Quad

Head-to-head

Life
Rockford

Key differences

The biggest gaps between these schools, largest first.

  1. 1

    Life's yield is 29 pts higher than Rockford's

    Yield rate
  2. 2

    Rockford's grants cover 48% of its full price on average, vs. 24% at Life

    Aid generosity
  3. 3

    Rockford has 13 pts more first-gen students than Life (42% vs. 29%)

    First-generation students
  4. 4

    Rockford graduates 11 pts more of its students than Life (57% vs. 46%)

    Graduation rate
  5. 5

    Rockford has 8 pts more Pell recipients than Life (48% vs. 40%)

    Pell Grant recipients
  6. 6

    Rockford grads earn $7.4K more ten years out than Life's ($54,794 vs. $47,397)

    Median earnings, 10 yrs

The shape of each school

Each axis is a national rank among 4-year colleges; further out = more of it.

SelectivityTest scoresSizePell shareFirst-genDiversity

Who's hardest to get into

Rockford admits 93%, Life 93%; Life's yield is higher, at 42%.

Acceptance rate
Life93%
Rockford93%
Quad's selectivity
  • LifeOpen
  • RockfordOpen
SAT middle 50%Axis 700–1600
Life
920–1130
Rockford
850–1070
How they read a recordfirst-years at 3.75+
  • LifeGPA required
  • RockfordGPA, school record, and prep program required

Who's on each campus

Life and Rockford are about the same size; Rockford has the larger Pell share.

Undergrads
Life893
Rockford972
Pell Grant share
Life40%
Rockford48%

Majors and faculty

General Studies leads at Life, and Exercise Science and Kinesiology at Rockford; Rockford has 10 students per faculty member to Life's 15.

Students per faculty member
Life15 to 1
Rockford10 to 1
Most popular majorshare of graduates
  • LifeGeneral Studies23%
  • RockfordExercise Science and Kinesiology13%

What each costs

Rockford costs about $3.4K less a year than Life on average, and its grants cover the larger share of its price.

Average cost, all students
Life$31.2K
Rockford$27.8K
Aid generosity
Life24%
Rockford48%

What each pays off

Rockford's former students earn more, a median $54.8K ten years after enrolling; six-year graduation runs from 57% at Rockford to 46% at Life.

Median earnings, 10 years
Life$47.4K
Rockford$54.8K
Graduation rate
Life46%
Rockford57%

How each has changed

Applications grew at Life but fell at Rockford; both got less selective.

Applications, 10-year change
  • LifeGrowing+73%
  • RockfordShrinking−13%
All the numbersEvery figure for these colleges in one table, with differences highlighted.
Sources for this comparisonEvery dataset and year behind the numbers in this comparison; tap any ⓘ for one number's source

Sources:IPEDS Admissions survey, Fall 2024;College Scorecard, Fall 2024;College Scorecard, most recent release;IPEDS Institutional Characteristics survey, 2023–24;IPEDS Student Financial Aid survey, 2023–24;College Scorecard, Entered fall 2023;IPEDS Fall Enrollment survey (part D), Fall 2024;IPEDS Completions survey (degrees awarded by field), 2024–25 graduates;College Scorecard, 2023–24;IPEDS Graduation Rates survey (Pell Grant and subsidized loan recipients), Entered fall 2018About the data(retrieved 2026-10-12)

Figures are the newest each college has published; years can differ between colleges. Each value's ⓘ shows its source and year. Why