Lafayette College
About
Lafayette College is a private liberal arts college in Easton, Pennsylvania, United States. Founded in 1826 by James Madison Porter and other citizens in Easton, the college first held classes in 1832. The founders voted to name the college after the Marquis de Lafayette, a hero of the American Revolution.
Admissions & acceptance rate
First-time freshman admissions: how selective the college is, and how many admitted students choose to enroll.
Graduation rate & outcomes
Completion, retention, and the equity gap between Pell and non-Pell students.
Pell equity
Pell and non-Pell students graduate at nearly identical rates, a notably small equity gap.
Source: IPEDS Graduation Rates (GR) — Pell/SSL cohort, 2024 cohort.
Program outcomes
Federal Program Performance Data: how each program's graduate earnings and debt measure up under Financial Value Transparency and Gainful Employment.
Of 37 Title IV programs, 8 pass the federal Gainful Employment test and 0 fail. 29 have graduate earnings too small to publish, so they carry no pass/fail verdict.
Pass / fail distribution
- Passing8 · 21.6%
- No Data29 · 78.4%
- Failing0 · 0.0%
Severity spectrum
Tiers band programs by how far graduate earnings sit above or below the benchmark, from Critical (below −15%) through Safe (above +25%). No data means earnings were privacy-suppressed.
Earnings premium gap
Graduate earnings versus the federal benchmark, worst gaps first.
Debt vs earnings
Median completer debt against median graduate earnings, highest burden first.
Accreditation status & history
Who accredits the institution, current standing, and any past actions.
Middle States Commission on Higher Education
Action history · 2
- Jan 2021Approved for Distance EducationMiddle States Commission on Higher Education
- Jun 2019Renewal of AccreditationMiddle States Commission on Higher Education
Tuition & cost
What families actually pay, broken down by family income.
Net price by family income
Negative values mean aid exceeds the published cost of attendance for that income band.
Federal aid volume & trends
Pell grants and federal Direct Loan volume disbursed to students, and how they've trended.
In AY 2024–25, 386 students received $2.3M in Pell grants, alongside $7.8M in federal Direct Loans.
Pell recipients · 5-year trend
Loan volume by type · AY 2024–25
Loan awards count each loan type a student holds, not unique borrowers; one student may carry several (e.g. subsidized and unsubsidized), so the per-type figures are the reliable detail.
Student loan default rate
The share of student borrowers who default on federal loans within three years, against the national benchmark.
Of 258 borrowers who entered repayment, 3 (1.1%) defaulted within three years — below the 2.3% national rate.
Default rate vs national, by cohort
* Cohorts 2020 and later read near 0% because the federal COVID-19 payment pause (CARES Act) suspended defaults nationwide. These years reflect a national policy, not institutional performance; the 2019 cohort is the last measured under normal repayment.
Academic programs at Lafayette College
Top program areas ranked by completions.
Top program families by completions
Enrollment trends & demographics
Fall headcount, 12-month unduplicated enrollment, and student body composition.
Gender split
Race / ethnicity composition
Athletics & Title IX gender equity
How athletic participation, aid, and spending are split between men and women.
Men vs women · spending splits
Sport-by-sport · 12
Campus safety & crime statistics
Reported on-campus crimes over the last three years, including violence and hate crimes.
3-year trend
Criminal offenses by type
By location
- On campus19
- Non-campus1
Includes 9 in residence halls (a subset of on-campus, not added to the total).
VAWA offenses
Hate crimes by bias
- Race1
Arrests vs disciplinary referrals
Residence-hall fires
Student-faculty ratio
Student-to-faculty ratio and instructional staff counts.
Lafayette College vs Peer comparison
The peer institutions Lafayette College selected for federal comparison reporting.
A larger shape on any axis means this institution outperforms its peers on that dimension. For acceptance rate and net price, lower raw values are inverted so "more selective" and "more affordable" appear larger.
