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Saint Mary's College

Notre Dame, IN

Saint Mary's College is a private Catholic women's college located in Notre Dame, Indiana. Established in 1844 by the Sisters of the Holy Cross, the college offers a strong liberal arts education with a focus on empowering women and promoting social justice. With a beautiful campus spanning over 100 acres, the college provides a nurturing and inclusive environment for students to grow academically, spiritually, and personally.

At Saint Mary's College, academic excellence is a top priority. The college offers a wide range of undergraduate programs across various disciplines, including majors in the humanities, sciences, social sciences, and business. Small class sizes ensure that students receive individual attention and mentoring from highly qualified faculty members. The liberal arts curriculum emphasizes critical thinking, problem-solving, and effective communication skills, preparing students for successful careers and lifelong learning.

In addition to academics, Saint Mary's College offers a vibrant campus life. Students can engage in a variety of extracurricular activities, including more than 60 student-led clubs and organizations, intramural sports, and community service opportunities. The college also has a strong athletics program, with NCAA Division III teams in sports like basketball, soccer, tennis, and volleyball. Furthermore, the campus is home to a number of cultural and recreational facilities, including art galleries, a fitness center, and a serene lakeside park.

With its commitment to academic excellence, inclusivity, and social justice, Saint Mary's College provides a distinctive and empowering college experience for women. Students at Saint Mary's benefit from a comprehensive education that prepares them to make a positive impact in their professional fields and communities, while also fostering personal growth and spiritual development.

Saint Mary's College is a private university located in Notre Dame, IN and set in a suburban environment. This school follows a semester-based calendar. It has an acceptance rate of 81%. The freshman retention rate at Saint Mary's College is 83.63% and the six-year graduation rate is 77%.

Here are some current information on important things to consider about Saint Mary's College.

Quick Facts

1,423

Total Number of Undergraduate Students

81%

Acceptance Rate

$52,110

Tuition

10:1

Student to Faculty Ratio

77%

Graduation Rate

Admissions

Learning as much as possible about the institution's criteria for admission maximizes your chances of getting admitted. How difficult is it to get admitted to Saint Mary's College and what are the admission requirements?

According to the newest information reported, this school uses standardized test scores for admission and it admitted 1,928 in 2024. Saint Mary's College has an official test-optional admission policy but considers standardized test scores for the applicants who choose to submit them. Looking at entrance difficulty level for all or most incoming freshmen, based on data self-reported by the institution this school is moderately difficult to get into.

Test Scores

48% of first-time, first-year degree-seeking students submitted their SAT scores for admission, and 25% submitted ACT scores, out of the overall number of those who submitted test scores. 5.45% of the enrolled students submitted SAT composite scores between 1,400 and 1,600, 28.22% between 1,200 and 1,399, 50.99% between 1,000 and 1,199, 14.36% between 800 and 999, and 0.98% of the students between 600 and 799. The percent of freshman students who submitted ACT Composite scores in the range between 30-36 was 24.04, 49.04 between 24-29, 25.96 in the range between 18-23, and 0.96 between 12-17.

The average ACT score for all the accepted students in 2024 was 26 and the average GPA was 3.9. Therefore, the chances are that you'll need a GPA higher than the average for acceptance, and the same goes for your ACT score.

The new students had an average SAT Critical Reading score of 589 and an average SAT Math score of 569.

Average Test Scores

Retention Rate

What is the freshman retention rate? The freshman retention rate is the percentage of full-time students who entered the institution as freshmen in the previous academic year and returned for the fall term of the current academic year. That information can tell you if the majority of freshmen liked their first year enough to come back.

As reported in 2024, the freshman retention rate for Saint Mary's College was 83.63%, which is considered an above-average retention rate and is indicative of the quality of educational experience at this school.

The graduation rate is another indicator to take into account. This metric measures how efficiently students complete their degrees within a specific time period. At this school, the rate of students graduating within six years is 77%, which is considered an above-average graduation rate.

Student Body

Figuring out which school is the right fit for you is not a task you should take lightly. You can better understand the culture and life of the school by getting to know more about the student body.

Main Student Body

The total number of students enrolled at Saint Mary's College in 2024 was 1,517.

The school reported an out-of-state student body portion of 66% for that year. The total number of undergraduate students enrolled at the school was 1,423, 14 of which were international students. 17 students enrolled as transfer students.

Student Population Gender Ratio

The student body is only women, with 2 male and 1,449 female full-time students in 2024.

Student Population Diversity

The significance of student diversity cannnot be denied, when it comes to the overall feeling of inclusion and beloning among the students of any school. In a diverse learning space, you will be exposed to people from different backgrounds, which promotes the feeling of inclusion and acceptance. Learn more about all the ethnic communities you might encounter at this institution.

This school had 15 Asian students and 32 Afro-American students in 2024. 196 students at this school declared as Hispanic/Latino and 47 as multirace. There were also 16 students whose ethnicity is unknown.

Cost

Financial planning for school is one of the most important things to consider before you apply. Here are some details you should know about the cost of attendance for Saint Mary's College.

Tuition and Fees

Here are some numbers that can help you better understand the estimated tuition fees for this university.

