Lafayette College

Location and Contact Information

The campus is in a large suburb.

Overview

Lafayette College is located in Easton, Pennsylvania, United States. It was founded in the year 1826 by the citizens of Easton who were led by James Madison Porter to establish a college in the area. The school is named in honor of Marquis de Lafayette, who left France to fight with US during its Revolutionary War. The school was strongly supported by the Presbyterian Church at its birth in the early 1800s; however, it no longer has any official relationship with that church. The school attracts a wide mix of religious backgrounds among its student body.

The college grants degrees and certificates to students in various subjects including history, international affairs, neuroscience, mathematics, and religious studies. Lafayette College is organized into the following academic divisions:

• Engineering
• Humanities
• Natural Sciences
• Social Sciences

Students have access to numerous clubs and organizations. Some of these are Alpha sigma Lambda, Sigma Delta Pi, Asian Culture Association, College Republicans, American Chemical Society, and International Affairs Club. The men participate in sports such as baseball, basketball, football, cross country, lacrosse, golf, tennis, soccer, track and field, and swimming and diving. The women participate in field hockey, cross country, basketball, softball, soccer, lacrosse, tennis, swimming and diving, track and field, and volleyball.

Highlights (vs. Other Schools)

• Presbyterian Church (USA) religious affiliation.
• Many students concentrating in mathematics, liberal arts, engineering, art studies, and science.
• High percentage of students are from out-of-state.
• Number of dorm rooms for students.
• High faculty salary.
• High SAT scores (combined Verbal and Math).
• Good faculty-to-student ratio.
• Selective admissions.
• Large number of students.
• High male/female ratio.
• Large number of programs of study offered.
• Superior share of faculty on tenure track.
• Unusually high availability of athletic financial aid.

School characteristics:

• The school is private, not-for-profit.
• Academic calender: Semester.
• Carnegie classification: Baccalaureate Colleges, Liberal Arts.

Features of note:

• The school offers a faculty tenure system.
• There are one or more libraries on-campus.
• Campus housing is available.
• Students have meal (board) plans.
• Students may study abroad.
• Part-time classes are available.
• ROTC.
• Athlete financial aid is awarded.

Similar Schools

Based on proprietary BrainTrack computer comparisons against all other US colleges, these schools appear to be most similar to Lafayette:

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Degrees Awarded (in 2009-2010)

Faculty

Tenure (2009-2010):

Students

Student enrollment was 2,382 in 2009-2010 (2,482 full-time equivalent).

About 52% of the freshmen class in 2009-2010 was male and women were 48% of the class.

Undergrads are 100% of enrolled students.

Students under 25 years old represent 99% of the student body. About 0% of the school is at least 40 years of age.

Admissions Summary (2009-2010)

SAT Test Scores:

Room and Board

Lafayette provides on-campus housing for 2,136 of its 2,482 (full-time) students (as of 2009-2010). The school requires freshmen to live on campus.

Students may purchase a meal plan which includes 20 meals weekly.

Athletics

School sports include football, basketball, baseball, and track. The school is in the Patriot League for major sports.

The school offers financial aid for athletes. Of students receiving athletic financial aid, 94 male students received the aid (men were 59% of those receiving aid) and 64 women were awarded financial aid based on athletics (representing 41% of students receiving such aid) .

Graduate School Focus

The highest degree offered is the Bachelor.

Programs of Study

(Number of degrees in 2009-2010 in parentheses)

ART STUDIES (9 awarded)

• Art/Art Studies

COMPUTER SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING (3 awarded)

• Computer and Information Sciences

ENGINEERING (108 awarded)

• Chemical Engineering
• Civil Engineering
• Electrical, Electronics and Communications Engineering
• Engineering
• Mechanical Engineering

LIBERAL ARTS (293 awarded)

• African Studies
• American/United States Studies/Civilization
• Area, Ethnic, Cultural, and Gender Studies
• Econometrics and Quantitative Economics
• Economics
• English Language and Literature
• French Language and Literature
• German Language and Literature
• History
• International Economics
• International Relations and Affairs
• Multi-/Interdisciplinary Studies
• Political Science and Government
• Russian Studies
• Social Sciences
• Spanish Language and Literature

MATHEMATICS (22 awarded)

• Mathematics

MEDICINE (11 awarded)

• Neuroscience

MUSIC (2 awarded)

• Music

RELIGION AND PHILOSOPHY (8 awarded)

• Philosophy
• Religion/Religious Studies

SCIENCE (63 awarded)

• Biochemistry
• Biology/Biological Sciences
• Chemistry
• Geological and Earth Sciences/Geosciences
• Physics

THERAPY AND COUNSELING (54 awarded)

• Psychology