| Carnegie | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
SubjectLafayette College | 88% | — | 2,775 | $34,433 | Baccalaureate |
| 94% | 9.0% | 1,914 | $23,367 | Baccalaureate | |
| 90% | 13.3% | 1,760 | $29,351 | Baccalaureate | |
| 95% | 7.1% | 1,881 | $14,398 | Baccalaureate | |
| 86% | 28.9% | 3,969 | $40,766 | Baccalaureate | |
| 90% | 20.4% | 2,128 | $25,407 | Baccalaureate | |
| 91% | 9.6% | 1,393 | $28,849 | Baccalaureate | |
| 89% | 7.1% | 2,412 | $17,180 | Baccalaureate | |
| 91% | 13.9% | 3,211 | $28,786 | Baccalaureate | |
| 91% | 13.4% | 1,869 | $17,379 | Baccalaureate | |
| 88% | 14.5% | 1,788 | $17,648 | Baccalaureate | |
| 91% | 13.6% | 2,031 | $28,985 | Baccalaureate | |
| 92% | 12.7% | 951 | $35,924 | Baccalaureate | |
| 90% | 12.4% | 1,431 | $25,314 | Baccalaureate | |
| 91% | 10.7% | 2,803 | $31,483 | Baccalaureate | |
| 81% | 34.2% | 2,909 | $38,645 | Baccalaureate | |
| 93% | 7.1% | 1,700 | $19,285 | Baccalaureate | |
| 89% | 21.0% | 2,857 | $27,579 | Baccalaureate | |
| 92% | 7.5% | 1,623 | $23,149 | Baccalaureate | |
| 80% | 43.9% | 2,065 | $34,561 | Baccalaureate | |
| 91% | 18.6% | 2,462 | $39,343 | Baccalaureate | |
| 94% | 14.0% | 2,241 | $23,781 | Baccalaureate | |
| 92% | 14.0% | 2,407 | $25,496 | Baccalaureate | |
| 93% | 16.5% | 4,011 | $30,177 | Baccalaureate | |
| 94% | 8.3% | 2,164 | $17,716 | Baccalaureate | |
| Peer group median | 91% | 13.5% | 2,128 | $27,579 |
Institutions like Lafayette College
Explore the federal data for institutions in Lafayette College's comparison group.
- BaccalaureateMassachusetts
Amherst College
Grad rate94%Admit rate9.0%Enrollment1,914Net price$23,367View data - BaccalaureateMaine
Bates College
Grad rate90%Admit rate13.3%Enrollment1,760Net price$29,351View data - BaccalaureateMaine
Bowdoin College
Grad rate95%Admit rate7.1%Enrollment1,881Net price$14,398View data - BaccalaureatePennsylvania
Bucknell University
Grad rate86%Admit rate28.9%Enrollment3,969Net price$40,766View data - BaccalaureateMinnesota
Carleton College
Grad rate90%Admit rate20.4%Enrollment2,128Net price$25,407View data - BaccalaureateCalifornia
Claremont McKenna College
Grad rate91%Admit rate9.6%Enrollment1,393Net price$28,849View data - BaccalaureateMaine
Colby College
Grad rate89%Admit rate7.1%Enrollment2,412Net price$17,180View data - BaccalaureateNew York
Colgate University
Grad rate91%Admit rate13.9%Enrollment3,211Net price$28,786View data - BaccalaureateNorth Carolina
Davidson College
Grad rate91%Admit rate13.4%Enrollment1,869Net price$17,379View data - BaccalaureateIowa
Grinnell College
Grad rate88%Admit rate14.5%Enrollment1,788Net price$17,648View data - BaccalaureateNew York
Hamilton College
Grad rate91%Admit rate13.6%Enrollment2,031Net price$28,985View data - BaccalaureateCalifornia
Harvey Mudd College
Grad rate92%Admit rate12.7%Enrollment951Net price$35,924View data - BaccalaureatePennsylvania
Haverford College
Grad rate90%Admit rate12.4%Enrollment1,431Net price$25,314View data - BaccalaureateVermont
Middlebury College
Grad rate91%Admit rate10.7%Enrollment2,803Net price$31,483View data - BaccalaureateOhio
Oberlin College
Grad rate81%Admit rate34.2%Enrollment2,909Net price$38,645View data - BaccalaureateCalifornia
Pomona College
Grad rate93%Admit rate7.1%Enrollment1,700Net price$19,285View data - BaccalaureateMassachusetts
Smith College
Grad rate89%Admit rate21.0%Enrollment2,857Net price$27,579View data - BaccalaureatePennsylvania
Swarthmore College
Grad rate92%Admit rate7.5%Enrollment1,623Net price$23,149View data - BaccalaureateNew York
Union College
Grad rate80%Admit rate43.9%Enrollment2,065Net price$34,561View data - BaccalaureateNew York
Vassar College
Grad rate91%Admit rate18.6%Enrollment2,462Net price$39,343View data - BaccalaureateVirginia
Washington and Lee University
Grad rate94%Admit rate14.0%Enrollment2,241Net price$23,781View data - BaccalaureateMassachusetts
Wellesley College
Grad rate92%Admit rate14.0%Enrollment2,407Net price$25,496View data - BaccalaureateConnecticut
Wesleyan University
Grad rate93%Admit rate16.5%Enrollment4,011Net price$30,177View data - BaccalaureateMassachusetts
Williams College
Grad rate94%Admit rate8.3%Enrollment2,164Net price$17,716View data
Lafayette College Institutional Research office
The IR team responsible for the institution's federal reporting.
