Oberlin College

What Oberlin College does

Oberlin College and Conservatory is a private nonprofit educational institution founded in 1833 and located in Oberlin, Ohio. It operates as a unified institution combining a College of Arts and Sciences with a Conservatory of Music on a single campus, offering Bachelor of Arts, Bachelor of Science, Bachelor of Music, Master of Music, Master of Fine Arts, Performance Diploma, and Artist Diploma degrees. A distinctive Double Degree Program enables concurrent enrollment in both divisions over 4.5-5 years, and the institution maintains shared residence halls, dining, and extracurricular infrastructure across its student body.

The institution's core platform consists of academic departments across 50+ majors and minors, an integrated Conservatory with classical, jazz, historical performance, and contemporary music divisions, and supporting services including an Academic Advising Resource Center, Career Development, Winter Term independent study, a Fellowships and Awards Office, four branch libraries, Printing Services handling over 4,000 jobs annually, and the Office of Energy and Sustainability. The technology stack integrates Blackboard for LMS, Okta for SSO, Handshake for career services, TOPdesk for facilities work orders, eCampus.com for the online bookstore, and GOberlin (Presence.io) for student engagement.

Revenue is generated primarily through tuition and fees billed annually, supplemented by federal and institutional financial aid (Pell Grants, SEOG, Work-Study, Direct Stafford Loans, and institutional scholarships), auxiliary services, and advancement/donor activity via the Office of Advancement. Customer segments are divided between undergraduate liberal arts students, conservatory music students, double-degree candidates, and graduate students, all served through separate application processes with Early Decision, Early Action, and Regular Decision options.

Name

Oberlin College

Legal name

Oberlin College and Conservatory

Website

https://oberlin.edu

Company type

Private

Founded year

1833

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

251–500 employees

Short description

Oberlin College and Conservatory is a private nonprofit liberal arts college and conservatory of music in Oberlin, Ohio, offering BA/BS, BM/MM/MFA/PDip/ADip degrees and a unique Double Degree Program for undergraduate, conservatory, and graduate students.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Higher Education (Liberal Arts and Music Conservatory)

NAICS

Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools (6113), Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools (61131), Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools (611310), Junior Colleges (6112), Fine Arts Schools (611610)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Selective/Highly Selective Liberal Arts Colleges (EDAHACAJ)

akta.pro secondary industries

Junior Colleges (Associate-Degree Granting) (EDAHADAC), Transfer/University-Parallel Community Colleges (EDAHADAF), Dual Enrollment / Early College Programs (via Community Colleges) (EDAHADAH), Performing Arts Colleges (Theatre, Dance, Musical Theatre) (EDAHAJAD)

Keywords

• Liberal arts education
• Music conservatory programs
• Undergraduate degrees
• Graduate music studies
• Dual degree programs

Headquarters

HQ city

Oberlin

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices12 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D, Supply Chain, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Tuition and Fees: Oberlin College charges tuition and fees for undergraduate and graduate education in both the College of Arts and Sciences and the Conservatory of Music. Financial aid is provided through federal, state, and institutional programs including Pell Grants, SEOG, Work-Study, Direct Stafford Loans, and institutional scholarships.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Oberlin College and Conservatory delivers residential undergraduate and graduate education through two integrated academic divisions on a single campus. The College of Arts and Sciences offers Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor of Science degrees across more than 50 majors and minors, while the Conservatory of Music offers Bachelor of Music, Master of Music, Master of Fine Arts, Performance Diploma, and Artist Diploma programs. A Double Degree Program enables concurrent enrollment across both divisions over four-and-a-half to five years.