In 2024, tuition amounted to $52,110 for all full-time domestic students. Since Saint Mary's College is a private institution, there is no difference in tuition for out-of-state or international students. Full-time students in 2024 had to pay additional fees in the amount of $1,120.

Boarding

The cost of dorm rooms and meals in the school's cafeteria is for sure something to take into consideration. What is the typical amount colleges and universities charge for lodging and meals?

At Saint Mary's College, the 2024 annual cost of room and board (on campus) was $14,260.

Tuition $ 52,110
Room and Board $ 14,260
Total Expense $ 66,370

Financial Aid

Be it a grant, loan, scholarship, or work-study program, any type of financial help can be a great deal for most students. Check out some recent data to get informed about need-based and non-need-based monetary aid students could get at Saint Mary's College.

According to the most recent data, 311 freshmen were awarded financial aid. Students of this school received an average of $45,473 in financial help.

Need-based

Need-based financial aid is exactly what it sounds like — it’s awarded based on the determined financial need.

There were 972 students who secured need-based financial aid of any kind. Need-based college-administered scholarship and grant aid at Saint Mary's College is available to international students. The total number of students (including freshmen) who were determined to have financial need came to be 972. The amount of federal need-based scholarships/grants awarded to the students at this institution stood at $2,073,382, and state $1,866,572. The students of Saint Mary's College received the -institutional need-based aid in the amount of $31,292,266, and external in the amount of $602,737.

$28,691

Average Amount of Aid Received

Non-Need Based

Non-need-based financial aid is any type of financial aid provided to a student who does not meet the criteria for need-based aid. Non-need-based student aid typicaly comes in a form of Direct Unsubsidized Stafford Loans, Graduate PLUS Loans, Parent PLUS Loans, and the Teacher Education Access for College and Higher Education (TEACH) Grant.

969 students, including freshmen, were awarded institutional non-need-based scholarship or grant aid at this school in 2024. Institutional help in the form of non-need-based scholarships or grants was given to 311 full-time freshmen. The total amount of non-need-based institutional scholarships/grants was $13,388,039. This includes endowment, alumni, other institutional awards, and also external funds awarded by the institution, but doesn't include athletic aid and tuition waivers. The amount the students of this school received from external sources (e.g. Kiwanis, National Merit) was $1,176,377 USD.

Faculty

10:1

Student to Faculty Ratio

Getting information about the faculty at a school can help you estimate the quality of education you will receive there.

According to the most recent data, the student-faculty ratio at Saint Mary's College was 10:1: that means 10 students per one teacher, which is considered a good ratio. The faculty of this school consists of 139 members, according to the most recent data reported. Out of that number, there were 59 male and 130 female faculty members. The fact that female faculty members outnumber the male ones at this school speaks volumes for gender equality at Saint Mary's College.

Student Population Diversity Graph

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100
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100

Campus Life

Not everything at Saint Mary's College is about learning and grades: campus life is an essential part of your educational experience. Find out some information about social life at Saint Mary's College.

Its campus spans 100 acres.

Student Organizations

Student organizations are run by students of an institution, and its membership typically consists exclusively of current students and/or alumni.

This school has 75 open-membership student organizations you can participate in. The student organization that gathers the largest number of students is Student Diversity Board, followed by Residence Hall Association and Student Activities Board. Other popular student organizations at this school are Dance Marathon and Student Government Association.

If you are interested in music, you can join the Saint Mary's College band or chorus. In case you're interested in acting, there is a drama club you can consider joining. You have a passion for media and communication? Saint Mary's College publishes its own newspaper and has its own radio station.

Student Services

At Saint Mary's College, there are many amenities that make life on campus pleasant and safe.

24/7 emergency phone and alarm devices are available. The dormitory entrances are electronically operated. There is a security patrol available 24/7. The after-hours transportation/escort service is available.

There is a medical clinic with personal/psychological counseling. All in all, campus life at Saint Mary's College is rich and vibrant and provides everything most students need.

Career Services

Having career services at a college or university can mean a great deal for your career planning, so find out what you can expect at Saint Mary's College.

Career Counselling

At Saint Mary's College, there is both group career counseling for all students and individual career counseling for all students. There are a library, a job bank, and job fairs. Job interviews are also available to students through the career center. The career center offers resume preparation and resume referral to employers. There is campus employer recruitment for all the students. This school offers alumni networking opportunities, which could be excellent for your future career.

FAQ

Saint Mary's College is located in Notre Dame, IN.

Saint Mary's College offers need-based college-administered scholarship and grant aid to international students.

According to the latest information, the tuition for Saint Mary's College is 52,110 USD a year.

This school uses standardized test scores for admission.

The most recent data indicate that the acceptance rate for Saint Mary's College is 81%.

According to the latest information, the freshman retention rate for Saint Mary's College is 83.63%.

Contact Information

Saint Mary's College,

SR 933

Notre Dame, IN

46556

574 284-4000

School Website

Data Source: IPEDS and Peterson's Databases © 2023 Peterson's LLC All rights reserved. Portions of this content were co-written with OpenAI's GPT-3.5 model.

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