Lake Forest College doesn’t require students to choose practicality over passion. We know that embracing both makes for well-rounded graduates and the strongest job candidates.

We take a pragmatic approach that merges the nourishing foundations of a liberal arts education with practical experience through internships, research, study abroad opportunities, and the Lake Forest In The Loop program.

Our graduates use their Lake Forest College experiences to make a career they love: 97 percent have jobs, enter graduate school, or pursue other avenues of success within six months of graduation.

Our thriving academic community and superb faculty make education engaging and forward-thinking. Our proximity to Chicago, the third-largest city in the US, provides students access to rich cultural experiences and experiential learning in all fields, earning us consistent rankings for internship opportunities.

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Lake Forest College Rankings

Niche rankings are based on rigorous analysis of key statistics from the U.S. Department of Education and millions of reviews.

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Admissions

Application Deadline

January 15

Acceptance Rate

60%

SAT Range

1150-1340

ACT Range

26-31

Application Fee

SAT/ACT

Considered but not required

High School GPA

Required

Accepts Common App

Yes

Cost

Net Price

$27,839 / year

National

$15,523

Average cost after financial aid for students receiving grant or scholarship aid, as reported by the college.

Average Total Aid Awarded

$37,907 / year

National

$7,535

Students Receiving Financial Aid

100%

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Academics

Professors

B+

Based on faculty accomplishments, salary, student reviews, and additional factors.

Student Faculty Ratio

13:1

Evening Degree Programs

89%

of students agree that professors put a lot of effort into teaching their classes. 28 responses

65%

of students agree that it is easy to get the classes they want. 37 responses

43%

of students agree that the workload is easy to manage. 37 responses

Majors

Health Professions Program

This is a unique program among liberal arts colleges with the intention of preparing students for a variety of professions in the broad field of health care. The innovative program consists of a core of health-related courses and opportunities for exploration along with clearly-articulated joint-degree programs with nearby Rosalind Franklin University of Medicine and Science.

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Online

Programs Offered Entirely Online

Offers Online Courses

Yes

Online Certificate Programs

Online Associates Programs

Online Bachelor's Programs

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Mix of Online and on Campus
9%
On Campus
91%
Online
0%

Students

Full-Time Enrollment

1,685 Undergrads

Part-Time Undergrads

Undergrads Over 25

Pell Grant

27%

Varsity Athletes

26%

Poll

What one word or phrase best describes the typical student at this school?

Based on 30 responses

Friendly but cliquey
23%
Diverse
17%
Keeps to themselves
17%
Friendly
13%
Athlete or hipster
10%
Cliquey
7%
Hipster
7%

Campus Life

Freshmen Live On-Campus

83%

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Poll

46%

of students say Greek life is pretty low-key and has little effect on the social scene. 48 responses

Poll

46%

of students say varsity sporting events are attended, but not a huge part of campus life. 48 responses

Poll

What one word or phrase best describes your school?

Based on 28 responses

Small
36%
Driven
18%
Personalized
14%
Introverted
11%
Home away from home
7%
A big circus
4%
Amalgamated
4%

After College

Median Earnings 6 Years After Graduation

$50,900 / year

National

$33,028

Graduation Rate

78%

National

49%

Employed 2 Years After Graduation

93%

National

83%

of students feel confident they will find a job in their field after graduation. 18 responses

Lake Forest College Reviews

491 reviews

Lake Forest is beautiful and the only thing decently interesting about this school is that it’s close to the beach. I lived on campus for a semester and was miserable. Apart from my antisocial roommate, the dorms were humid even in the winter, and the communal bathrooms are really grimy and old. Switched to being a commuter, but the lack of parking spaces for students in general is pathetic. If you come to school after 10 am, you won’t be able to find a spot. There were always students (including me) desperately driving in circles hoping to find an open spot that wasn’t reserved for I don’t even know who. The school doesn’t value students, and the advisors (I have had 3) are basically incompetent. A professor had to help me figure out my graduation requirements, and this school puts too much responsibility onto their professors and not enough on the rest of the administration. Registering for classes is basically impossible, this should be considered a community college at best.

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The majority of professors here are great. They show day by day that they are eager to teach and that they genuinely care. However, this is likely the worst school you could possibly pick if you care more about than just academics. School workers are horrible here. The cafeteria workers are always in a bad mood (except for one guy called Ruben). The "Public safety" workers are always on a power trip playing pretend cops and giving attitude to students. The reslife workers (Nora and Denise) are literally useless. They will smile and pretend like they care, just to be of no help at the end.

Other things to consider, the dorms are small and outdated. A lot of them do not have A/C, there are roaches and centipedes and there is no communal kitchen. The caf food is not the best, there are weeks where all they have is dry pasta 3-4 times in a row. The school continues to become cheaper and cheaper, now even selling the bananas they use to have in the caf. Please do not choose this school.

I had a great experience at LFC! The location is very local at first, but I grew to love it and take advantage of how gorgeous Lake Forest is. You kind of have to see with a Gilmore girls kind of lenses to truly appreciate it. And of course being near Chicago was also a lot of fun - trying new dinner spots and especially having the chance to have an internship a short train ride away. Definitely would recommend getting an apartment for later years (junior and senior) after making your friends - if you haven’t met your people by sophomore year, keep holding out on campus to ensure you are able to meet new people before graduating. I never attended the campus events other than HOCO, I just went to parties on campus or to the bars near by when I wanted to socialize. And the career center is incredible, we have many connections to great companies. Classes are great and small, but like any school there are the good and bad professors.

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This school offers Direct Admissions!

Lake Forest College partners with Niche to automatically accept qualified students. No application needed. Learn more about Niche Direct Admissions

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