Swarthmore College is a private liberal arts-based college located in Swarthmore, Pennsylvania. Swarthmore College was originally founded in 1864 by the Religious Society of Friends, also known as the Quakers, but the religious affiliation of the school was dropped in 1906. Despite the affiliation being dropped, the values held by the Religious Society of Friends still remain as a part of the culture of Swarthmore College and are represented in the core tenets which are “academic excellence, thoughtful stewardship of natural resources, and educating for the common good.” In this article, we will be looking at the acceptance rate at Swarthmore College.
Swarthmore College is located on 425 acres and the campus has three main libraries. Parrish Hall is the main building on campus and is home to the administrative offices, student lounges, two floors of student housing, the campus radio station, and the student newspaper, The Phoenix. There are many hiking trails on campus as well, and Travel + Leisure named Swarthmore College campus as one of the most beautiful campuses in 2011.
U.S. News and World Report ranked Swarthmore College as the third-best liberal arts college in the country in 2019. Although it is a small school, it has received a lot of recognition for its rigorous academic program and unique values. Swarthmore College was named the number one “Best Value” private school by the Princeton Review from 2009 to 2011 and again in 2013.
Swarthmore College offers a variety of disciplines for students to choose from with over 600 courses available for students to take. The student to faculty ratio at Swarthmore College is eight to one which allows students to have a more personal experience with faculty members in their courses. Swarthmore College has a prestigious honors program that involves students from all different degree programs and allows students to collaborate with faculty members. Another distinguishing factor about the honors program at Swarthmore College is the examinations are given by experts outside of the college. If you would like to attend this college, you need to graduate top of your class since the acceptance rate at Swarthmore College is low.
Community is a large part of the culture at Swarthmore College. Swarthmore is part of a collaboration between three other colleges called the Tri-College Consortium. The other two liberal arts colleges involved in this collaboration are Bryn Mawr College and Haverford College. The Tri-College Consortium allows students to cross-register at any of the three colleges. Swarthmore College is also a part of the Quaker Consortium, which allows students to cross-register at the University of Pennsylvania as well as the other three colleges.
Acceptance Rate at Swarthmore College
Swarthmore College has a very low acceptance rate at 13%. Swarthmore is considered the most selective college by U.S. News & World Report and the number of applicants is one of the highest of any liberal arts college. There is not one particular factor that affects a student’s admission to Swarthmore College, however, there is a large focus on how each student fits into the values of the college. As a liberal arts school, the decision is made based on not only academics, but also the character of the student. Each application received is reviewed by a committee of admissions deans and goes through a very selective application process.
We hope that this article on the Swarthmore College acceptance rate was helpful. To know more information on studying abroad, check out the Available Programs for International Students.
