Lafayette College

Easton, PA · founded 1826 · 2,700 students · liberal arts college · Patriot League

Known for: Lafayette College is a highly selective liberal arts college known for its strong engineering program within a liberal arts framework and its historic rivalry with Lehigh University. It is one of the few liberal arts colleges in the US offering undergraduate degrees in engineering.

Rankings

U.S. News liberal arts: #30
Forbes: #66

Top programmes

Engineering (Civil, Mechanical, Chemical)
Economics
Government & Law
Neuroscience
Biology
English

Notable alumni

H. Robert Heller — Former Governor of the Federal Reserve System
James L. Kraft — Founder of Kraft Foods
Charles A. Lindbergh — Aviator, first solo nonstop transatlantic flight
John H. Sununu — Former Governor of New Hampshire and White House Chief of Staff
Joel Silver — Film producer ('Die Hard', 'The Matrix')
Richard J. Hughes — Former Governor and Chief Justice of New Jersey
William E. Simon — Former U.S. Secretary of the Treasury

Traditions

The Lafayette-Lehigh Rivalry (most-played rivalry in college football)
Maroon and White Celebration
Founders Day
Midnight Breakfast during finals

If Lafayette College were…

As a food: Filet mignon with peppercorn sauce at a steakhouse — High-quality, expensive, reliably excellent, and exactly what you'd expect—no surprises, no experimentation, just solid execution for people who value traditional success. Lafayette delivers the premium liberal arts prod
As an athlete: Peyton Manning — Technically excellent, fiercely competitive, team-oriented, and successful by every conventional metric—but not flashy or revolutionary. Lafayette produces smart, prepared, well-coached players who execute the game plan
As a person alive today: Brian Moynihan (Bank of America CEO) — Successful, competent, conventional—the kind of polished executive Lafayette aims to produce. Not a household name or cultural icon, but respected in finance and business circles, which is exactly the brand of success La
As a historical figure: Alexander Hamilton — Ambitious, practical, nation-building through finance and engineering, and deeply invested in creating systems that work. Lafayette's focus on applied knowledge, economic mobility through professional success, and buildi
As a movie or TV show: The Firm — Smart young people recruited into prestigious professional tracks, tight-knit culture with intense loyalty, and the sense that you're being groomed for success in established power structures. Both are about ambition, me
As a US president: George H.W. Bush — Competent, traditional, well-connected, and effective within establishment structures—not revolutionary but deeply capable. Lafayette produces the steady hands who run institutions, not the firebrands who burn them down.
As a city: Charlotte, North Carolina — Clean, professional, finance-heavy, pleasant but not particularly exciting—a place people move for career opportunities rather than culture or edge. Both are comfortable, upwardly mobile environments that prioritize econ
As an element: Iron — Strong, practical, foundational to building things (infrastructure, bridges, economies)—not glamorous but absolutely essential. Lafayette's engineering and economics focus produces the people who literally and figurative
As a car: Volvo 240 Wagon — Reliable, understated, and built to last—Lafayette delivers solid pre-professional preparation in a tight-knit community without flashy pretense. It's the Swedish engineer's choice: dependable, safe, and gets you where y

Campus life

Lafayette has a traditional residential college feel with over 90% of students living on campus. Social life revolves around campus events, over 250 student clubs, and a mix of Greek life (about 30% participation) and non-Greek activities. The college emphasizes community engagement and undergraduate research opportunities.