Seven Independent colleges are located in Northeastern Indiana, near the city of South Bend. All of the colleges are religiously affiliated, representing the Roman Catholic, Evangelical Missionary and Mennonite faiths. With its 29 percent admittance rate, Notre Dame is the most prominent college in Indiana and ranks 19th among national universities. The University's 23, Division I athletic teams are known as the "Fighting Irish." Holy Cross and St. Mary's colleges, are located adjacent to the campus.
Independent colleges in the South Bend area include Ancilla College, Bethel College, Goshen College, Holy Cross, Saint Mary's College (women only), St. Mary-of-the-Woods College (women only) and University of Notre Dame.
Fort Wayne is the second largest city in Indiana. The city is home to seven independent colleges. Just two of these institutions, the Indiana Institute of Technology and Trine University, are secular. At Indiana Tech, students enroll in the College of Business, College of Engineering and the College of General Studies. At Trine, programs range from Golf Management to Mechanical Engineering. Among the five remaining independent colleges, three subscribe to United Brethen of Christ Church's spiritual philosophy. All three enroll almost half of their student body from out of state.
In the Fort Wayne area, other colleges include Grace College, Huntington College, Manchester College, Taylor University and the University of Saint Francis.
Independent colleges usually boast smaller class sizes and greater class participation than public universities. The Indianapolis area is home to ten non-profit institutions, including Butler University. The college enrolls 4,500 students in 60 programs. Named a "Best in the Midwest" college by the Princeton Review, Butler's dance program is in the "top five" of all programs in the United States.
Other independent colleges in the area include Anderson University, DePauw University, Earlham College, Franklin College, Marian University, Martin University, University of Evansville, University of Indianapolis and Wabash College (men only).
Eight other remaining colleges are sprinkled around the state. Both Calumet College of St.Joesph and Valparaiso University are located outside Chicago, Illinois. Rose-Hulman of Terre Haute, emphasizes science, engineering and mathematics. Since the college is located in a Certified Technology Park, students can work on "real-world" projects with companies in the area.
Hanover College, Indiana Wesleyan University (Marion), Mid-America College of Funeral Service (Jeffersonville), Saint Joseph's College (Rensselaer) and St. Mary-of-the-Woods College (women only), represent the last five independent colleges in the state.