 Year 3: N/A Fine and Studio Arts (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $26,933 Year 3: N/A

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