Product overview

Oberlin College and Conservatory operates as a unified institution with two academic divisions: the College of Arts and Sciences offering liberal arts undergraduate degrees (BA/BS) across diverse disciplines, and the Conservatory of Music providing professional music degrees (BM/MM/MFA/PDip/ADip). The institution supports its academic mission through integrated student services including academic advising, career development, Winter Term independent study, and sustainability initiatives. A distinctive Double Degree Program allows students to concurrently pursue degrees from both divisions. The campus ecosystem includes auxiliary services such as the online bookstore (via eCampus.com partnership), library system with multiple branch locations, printing services, and mail operations.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• College of Arts and Sciences Residential undergraduate division offering Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor of Science degrees across more than 50 majors and minors in humanities, sciences, arts, and social sciences for prospective college-aged students.
• Conservatory of Music Professional music training division offering Bachelor of Music, Master of Fine Arts, Master of Music, Performance Diploma, and Artist Diploma degrees across classical, jazz, historical performance, composition, and contemporary music programs for prospective music students.
• Double Degree Program Program enabling students with exceptional musical talent to pursue both College of Arts and Sciences and Conservatory of Music degrees simultaneously, typically completed in 4.5 to 5 years.

Quantifiable outcome

• Third all-time among undergraduate institutions with over 300 Fulbright recipients
• +2 more outcomes

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration6 records

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• MIT (Massachusetts Institute of Technology)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 February 2026Researchers from MIT collaborated with Oberlin College on a study published in Cell Genomics proposing methods to investigate universal paralogs to understand biological processes predating the last universal common ancestor (LUCA).
• University of Wisconsin-MadisoncoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 February 2026Researchers from University of Wisconsin-Madison collaborated with MIT and Oberlin College on genetic research regarding universal paralogs and early cellular lineages.
• eCampus.comcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 1 January 2025Official online bookstore partner powering Oberlin's Online Bookstore for course materials with guaranteed lowest prices and fast delivery.
• University Gear ShopcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 1 January 2025Operator of the Campus Store in Mudd Center, providing Oberlin-branded apparel and merchandise.
• Scioto ServicesminorOthers · 1 April 2024New custodial provider working in conjunction with Facilities Operations office to maintain campus cleanliness and sanitation.
• Houston Grand OperaminorOthers · 1 January 2024Performance venue and competition organizer where Oberlin voice students compete and perform.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Williams College: Highly selective private liberal arts college in Massachusetts with comparable size, endowment profile, and admissions selectivity. Closest direct analog on the liberal arts college side.
• Amherst College: Highly selective private liberal arts college competing for the same applicant pool and similarly reliant on tuition and endowment economics. Strong brand and Fulbright presence make it a direct comparable.
• Bowdoin College: Selective private liberal arts college in Maine with similar size, mission, and emphasis on undergraduate teaching. Comparable tuition-driven model and applicant demographics.
• Carleton College: Highly selective Midwestern liberal arts college competing in the same geographic and admissions segment. Comparable programs, scale, and tuition model.
• Pomona College: Member of the Claremont Consortium; highly selective liberal arts college on the West Coast with similar selectivity and applicant overlap. Comparable tuition-driven business model.
• Swarthmore College: Highly selective liberal arts college with strong pre-professional placement, similar size, and a tuition-and-endowment-driven revenue model. Direct competitor for high-achieving applicants.
• Juilliard School: Premier U.S. music conservatory in New York City offering comparable BM, MM, and Artist Diploma programs. Directly comparable to the Oberlin Conservatory of Music division.
• Curtis Institute of Music: Elite Philadelphia-based conservatory offering Performance Diploma and Artist Diploma programs. Competes directly with Oberlin Conservatory for the same top classical music talent pool.
• New England Conservatory: Boston-based conservatory offering BM, MM, and Artist Diploma programs with similar classical, jazz, and contemporary music focus. Direct Conservatory competitor.

Broad incumbents

• Yale University: Larger research university with a respected School of Music competing for the same top Conservatory applicants. Comparable programs in arts and sciences and music, but at materially larger scale.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks4 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/oberlincollege
• Facebookfacebook.com/oberlincollege

Compliance5 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Oberlin College