California College of the Arts vs. Mount Mercy College

California College of the Arts vs. Mount Mercy University comparison

	California College of the Arts	Mount Mercy University	College 3	College 4
	Remove	Remove	+Add	+Add
Overview	California College of the Arts	Mount Mercy College
Location	Oakland, CA	Cedar Rapids, IA
Setting	Large City	Midsize City
Enrollment	1,501	1,526
Type	Private 4 Year	Private 4 Year
National Ranking
Religious Affiliation	-	Roman Catholic	-	-
Status	Non-profit	Non-profit
Website	cca.edu	mtmercy.edu
Team Colors

Costs	California College of the Arts	Mount Mercy College
Tuition (In State)	$53,856	$36,606
Tuition (Out of State)	$53,856	$36,606
Room & Board	$19,957	$10,636
Avg Net Price	$47,862	$24,078
Avg Grant Aid	$27,563	$27,288
% Receiving Grant Aid	91%	100%

Admission	California College of the Arts	Mount Mercy College
Admission Chances	Calculate	Calculate
Applied	2,987	1,569
Admitted	2,261	1,181
Acceptance Rate	75.7%	75.3%
Enrolled %	8.4%	19%
Avg High School GPA	3.34	3.5
Typical High School Grades	B+	B+
Admissions Standards	Unavailable	Unavailable
Applicant Competition
ACT Range
SAT Range
Submit Test Scores	Not considered for admission, even if submitted (Test Blind)	Not required for admission, but considered if submitted (Test Optional)
Application Deadline		Aug 15, 2025

Academics	California College of the Arts	Mount Mercy College
Student to Faculty Ratio	7:1	13:1
Popular Majors	Visual and Performing Arts (77%) Architecture (11%) Communications Technology (4%) Communication (4%) English and Literature (2%)	Business (44%) Health Professions (22%) Education (10%) Homeland Security, Law Enforcement, Firefighting (6%) Psychology (4%)
Outcomes	California College of the Arts	Mount Mercy College
Graduation Rate	49%	60%
Median Earnings (After 10 years)	$43,500	$45,900
Making Student Loan Payments	62%	71%
Median Student Loan Debt	$28,000	$22,250
Median Loan Payment	$289	$230

Diversity	California College of the Arts	Mount Mercy College
% Men	35%	36%
% Women	65%	64%
Racial Diversity	Very High	Very Low
HBCU	No	No
% White	27%	81%
% Black	4%	7%
% Hispanic	14%	2%
% Native American	0%	1%
% Pacific Islander	1%	0%
% Two or More Races	0%	2%
% International	31%	3%
% Unknown Race	7%	3%

Students	California College of the Arts	Mount Mercy College
% In-State	42%	60%
% Out-of-State	20%	28%
Campus	California College of the Arts	Mount Mercy College
Campus Housing	Yes	Yes
Freshman Dorm Required	No	No
Meal Plan	No	Yes
Weekend/Evening Classes	No	Yes
Daycare Facility	No	No
Learn More	Details	Details

Comparable Facts

• Mount Mercy University is larger than than California College of the Arts based on total student enrollment (1,526 students vs. 1,501 students)

California College of the Arts vs. Mount Mercy College Cost Comparison

Which college is more expensive, California College of the Arts or Mount Mercy College?

• California College of the Arts is 47.1% more expensive to attend than Mount Mercy College for in-state tuition ($53,856.00 vs. $36,606.00)
• Out of state tuition is 47.1% higher at California College of the Arts than Mount Mercy University ($53,856.00 vs. $36,606.00)
• The typical actual cost that students pay to attend (average net price) is less at Mount Mercy University than California College of the Arts ($24,078 vs. $47,862)
• Living costs (room and board or off-campus housing budget) at Mount Mercy University are 87.6% lower than costs at California College of the Arts ($10,636 vs. $19,957)
• More students receive financial grant aid at Mount Mercy University than California College of the Arts (100% vs. 91%)
• The average total grant financial aid received by California College of the Arts students is 1% larger than aid received Mount Mercy University ($27,563 vs. $27,288)

California College of the Arts vs. Mount Mercy College Admissions Difficulty Comparison

Which college is harder to get into, California College of the Arts or Mount Mercy College? Average SAT and ACT scores plus acceptance rates offer good insight into the difficulty of admission between Mount Mercy College or California College of the Arts .

• Accepted freshman Mount Mercy College students have a 0.16 point higher average high school GPA (3.5) than students at California College of the Arts (3.34)
• California College of the Arts has a higher acceptance rate (75.7%) than Mount Mercy College (75.3%)

California College of the Arts vs. Mount Mercy College Graduation Outcomes Comparison

Which is better, California College of the Arts or Mount Mercy College? Graduation rate, salary and amount of student loan debt are indicators of a college which offers better outcomes for its graduates. Compare the following outcomes facts between Mount Mercy College and California College of the Arts.

• The graduation rate at Mount Mercy College is higher than California College of the Arts (60% vs. 49%)
• Graduates from Mount Mercy University earn on average $2,400 more per year than California College of the Arts graduates after ten years. ($45,900 vs. $43,500)
• Mount Mercy University students graduate with a $5,750 lower median federal student loan debt than California College of the Arts graduates. ($22,250 vs. $28,000)
• Mount Mercy College graduates are paying $59 less per month on federal student loans than California College of the Arts graduates. ($230 vs. $289)
• More Mount Mercy College graduates are actively paying back their federal student loan debt than former California College of the Arts students, three years after graduation. (71% vs. 62%)

Sources: U.S. Department of Education https://nces.ed.gov IPEDS and College Scorecard https://collegescorecard.ed.gov/