Whitman College vs Carleton College

Whitman College and Carleton College, both esteemed liberal arts institutions, offer distinct educational experiences. Whitman, located in Walla Walla, Washington, boasts a slightly higher acceptance rate (59%) compared to Carleton's 24% in Northfield, Minnesota. While both colleges share a strong emphasis on undergraduate teaching and research opportunities, their popular majors diverge. Whitman excels in the sciences, with biology and chemistry among its most sought-after programs, while Carleton's strengths lie in the social sciences, with economics and political science topping the list. Their student bodies also differ: Whitman's is more diverse, with 45% students of color, while Carleton's is predominantly white (73%). Both institutions boast impressive graduation rates, with Whitman at 83% and Carleton at 89%. Explore the detailed comparison table to discover more distinctions and determine which college aligns best with your academic aspirations and personal preferences.

	Carleton College	Whitman College
Overview
Location	Northfield, Minnesota	Walla Walla, Washington
Campus setting	Town: Distant	City: Small
College type	4 year	4 year
Control/business model	Private (Non Profit)	Private (Non Profit)
Calendar system	Trimester	Semester
Degrees offered	Undergraduate	Undergraduate
Students retention rate	95.0%	89.0%
Common app member	Yes	Yes
Religious affiliation

Admission
Acceptance rate	17.5%	59.0%
Application fees		$50
SAT range	1408 - 1550	1295 - 1455
ACT range	31 - 35	29 - 33
Students submitting SAT score	35.0%	21.0%
Students submitting ACT score	34.0%	19.0%
Total number of applicants	7,915	5,155
Total number of admissions given out	1,389	3,039
Admitted students who chose to enroll	555	477
Yield rate	40.0%	15.7%
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)	Required	Required

Tuition and Fees
Sticker price	$78,315	$71,982
Average net price	$31,718	$35,627
Tuition	$59,850	$55,560
Room & board	Room/dormitory: $8,115 Meal plan: $7,260	Room/dormitory: $6,080 Meal plan: $7,720
Available payment plans	Tuition payment plan	Tuition payment plan

Financial Aid
Students receiving financial aid (Grants & scholarships)	65.0% Average amount $45,715	91.0% Average amount $30,781
Students receiving federal student loan	45.0% Average amount $3,914	42.0% Average amount $4,853
Students taking out private loans	2.0% Average amount $14,334	2.0% Average amount $14,105

Students and Campus
Undergraduate students	2,044 Men 48.7% Women 51.3%	1,559 Men 43.9% Women 56.1%
Graduate students	N/A	N/A
Racial/ethnic diversity	Moderate	Low
Out-of-state students	81.5%	65.0%
International students	10.2%	10.2%
Campus local/setting	Town: Distant	City: Small
Dormitory capacity	1,854	886
First year students are required to live on campus?	Yes	No
Top 5 states where most U.S. students come from	Minnesota California Illinois New York Texas	Washington California Oregon Colorado Minnesota

Academics
Popular study areas	Physical Science Social Sciences Ethnic Studies Mathematics and Statistics Visual & Performing Arts	Social Sciences Biological and Biomedical Sciences Visual & Performing Arts English Language and Literature Computer and Information Science
Students to faculty ratio	8:1	9:1
Institutional accreditation	Higher Learning Commission	Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities

Outcome
Graduation rate	91.4%	88.7%
Dropout rate	8.3%	1.6%
Transferred out	N/A	8.0%
Alumni salary by major (Top 10)	Computer Science (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $76,876 Year 2: $76,460 Year 3: $101,936 Economics (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $60,032 Year 2: N/A Year 3: $66,207 Biology, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $28,526 Year 2: $23,034 Year 3: $30,071 Area Studies (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $27,669 Year 2: N/A Year 3: N/A English Language and Literature, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $27,425 Year 2: $22,329 Year 3: N/A Mathematics (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $46,952 Year 2: $37,568 Year 3: N/A Chemistry (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $30,227 Year 2: $36,141 Year 3: N/A Geological and Earth Sciences/Geosciences (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $20,625 Year 2: N/A Year 3: N/A Physics (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $42,774 Year 3: N/A Psychology, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $31,301 Year 2: $33,719 Year 3: N/A	Economics (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $38,596 Year 2: $42,682 Year 3: $64,407 Visual and Performing Arts, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $26,353 Year 3: $43,330 Biology, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $20,051 Year 2: $22,999 Year 3: $41,844 Psychology, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $29,549 Year 2: $27,584 Year 3: $39,355 English Language and Literature, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $18,868 Year 3: N/A Political Science and Government (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $20,472 Year 2: $33,993 Year 3: N/A Sociology (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $33,993 Year 3: N/A Film/Video and Photographic Arts (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $25,194 Year 3: N/A

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Whitman College vs Carleton College

Carleton College

Whitman College

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