Trinity College and Trinity University are two unrelated liberal arts schools that are easy to confuse. Trinity College is in Hartford, Connecticut, founded in 1823 as Washington College and a member of the NESCAC; Trinity University is in San Antonio, Texas, founded in 1869 by Cumberland Presbyterians, with Tigers teams in the Southern Athletic Association. Both are small, private, selective and Division III, which is exactly why people mix them up.
Here is how they compare, using fall 2024 figures from the federal College Navigator database.
Trinity College vs Trinity University at a Glance
| Item | Trinity College | Trinity University |
|---|---|---|
| Location | Hartford, Connecticut | San Antonio, Texas |
| Founded | 1823 (as Washington College) | 1869 |
| Type | Private liberal arts college | Private liberal arts university |
| Enrollment (fall 2024) | 2,238 (2,204 undergraduate) | 2,687 (2,518 undergraduate) |
| Admitted (fall 2024) | 29% | 26% |
| Tuition and fees (2024-2025) | $70,770 | $53,676 |
| Average net price (2023-2024) | $36,071 | $32,224 |
| Student-to-faculty ratio | 9 to 1 | 8 to 1 |
| Six-year graduation rate (fall 2018 cohort) | 84% | 84% |
| Teams | Bantams, NCAA Division III, NESCAC | Tigers, NCAA Division III, Southern Athletic Association |
| Accreditor | New England Commission of Higher Education | SACSCOC |
What Is Trinity College?
Trinity College is a private liberal arts college in Hartford, Connecticut. It opened as Washington College in 1824 under Bishop Thomas Brownell, took the name Trinity College in 1845 and is the second-oldest college in Connecticut after Yale. It has been coeducational since 1969 and offers 41 majors and 28 interdisciplinary minors to about 2,200 students. The Bantams compete in the New England Small College Athletic Conference (NESCAC) in NCAA Division III. It admitted 29% of applicants for fall 2024, and 90% of full-time freshmen returned for a second year.
What Is Trinity University?
Trinity University is a private liberal arts university in San Antonio, Texas. Cumberland Presbyterians founded it in 1869 in Tehuacana as a coeducational merger of three small colleges; it moved to Waxahachie in 1902 and to San Antonio in 1942. Its 125-acre campus north of downtown, designed by O’Neil Ford on a former lime quarry, is a National Historic Landmark District. Its four schools offer 57 majors, 63 minors and 6 graduate programs. The Tigers compete in the NCAA Division III Southern Athletic Association. It admitted 26% of applicants for fall 2024, with 93% freshman retention.
Why People Mix Them Up
- The name. “Trinity” is one of the most common college names in the English-speaking world; there are also Trinity Colleges in Dublin, Cambridge and Toronto, among others.
- Similar profiles. Both are private, selective liberal arts schools of 2,000 to 3,000 students with roughly 1 in 4 applicants admitted and Division III athletics.
- Similar outcomes. Both reported an 84% six-year graduation rate for the fall 2018 cohort.
The quick tell: Trinity College is the older, Northeastern one in Hartford; Trinity University is the Texan one in San Antonio.
Who Each School Suits
Trinity College suits students who want a classic New England liberal arts college in a mid-sized city, NESCAC athletics and proximity to Boston and New York, and who can meet a higher sticker price or qualify for aid.
Trinity University suits students who want a similar small-college experience in a large Sun Belt city, a lower sticker price ($53,676 against $70,770), a slightly wider menu of majors and a warm climate.
Frequently Asked Questions
- Is Trinity College the same as Trinity University? No. Trinity College is in Hartford, Connecticut; Trinity University is in San Antonio, Texas.
- Which is older? Trinity College, founded in 1823. Trinity University was founded in 1869.
- Which is harder to get into? They are close: Trinity University admitted 26% of applicants for fall 2024 and Trinity College 29%.
- Are either of them religious? Trinity College withdrew from the Association of Episcopal Colleges in 1968. Trinity University was founded by Cumberland Presbyterians and College Navigator still lists a Presbyterian affiliation.