The mission of the Office of Institutional Research is to help maintain the accuracy, organization, and comprehensiveness of the College-wide database and to work with all constituencies to develop a single set of operational definitions and standards with respect to data collection, analysis and reporting; coordinate the preparation of a series of required annual reports for dissemination to external groups; provide technical support to all constituencies of the College interested in collecting and interpreting data.
Visit IR office page- Simon T. Tonev, Ph.D.Director of Institutional Research
Common Data Set
Lafayette College's own annual Common Data Set: the most detailed self-reported reference for selectivity, cost, outcomes, and the student body.
Selectivity & Admissions
Admissions funnel
C110,556 applied → 3,289 admitted (31.2%) → 696 enrolled.
Selectivity
C1Selective — 31.2% acceptance rate.
Admit rate by gender
C1Admit rate varies by gender.
SAT range (middle 50%)
C9Middle 50% SAT 1360–1490 (median 1420).
ACT range (middle 50%)
C9Middle 50% ACT 30–33 (median 31).
High-school class rank
C10Share of enrolled first-years by HS class-rank band.
Waitlist outcome
C22,660 offered a waitlist spot, 1,316 accepted it, 171 admitted (13.0% of those who stayed on).
What matters in admission
C7Relative importance of each admission factor.
Affordability & Value
Cost of attendance
GTotal sticker cost of attendance is $93,492 (2026-2027).
Sticker vs. net price
G+HSticker $93,492 → about $39,461 net for aided students after the average need-based grant ($54,031); 100% of demonstrated need is met.
Where grant aid comes from
H10% of need-based grant dollars come from the institution itself.
Graduate debt
H4/H537% of graduates borrowed; those who did owed $34,810 on average.
Outcomes & Equity
Graduation & retention
B6-year graduation rate 88%; first-year retention 91%.
Equity: Pell graduation gap
B4Pell-grant recipients graduate 2 pts below the overall rate (86% vs 88%).
Academic Experience
Class-size distribution
I365% of classes have under 20 students; 1% have 50+.
Faculty profile
IKey faculty indicators.
Degrees by discipline
JSTEM-dominant: ~40% of bachelor's degrees are in computing, engineering, math & sciences.
Student Body & Diversity
Undergraduate race/ethnicity
B2Undergraduate enrollment by race/ethnicity.
International students
B27% of undergraduates are international (nonresident).
Transfer Path
Transfer admissions
D1233 transfer applicants → 53 admitted (22.7%) → 26 enrolled — more selective than first-year admission.
Reports & documents (2)
Dashboards, factbooks, data dictionaries, and other reference material published by the IR office.
- DFR reportIPEDS Data Feedback Report 20242024nces.ed.gov
- Strategic planBecoming Lafayette - Strategic Plan2026Lafayette College's strategic plan, 'Becoming Lafayette,' focuses on integrating liberal arts with engineering, enhancing interdisciplinary collaboration, and fostering global and local community engagement. Key initiatives include creating a Democracy and Its Technologies Initiative to explore the intersection of technology and civic practice and expanding experiential learning opportunities in Easton, the Lehigh Valley, and globally. The plan emphasizes cultivating inclusivity and belonging, strengthening infrastructure, and maintaining sustainability, ensuring a comprehensive educational environment that prepares students for active global citizenship.becoming.lafayette.edu
Notable alumni of Lafayette College (23)
A curated list of alumni recognized for notable achievements across industries.
- William E. SimonGovernment
- George C. HeckmanAcademics and education
- James McKeen CattellAcademics and education
- Earl Gregg SwemAcademics and education
- Frank Reed HortonAcademics and education
- Barry WellmanAcademics and education
- James GayleyBusiness
- Sarkis AcopianBusiness
- Michael H. MoskowBusiness
- Stephen D. PryorBusiness
- Neil LevinBusiness
- Fred Morgan KirbyBusiness
Frequently asked questions about Lafayette College
Quick answers to the questions most often asked about Lafayette College.
What is the graduation rate at Lafayette College?
How many students attend Lafayette College?
What is the average net price at Lafayette College?
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Where is Lafayette College located?
Who runs Institutional Research at Lafayette College?
About the data on this page
Every figure comes from an official federal or public source. Here is each one and the release it is currently on.
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