City Town Info

Mills College

Mills College

Mills College, established as the Young Ladies seminary in 1852 at Benicia, was renamed Mills Seminary after being taken over by Susan and Cyrus Mills. It was not until 1885 that the institution was given its current name. Located in Oakland, California, the college is a private, non-profit, liberal art, women’s institution. The U.S News and World Reports ranked the college fourth among the top notch colleges of the West. More than 1000 students enroll in Mills every year.

The College offers more degree programs than most colleges of the same size. In addition to several undergraduate courses, students are allowed to create their own majors. The most popular areas of study in Mills College are business, creative writing, book art, music, English and dance, among others.

Nicknamed Cyclones, the college participates in intercollegiate sports including cross-country, rowing, soccer and tennis. It belongs to the Pacific – 10 Conference and is also a member of the NCAA division III.

Overview of Mills College

The campus of Mills College is in Oakland, CA, which is a large city. The school is a private, not-for-profit institution. Degrees at Mills College include, at the school's highest level, the Doctoral degree.

Areas of Study

The school has a greater breadth of degree programs (majors) than most colleges of its size. Mills College is known for its programs in music, art studies, drama and performing arts, liberal arts, and conservation and resource management.

Mills College Selectivity

Admission at the school is selective, not open to all who apply. Three quarters of students in 2007-2008 had SAT verbal scores of at least 520. Half of math SAT scores of accepted students fell between 490 and 590.

Faculty

The school maintains a faculty/student ratio (full-time) which is better than most colleges. Mills College has a tenure system for senior faculty. The full-time faculty at the school is well-paid, which often goes with faculty quality.

Student Body

In 2007-2008, Mills College had 1,446 students enrolled (1,287 full-time equivalent). A very high share of students at the school are female.

Student Life

Mills College offers dorm rooms to a higher percentage of its students than do most colleges. The school offers students meal plans. Mills College values student athletics, and belongs to the California Pacific Conference.

More complete details are provided below.

Contacting Mills College

Mills College
5000 MacArthur Blvd
Oakland, CA 94613
General Phone: (510) 430-2255
http://www.mills.edu

Mills College Programs and Degrees (2008-2009)

General CategoryDegreesMost Common Majors [see all]
Liberal Arts121creative writing, English, political science, social studies, economics, women's studies, minority and gender studies, English literature, ...
Education and Teaching94early childhood education, secondary teaching, educational administration, teacher ed, educational admin and supervision, education courses, early childhood special ed, art education
Business and Management50managerial economics
Music30various music studies, music, music performance, music theory and composition
Medicine24pre-med
Therapy and Counseling24psychology
Family and Social Work22public policy analysis, child development
Science21biology, biopsychology, biochem/biophysics/molecular biology, chemistry
Art Studies19art studies
Nursing and Emergency Medicine16various nursing
Drama and Performing Arts12dance
Fine Arts7art history and criticism
Conservation and Resource Management6environmental science, environmental studies
Religion and Philosophy3philosophy
Photography and Commercial Art3multimedia
Mathematics2mathematics
Computer Science and Engineering2computer and info science

Number of programs and degrees for Mills College in 2008-2009:

Degree LevelTotal
Awarded
Number of
Programs
Bachelor's degree19436
Master's degree18215
Postbaccalaureate certificate588
Award of at least 2 but less than 4 academic years161
Doctor's degree61

Student Body

In 2007-2008, Mills College had a total enrollment of 1,446 students (1,287 full-time equivalent).

