Augustana College

augustana college niche

Excel With Well-Rounded Liberal Arts Degrees at Augustana

Augustana College appears in our ranking of 50 Great Affordable Colleges in the Midwest.

Split into six divisions with 98 percent job placement, Augustana College maintains a 12:1 undergrad-faculty ratio for 53 bachelor’s majors and 74 minors in Rock Island. For example, the B.A. in Multimedia Journalism follows a 120-credit, media-savvy curriculum of practice publishing The Observer and streaming WVIK 90.3FM. Chaired by Dr. Alexander Cohen, the 48-month B.A. in Political Science evaluates governmental policymaking in the Freistat Center for Studies in World Peace with a Pre-Law Option. The B.A. in Landscape Architecture has a 3+3 cooperative agreement with the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign involving 90 credits, such as Ecosystem Conservation. Starting 2020, the Barbara A. Roseman Center will confer a 24-month M.A. in Speech-Language Pathology centered on treating communication disorders with two Quad Cities internships. Other Augustana opportunities include the B.A. in Elementary Education, B.A. in Asian Studies, B.A. in Business Administration, B.A. in Public Health, B.A. in Scandinavian Studies, B.A. in Biochemistry, B.A. in Art History, and B.A. in Engineering.

About Augustana College

Augustana College originated on September 1, 1860, when Rev. Lars Paul Esbjörn of the Scandinavian Evangelical Lutheran Synod began Augustana Seminary in Chicago. In 1863, the Illinois Central Railroad sold it 1,000 agrarian acres for a Paxton relocation. Twelve years later, Rev. Tufve Nilsson Hasselquist moved it again to a 115-acre Rock Island campus now on the National Register of Historic Places. During Rev. Conrad Bergendoff’s 27-year tenure, it divided into Augustana College and Augustana Seminary in 1947. First accredited in 1954, it created a lasting covenant with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America in 1987. By 2008, Augustana College had completed its biggest fundraising campaign worth $100 million. Retaining its Swedish heritage, Augustana enrolls 2,500 Vikings with 60+ clubs like Alpha Phi Omega and an 88 percent volunteering rate.

The U.S. News & World Report ranked Augustana the 95th best national liberal arts college, 66th top value, and 52nd best undergraduate teaching school. On Niche, Augustana boasts America’s 29th best Christian degrees, 84th best small classes, 93rd top teacher prep, and 143rd top anthropology program. Times Higher Education placed Augustana College 274th overall. Forbes declared Augustana the 252nd best private institution with the 86th top Midwest degrees. Money magazine named Augustana the 320th best buy. PayScale recorded the 578th highest mid-career median wage of $91,700 at Augustana College. The Institute for International Education noticed Augustana for the 39th most bachelor’s students abroad. Student Loan Report recognized Augustana with the 36th most creative scholarship money. Washington Monthly also crowned Augustana College the country’s 148th top liberal arts school.

Augustana College Accreditation Details

On June 29, 2020, Augustana College will undergo its mid-term assurance review from the Higher Learning Commission of the North Central Association (HLC-NCA) to keep the Level III accreditation fresh until Spring 2025 under its eighth president, Dr. Steven C. Bahls, who received the Liberty Bell Award for Legal Profession Service. Headquartered 176 miles east via Interstate 80 in Chicago, this massive 19-state Midwest accreditor is authorized by the U.S. Secretary of Education to test Augustana’s baccalaureate standards. Passing its 25th year, the B.A. in Chemistry holds programmatic approval from the American Chemical Society (ACS). The Council on Accreditation of Educator Preparation (CAEP) accredited the Education Department through June 2020. Augustana College also received initial accreditation from the National Association of Schools of Music (NASM) on September 1, 1938.

Augustana College Application Requirements

Enrolling at Augustana College is considered “moderately difficult” by Peterson’s because the Fall 2017 acceptance rate of 59 percent only made 3,976 of the 6,739 applicants triumphant. First-year Vikings fighting for bachelor’s spots must hold a high school diploma or GED certificate. The breadth of secondary courses needs four years each of Language Arts and Mathematics. Most rank in the top one-third their class with a minimum 3.0 GPA. On average, freshmen present a 1250 SAT and 26 ACT score. The Honors Program is reserved for undergrads with “B+” or better in first-semester classes. Transfers must have finished at least one full-time college semester with cumulative GPAs above 2.5. Non-U.S. students need to reach ESL Level 112 or submit TOEFL pBT scores over 550 for English proficiency. The M.A. in Speech-Language Pathology will admit cohorts of 20 bachelor’s grads with “B” averages and GRE scores in the 50th percentile.

Augustana College asks freshmen to meet the November 1st Early Decision or April 1st Regular Decision deadline. Transfers with 12+ credits have rolling bachelor’s admission year-round. International undergrads should prepare materials by June 1st for Fall or October 1st for Spring. Choose the Augustana Application or Common Application for free submission online. Have registrars mail official grades to 639 38th Street in Rock Island, IL 61201. Send optional test scores using SAT code 1025 or ACT code 0946. If desired, schedule a Chicagoland or Skype interview and create a ZeeMee profile. Supplemental items could include the counselor’s report, teacher recommendation, brief résumé, writing sample, and certificate of finances. Please contact [email protected] or (309) 794-7341 with other questions.

Tuition and Financial Aid

For 2018-19, Augustana College is charging full-time baccalaureate majors $21,067 per semester or $42,135 annually. Studying part-time incurs $1,808 per credit. Applied music fees cost $276 for one to $798 for four credits. Optional accident/sickness insurance is $1,935 each year. Living at the Rock Island campus’ dorms like Andreen Hall adds $1,784 to $2,742 per term. Standard meal plans for the Gerber Center of Student Life are $5,220. Augustana budgets $1,000 for textbooks, $800 for personal needs, and $400 for travel expenses. Therefore, annual bachelor’s attendance equals $53,422 on-site and $43,108 with parents.

According to the NCES College Navigator, the Office of Financial Aid in Seminary Hall gets 98 percent of full-time Augustana Vikings a median offer of $25,058 for $62.51 million combined. Collegiate funds include the Dean’s Scholarship, Phi Theta Kappa Scholarship, Presidential Scholarship, Out-of-State Award, Carl B. Nelson Music Education Scholarship, Judith Katz Memorial Theatre Scholarship, Lucken Geology Scholarship, Future ELCA Church Leaders Scholarship, Geifman Scholarship, and Austin E. Knowlton Scholarship. The Campus Visit Grant gifts $4,000 over four years to seniors touring before May 1st. Transfers with minimum 2.7 GPAs qualify for Merit Scholarships of $16,000 to $23,000 annually. Based on Estimated Family Contribution, FAFSA applicants using code 001633 claim Federal Pell and FSEOG Grants. The Olin Center coordinates Federal Work-Study jobs compensating $8.25/hour. Maximum interest rates for Federal Direct Subsidized and Unsubsidized loans are 6.6 percent. State assistance like the Illinois Monetary Award, Higher Education License Plate Program, College Savings Bond Bonus Incentive Grant, and Illinois Veteran Grant helps too.

Find more about the inquiry-based baccalaureates at the Augustana College website.