Northwestern College vs. Dakota State

Northwestern College vs. Dakota State University comparison

	Northwestern College	Dakota State University	College 3	College 4
	Remove	Remove	+Add	+Add
Overview	Northwestern College	Dakota State
Location	Saint Paul, MN	Madison, SD
Setting	Large Suburban	Distant Town
Enrollment	3,262	3,508
Type	Private 4 Year	Public 4 Year
National Ranking	#551	#813
Religious Affiliation	Other Protestant	-	-	-
Status	Non-profit	Non-profit
Website	nwc.edu	dsu.edu
Team Colors

Costs	Northwestern College	Dakota State
Tuition (In State)	$35,970	$7,616
Tuition (Out of State)	$35,970	$10,718
Room & Board	$11,148	$8,990
Avg Net Price	$26,779	$19,115
Avg Grant Aid	$21,360	$5,263
% Receiving Grant Aid	100%	87%

Admission	Northwestern College	Dakota State
Admission Chances	Calculate	Calculate
Applied	1,194	988
Admitted	1,097	967
Acceptance Rate	91.9%	97.9%
Enrolled %	33.2%	40.7%
Avg High School GPA	3.58	3.33
Typical High School Grades	B+	B+
Admissions Standards	Challenging	Challenging
Applicant Competition
ACT Range	22/29	20/26
SAT Range	981/1293	1020/1340
Submit Test Scores	Not required for admission, but considered if submitted (Test Optional)	Not required for admission, but considered if submitted (Test Optional)
Application Deadline	Aug 1, 2025

Academics	Northwestern College	Dakota State
Student to Faculty Ratio	15:1	19:1
Popular Majors	Theology and Religious Vvocations (22%) Business (18%) Education (11%) Psychology (10%) Communication (10%)	Computer and Information Sciences (28%) Business (25%) Education (22%) Health Professions (14%) Recreation, Leisure and Fitness Studies (3%)
Outcomes	Northwestern College	Dakota State
Graduation Rate	64%	34%
Median Earnings (After 10 years)	$41,100	$42,200
Making Student Loan Payments	78%	67%
Median Student Loan Debt	$22,070	$23,500
Median Loan Payment	$228	$242

Diversity	Northwestern College	Dakota State
% Men	1%	12%
% Women	1%	4%
Racial Diversity	Very Low	Very Low
HBCU	No	No
% White	84%	84%
% Black	3%	4%
% Hispanic	4%	4%
% Native American	0%	1%
% Pacific Islander	0%	0%
% Two or More Races	3%	3%
% International	1%	1%
% Unknown Race	1%	1%

Students	Northwestern College	Dakota State
% In-State	74%	56%
% Out-of-State	26%	38%
Campus	Northwestern College	Dakota State
Campus Housing	Yes	Yes
Freshman Dorm Required	No	No
Meal Plan	Yes	Yes
Weekend/Evening Classes	No	Yes
Daycare Facility	No	No
Learn More	Details	Details

Comparable Facts

• Dakota State University is larger than than Northwestern College based on total student enrollment (3,508 students vs. 3,262 students)

Northwestern College vs. Dakota State Cost Comparison

Which college is more expensive, Northwestern College or Dakota State?

• Northwestern College is 372.3% more expensive to attend than Dakota State for in-state tuition ($35,970.00 vs. $7,616.00)
• Out of state tuition is 235.6% higher at Northwestern College than Dakota State University ($35,970.00 vs. $10,718.00)
• The typical actual cost that students pay to attend (average net price) is less at Dakota State University than Northwestern College ($19,115 vs. $26,779)
• Living costs (room and board or off-campus housing budget) at Dakota State University are 24% lower than costs at Northwestern College ($8,990 vs. $11,148)
• More students receive financial grant aid at Northwestern College than Dakota State University (100% vs. 87%)
• The average total grant financial aid received by Northwestern College students is 305.9% larger than aid received Dakota State University ($21,360 vs. $5,263)

Northwestern College vs. Dakota State Admissions Difficulty Comparison

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

• The average SAT score at Northwestern College (1102) is 55 points higher than at Dakota State (1047)
• Incoming Northwestern College students have a 1 point higher average ACT score (24) than students at Dakota State (23)
• Accepted freshman Northwestern College students have a 0.25 point higher average high school GPA (3.58) than students at Dakota State (3.33)
• Dakota State has a higher acceptance rate (97.9%) than Northwestern College (91.9%)

Northwestern College vs. Dakota State Graduation Outcomes Comparison

Which is better, Northwestern College or Dakota State? 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 Dakota State and Northwestern College.

• The graduation rate at Northwestern College is higher than Dakota State University (64% vs. 34%)
• Graduates from Dakota State University earn on average $1,100 more per year than Northwestern College graduates after ten years. ($42,200 vs. $41,100)
• Northwestern College students graduate with a $1,430 lower median federal student loan debt than Dakota State graduates. ($22,070 vs. $23,500)
• Northwestern College graduates are paying $14 less per month on federal student loans than Dakota State graduates. ($228 vs. $242)
• More Northwestern College graduates are actively paying back their federal student loan debt than former Dakota State students, three years after graduation. (78% vs. 67%)

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