Quad

Head-to-head

Sweet Briar
Welch

Key differences

The biggest gaps between these schools, largest first.

  1. 1

    Sweet Briar grads earn $9.7K more ten years out than Welch's ($51,943 vs. $42,198)

    Median earnings, 10 yrs
  2. 2

    Sweet Briar's grants cover 50% of its full price on average, vs. 41% at Welch

    Aid generosity
  3. 3

    Sweet Briar has 2.0× as many undergrads as Welch

    Undergrads
  4. 4

    Sweet Briar is more diverse (index 0.49 vs. 0.45)

    Diversity index
  5. 5

    Sweet Briar has 3 pts more Pell recipients than Welch (31% vs. 28%)

    Pell Grant recipients
  6. 6

    Sweet Briar costs about $594 less per year on average than Welch ($21,856 vs. $22,450, all students)

    Average cost, all students

The shape of each school

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

SelectivityTest scoresSizePell shareFirst-genDiversity

Hollow dots at the center mean that measure isn't reported.

Who's hardest to get into

Sweet Briar admits 76%; Welch doesn't report an acceptance rate.

Acceptance rate
Sweet Briar76%
WelchNot reported
Quad's selectivity
  • Sweet BriarAccessible
  • WelchNot rated
SAT middle 50%Axis 1000–1600
Sweet Briar
1100–1310
WelchNot reported
How they read a recordfirst-years at 3.75+
  • Sweet BriarGPA, school record, and prep program required
  • WelchNot reported

Who's on each campus

Sweet Briar is twice Welch's size and has the larger Pell share.

Undergrads
Sweet Briar443
Welch226
Pell Grant share
Sweet Briar31%
Welch28%

Majors and faculty

Business/Commerce leads at Sweet Briar, and Psychology at Welch; Welch has 8 students per faculty member to Sweet Briar's 9.

Students per faculty member
Sweet Briar9 to 1
Welch8 to 1
Most popular majorshare of graduates
  • Sweet BriarBusiness/Commerce, General19%
  • WelchPsychology, General16%

What each costs

Sweet Briar and Welch cost about the same a year on average; Sweet Briar's grants cover the larger share of its price.

Average cost, all students
Sweet Briar$21.9K
Welch$22.5K
Aid generosity
Sweet Briar50%
Welch41%

What each pays off

Sweet Briar's former students earn more, a median $51.9K ten years after enrolling; both graduate more than 50% within six years.

Median earnings, 10 years
Sweet Briar$51.9K
Welch$42.2K
Graduation rate
Sweet Briar56%
Welch55%

How each has changed

Applications grew at Sweet Briar, which got more selective.

Applications, 10-year change
  • Sweet BriarGrowing+57%
  • WelchNot reported
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