Students in the Freshman Class:

GroupPercent
Women100%
Full-Time100%
Part-Time0%

Students By Class:

GroupPercent
Undergraduate65%
Graduate35%

Racial Diversity:
RacePercent
White44%
Black11%
Hispanic12%
Asian8%
American Indian1%
Unknown22%
(Foreign Students)3%

Students by Age:

AgePercent
Under 183%
18-1923%
20-2118%
22-2415%
25-2918%
30-349%
35-395%
40-495%
50-643%
65+0%

Incoming (Freshman) Students by Place of Residence:
(From available data sampling)

ResidencePercent
California71%
Washington4%
State unknown3%
Oregon3%
Minnesota2%
Texas2%
Arizona2%
Hawaii2%
Colorado2%
Idaho1%
Massachusetts1%
Utah1%
Louisiana1%
Missouri1%
New York1%
Maryland1%
New Mexico1%
Georgia1%
Connecticut1%
North Dakota1%
North Carolina1%
Arkansas1%

Mills College Graduation, Retention, and Transfers

Retention Rates (2007):

GroupReturning From
Previous Year
Full-Time74 %

Mills College Room and Board (2007)

Mills College offers campus housing for 650 of its 1,287 (full-time) students.

(Please refer to our profile of Oakland, California for details about the area surrounding the campus. Also see our list of other California Colleges).

The school offers students a meal plan with 19 meals per week.

Mills College Admissions and Selectivity

Acceptances:

GroupApplicantsAcceptedPercent
Accepted
EnrolledPercent of
Accepted Enrolled
Total1,41677655%20226%
Women1,41677655%20226%

Standardized Test Scores:

Test25th Percentile75th Percetile
SAT Verbal520650
SAT Math490590
SAT Writing520620
ACT Composite2027

Application Requirements:

ItemRequirement
GPArecommended
Class Rankrecommended
High School Recordrequired
College Prep Programrecommended
Recommendationsrequired
Formal Demonstration of Competencenot required
Standardized Tests (SAT and/or ACT)required
Percent of Applicants Submitting SAT93%
Percent of Applicants Submitting ACT32%
TOEFL (Test of English as a Foreign Language)required
Other Standardized Testsnot required

Mills College Expenses and Financial Aid (2008-2009)

Expenses and Financial Aid:

ExpenseAmount
In-state tuition and fees$ 35,190
Out-of-state tuition and fees$ 35,190
Room and board$ 11,270
Room charge$ 6,030
Board (meal plan) charge$ 5,240
Books and supplies$ 1,300
Other expenses$ 2,000

Financial Aid:
Mills College participates in Federal Title IV financial aid programs. (The school's OPE ID is 123800)

Mills College Faculty

Mills College has a tenure system for faculty.

Salaries for full-time faculty:

Full-Time Faculty (2008-2009):

Full-Time Faculty LevelContract LengthNumber MenAvg Salary MenNumber WomenAvg Salary Women
Professoracademic year24$122,95626$119,033
Associate professoracademic year5$95,87716$91,184
Assistant professoracademic year8$66,98212$66,916
Lectureracademic year0*3$69,885
No academic rankacademic year0*2*
All faculty totalacademic year37$107,19459$96,267

*: salaries are not displayed where there are fewer than 3 professors in the category.

Mills College Athletics

Athletic Conferences:

SportConference
TrackCalifornia Pacific Conference

Mills College Degree Programs (2007)

ART STUDIES
Art/Art Studies, General

BUSINESS AND MANAGEMENT
Business/Managerial Economics

COMPUTER SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING
Computer and Information Sciences, General

CONSERVATION AND RESOURCE MANAGEMENT
Environmental Science
Environmental Studies

DRAMA AND PERFORMING ARTS
Dance, General

EDUCATION AND TEACHING
Art Teacher Education
Early Childhood Education and Teaching
Education, Other
Education/Teaching Individuals - Early Childhood Spec Ed Pgms
Educational Administration and Supervision, Other
Educational Leadership and Administration, General
Secondary Education and Teaching
Teacher Education, Multiple Levels

FAMILY AND SOCIAL WORK
Child Development
Public Policy Analysis

FINE ARTS
Art History, Criticism and Conservation

LIBERAL ARTS
American/United States Studies/Civilization
Comparative Literature
Creative Writing
Economics, General
English Language and Literature, General
English Literature (British and Commonwealth)
Ethnic, Cultural Minority, and Gender Studies, Other
Foreign Languages and Literatures, General
French Language and Literature
Hispanic-American,Puerto Rican & Mexican-American/Chicano Studies
History, General
International Relations and Affairs
Latin American Studies
Liberal Arts and Sciences/Liberal Studies
Multi-/Interdisciplinary Studies, Other
Political Science and Government, General
Social Sciences, Other
Sociology
Spanish Language and Literature
Women's Studies

