Simpson College vs. Northwestern College

Simpson College vs. Northwestern College comparison

	Simpson College	Northwestern College	College 3	College 4
	Remove	Remove	+Add	+Add
Overview	Simpson College	Northwestern College
Location	Indianola, IA	Saint Paul, MN
Setting	Distant Town	Large Suburban
Enrollment	1,163	3,262
Type	Private 4 Year	Private 4 Year
National Ranking	#407	#551
Religious Affiliation	United Methodist	Other Protestant	-	-
Status	Non-profit	Non-profit
Website	simpson.edu	nwc.edu
Team Colors

Costs	Simpson College	Northwestern College
Tuition (In State)	$45,306	$35,970
Tuition (Out of State)	$45,306	$35,970
Room & Board	$10,088	$11,148
Avg Net Price	$23,637	$26,779
Avg Grant Aid	$35,240	$21,360
% Receiving Grant Aid	100%	100%

Admission	Simpson College	Northwestern College
Admission Chances	Calculate	Calculate
Applied	1,646	1,194
Admitted	1,463	1,097
Acceptance Rate	88.9%	91.9%
Enrolled %	23.4%	33.2%
Avg High School GPA	3.62	3.58
Typical High School Grades	B+	B+
Admissions Standards	Average	Challenging
Applicant Competition
ACT Range	20/27	22/29
SAT Range	890/1280	981/1293
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 15, 2025	Aug 1, 2025

Academics	Simpson College	Northwestern College
Student to Faculty Ratio	11:1	15:1
Popular Majors	Business (22%) Education (11%) Social Sciences (8%) Liberal Arts and Humanities (7%) Homeland Security, Law Enforcement, Firefighting (6%)	Theology and Religious Vvocations (22%) Business (18%) Education (11%) Psychology (10%) Communication (10%)
Outcomes	Simpson College	Northwestern College
Graduation Rate	69%	64%
Median Earnings (After 10 years)	$48,000	$41,100
Making Student Loan Payments	77%	78%
Median Student Loan Debt	$27,000	$22,070
Median Loan Payment	$279	$228

Diversity	Simpson College	Northwestern College
% Men	1%	1%
% Women	1%	1%
Racial Diversity	Very Low	Very Low
HBCU	No	No
% White	88%	84%
% Black	2%	3%
% Hispanic	3%	4%
% Native American	0%	0%
% Pacific Islander	0%	0%
% Two or More Races	1%	3%
% International	0%	1%
% Unknown Race	3%	1%

Students	Simpson College	Northwestern College
% In-State	72%	74%
% Out-of-State	27%	26%
Campus	Simpson College	Northwestern College
Campus Housing	Yes	Yes
Freshman Dorm Required	No	No
Meal Plan	Yes	Yes
Weekend/Evening Classes	Yes	No
Daycare Facility	No	No
Learn More	Details	Details

Comparable Facts

• Northwestern College is larger than than Simpson College based on total student enrollment (3,262 students vs. 1,163 students)

Simpson College vs. Northwestern College Cost Comparison

Which college is more expensive, Simpson College or Northwestern College?

• Simpson College is 26% more expensive to attend than Northwestern College for in-state tuition ($45,306.00 vs. $35,970.00)
• Out of state tuition is 26% higher at Simpson College than Northwestern College ($45,306.00 vs. $35,970.00)
• The typical actual cost that students pay to attend (average net price) is less at Simpson College than Northwestern College ($23,637 vs. $26,779)
• Living costs (room and board or off-campus housing budget) at Simpson College are 10.5% lower than costs at Northwestern College ($10,088 vs. $11,148)
• The same percent of students receive financial grant aid at Simpson College as Northwestern College (100% vs. 100%)
• The average total grant financial aid received by Simpson College students is 65% larger than aid received Northwestern College ($35,240 vs. $21,360)

Simpson College vs. Northwestern College Admissions Difficulty Comparison

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

• The average SAT score at Simpson College (1104) is 2 points higher than at Northwestern College (1102)
• Incoming Simpson College students have at the same average ACT score (24) as students at Northwestern College (24)
• Accepted freshman Simpson College students have a 0.04 point higher average high school GPA (3.62) than students at Northwestern College (3.58)
• Northwestern College has a higher acceptance rate (91.9%) than Simpson College (88.9%)

Simpson College vs. Northwestern College Graduation Outcomes Comparison

Which is better, Simpson College or Northwestern 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 Northwestern College and Simpson College.

• The graduation rate at Simpson College is higher than Northwestern College (69% vs. 64%)
• Graduates from Simpson College earn on average $6,900 more per year than Northwestern College graduates after ten years. ($48,000 vs. $41,100)
• Northwestern College students graduate with a $4,930 lower median federal student loan debt than Simpson College graduates. ($22,070 vs. $27,000)
• Northwestern College graduates are paying $51 less per month on federal student loans than Simpson College graduates. ($228 vs. $279)
• More Northwestern College graduates are actively paying back their federal student loan debt than former Simpson College students, three years after graduation. (78% vs. 77%)

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