Westmont College
Location and Contact Information
955 La Paz RdSanta Barbara, CA 93108-1089
USA
Main Tel: (805) 565-6000
Web Site
The campus is in a medium-sized suburb.
Overview
Westmont College, is an interdenominational Christian liberal arts college located in Santa Barbara, California, United States. It was established in 1937, and was initially known as Bible Missionary Institute, which was later renamed as Westmont College. Spread across 110 acres of hills, the campus is nestled in the hills of Montecito. US News and World Report ranked the college 111th among the "America's Best Colleges 2009" in the liberal arts colleges category. It offers over 25 majors in wide range of subjects. International students constitute a significant number of strength of the college.
Westmont College has an active student life. The campus hosts a wide variety of student clubs and organizations. Some of the intercultural organizations include Asian Student Association (ASA), Black Student Union (BSU), and Latino Cultural Organization (LCO).
Highlights (vs. Other Schools)
- Many students concentrating in art studies, science, media, nutrition and exercise therapy, liberal arts, drama and performing arts, and music.
- Number of dorm rooms for students.
- Large number of students.
- High faculty salary.
- Good faculty-to-student ratio.
- Large number of programs of study offered.
- High percentage of students are from out-of-state.
- Unusually high availability of athletic financial aid.
- High SAT scores (combined Verbal and Math).
- Superior share of faculty on tenure track.
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.
Tuition and Financial Aid (2009-2010)
| Item | Cost |
|---|---|
| State Tuition and fees | $ 33,190 |
| Room | $ 6,560 |
| Board | $ 3,990 |
| Books and supplies | $ 1,368 |
| Other | $ 3,042 |
Financial Aid
Westmont College participates in US Title IV financial assistance programs.
In 2009-2010, 96% of students received financial aid of some sort.
| Grants | % of Students | Average Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Any Grant | 95% | $16,751 |
| Institutional Grant | 95% | $14,446 |
| Federal Grant | 16% | $4,672 |
| Pell Grant | 16% | $2,979 |
| Other Federal Grant | 15% | $1,794 |
| State or Local Grant | 16% | $8,817 |
| Loans | % of Students | Average Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Student Loan | 61% | $7,314 |
| Federal Loan | 59% | $4,840 |
| Other Loan | 32% | $5,106 |
(Please refer to BrainTrack's financial aid articles section for background information.)
Similar Schools
Based on proprietary BrainTrack computer comparisons against all other US colleges, these schools appear to be most similar to Westmont College:
Click a column header to sort.
| School | Location | Enrollment | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Austin College | Sherman, TX | 1,298 |
| 2 | Luther College | Decorah, IA | 2,423 |
| 3 | Southwestern University | Georgetown, TX | 1,270 |
| 4 | University of Puget Sound | Tacoma, WA | 2,844 |
| 5 | Lafayette College | Easton, PA | 2,382 |
| 6 | Occidental College | Los Angeles, CA | 1,868 |
| 7 | College of Saint Benedict | Saint Joseph, MN | 2,110 |
| 8 | Gordon College | Wenham, MA | 1,717 |
| 9 | Dickinson College | Carlisle, PA | 2,388 |
| 10 | Illinois Wesleyan University | Bloomington, IL | 2,125 |
Degrees Awarded (in 2009-2010)
| Degree | Total Earned | Different Programs |
|---|---|---|
| Bachelor | 304 | 26 |
| Postbaccalaureate certificate | 17 | 2 |
Faculty
Tenure (2009-2010):
| Full-Time Faculty | Total | |
|---|---|---|
| With tenure | 57 | |
| Without tenure; working toward tenure | 25 | |
| Without tenure; tenure not available | 11 |
Students
Student enrollment was 1,340 in 2009-2010 (1,369 full-time equivalent).
About 37% of the freshmen class in 2009-2010 was male and women were 63% of the class.
Undergrads are 99% of enrolled students and graduate students are 1%.
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)
Applicants Admitted Men 80% Women 80% All 80%
SAT Test Scores:
SAT Middle 50% Verbal 520-650 Math 530-650 Writing 530-650
Room and Board
Westmont College provides on-campus housing for 1,050 of its 1,369 (full-time) students (as of 2009-2010). The school requires freshmen to live on campus.
Students may purchase a meal plan which includes 21 meals weekly.
Athletics
The school is in the Golden State Athletic Conference for major sports.
The school offers financial aid for athletes. Of students receiving athletic financial aid, 54 male students received the aid (men were 51% of those receiving aid) and 51 women were awarded financial aid based on athletics (representing 49% of students receiving such aid) .
International Study
About 1% of freshmen are from countries other than the US.
International applicants are required to take the TOEFL exam.
Graduate School Focus
Westmont College offers graduate (post-Bachelor) studies. The highest degree offered is the Bachelor.
Programs of Study
(Number of degrees in 2009-2010 in parentheses)
ART STUDIES
- Art/Art Studies
BUSINESS AND MANAGEMENT
- Business/Managerial Economics
COMPUTER SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING
- Computer and Information Sciences
DRAMA AND PERFORMING ARTS
- Drama and Dramatics/Theatre Arts
EDUCATION AND TEACHING
- Elementary Education and Teaching
- Secondary Education and Teaching
ENGINEERING
- Engineering Physics
FINE ARTS
- Art History, Criticism and Conservation
LIBERAL ARTS
- Anthropology
- English Language and Literature
- Foreign Languages and Literatures
- French Language and Literature
- History
- Liberal Arts and Sciences/Liberal Studies
- Political Science and Government
- Social Sciences
- Sociology
- Spanish Language and Literature
MATHEMATICS
- Mathematics
MEDIA
- Communication Studies/Speech Communication and Rhetoric
MUSIC
- Music
NUTRITION AND EXERCISE THERAPY
- Kinesiology and Exercise Science
RELIGION AND PHILOSOPHY
- Philosophy
- Religion/Religious Studies
SCIENCE
- Biology/Biological Sciences
- Chemistry
- Physics
THERAPY AND COUNSELING
- Psychology