MATHEMATICS
Mathematics, General

MEDICINE
Pre-Medicine/Pre-Medical Studies

MUSIC
Music Performance, General
Music Theory and Composition
Music, General
Music, Other

NURSING AND EMERGENCY MEDICINE
Nursing, Other

PHOTOGRAPHY AND COMMERCIAL ART
Intermedia/Multimedia

RELIGION AND PHILOSOPHY
Philosophy

SCIENCE
Biochemistry/Biophysics and Molecular Biology
Biology/Biological Sciences, General
Biopsychology
Chemistry, General

THERAPY AND COUNSELING
Psychology, General

Find a school near you

Mills College Highlights

(Details are provided further down on this page.)

What Sets Mills College Apart:

CategoryTrophy 
Salaries of full-time faculty
(vs. all colleges)
Top 2%Mills College Salaries of full-time faculty
% of degrees in music
(vs. all colleges)
Top 3%Mills College % of degrees in music
% of degrees in art studies
(vs. all colleges)
Top 6%Mills College % of degrees in art studies
% of degrees in drama and performing arts
(vs. all colleges)
Top 9%Mills College % of degrees in drama and performing arts
Female % of student body
(vs. all colleges)
Top 14%Mills College Female % of student body
Number of degree programs
(vs. all colleges)
Top 16%Mills College Number of degree programs
Dorm rooms per full-time student
(vs. all colleges)
Top 18%Mills College Dorm rooms per full-time student
% of degrees in conservation and resource management
(vs. colleges with similar degree levels)
Top 18%Mills College % of degrees in conservation and resource management
% of degrees in liberal arts
(vs. all colleges)
Top 18%Mills College % of degrees in liberal arts
Student SAT scores
(vs. colleges of similar size)
Top 19%Mills College Student SAT scores
Faculty/student ratio (full-time)
(vs. all colleges)
Top 19%Mills College Faculty/student ratio (full-time)
Explanation of the Highlights categories

Notable:
Grants credits for AP courses
Career counseling
Student employment services
Remedial classes for students
Option to study abroad
Offers part-time study
On-campus library
Offers campus housing
Offers a board (meal) plan
Tenure system for quality teaching
NCAA athletic conference member

Schools Most Similar to Mills College

Try our unique CollegeMatch™ tool to find schools similar to Mills College.

Hotels Near Mills College

Oakland Hotels Near Mills College

Career and College Resources on CityTownInfo

Real-World Career Reports

Career Stories from workers: daily activities, job tips, best/worst job aspects, training, etc.

Daily Career & Education News from our staff. We're an approved Google News provider!

Career References and Original Articles

Resource Center. A starting point for all CityTownInfo career and college resources.

Career Overviews of hundreds of careers: descriptions, salaries, forecasts, schools, more.

Best Careers Not Requiring Degrees: Good pay, job growth, low need for degrees.

Helpful Articles, many in "how-to" format; e.g., "How to Become a Chef".

College Directories and Lists

These lists link to thousands of detailed school profiles.

Colleges by State. Nearly every college and trade school in the country.

Colleges Listed Alphabetically. About 7,000 colleges & trade schools, including online schools.

Colleges by Major City. Browse cities with multiple college options.

Online Colleges. Colleges with online degree programs.

Graduate Schools by State. Colleges offering graduate degree programs.

Graduate Schools by Major City. Find cities with multiple graduate school options.

Link to This Resource Page

Information is not guaranteed to be correct. Please check with individual schools for the most accurate and recent information.

Copyright © QuinStreet, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

Click to verify BBB accreditation and to see a BBB report.    TRUSTe online privacy certification