Bridgewater State vs Western Connecticut State University (WCSU)

Bridgewater State University and Western Connecticut State University, both public universities in the Northeast, offer distinct educational experiences. Bridgewater State, located in Massachusetts, boasts a higher acceptance rate (83%) compared to Western Connecticut's 73%. Bridgewater State's student body is more diverse, with a larger international student population. In contrast, Western Connecticut has a slightly higher graduation rate (59% vs. 57%) and a stronger focus on STEM fields, reflected in its popular majors such as Biology, Computer Science, and Engineering. For those seeking a more comprehensive comparison, a detailed table is provided, allowing you to explore key aspects of each university, including cost, financial aid, and student life, to help you make an informed decision about your higher education journey.

	Bridgewater State University	Western Connecticut State University
Overview
Location	Bridgewater, Massachusetts	Danbury, Connecticut
Campus setting	Suburb: Large	City: Small
College type	4 year	4 year
Control/business model	Public	Public
Calendar system	Semester	Semester
Degrees offered	Undergraduate and Graduate	Undergraduate and Graduate
Students retention rate	79.0%	69.0%
Common app member	Yes	Yes
Religious affiliation

Admission
Acceptance rate	86.4%	84.9%
Application fees	Undergraduate: $50 Graduate: $50	Undergraduate: $50 Graduate: $50
SAT range	1010 - 1200	N/A
ACT range	19 - 28	N/A
Students submitting SAT score	18.0%
Students submitting ACT score	1.0%
Total number of applicants	8,881	4,688
Total number of admissions given out	7,671	3,978
Admitted students who chose to enroll	1,382	733
Yield rate	18.0%	18.4%
Test scores (SAT/ACT)	N/A	N/A
High school GPA	Required	Required
Recommendation letters	Not required	Not required
High school transcript	Not required	Not required
English proficiency test (e.g. TOEFL)	Required	Required

Tuition and Fees
Sticker price	In state: $29,164 Out of state: $35,304	In state: $28,783 Out of state: $42,187
Average net price	$12,744	$15,660
Tuition	In state: $910 Out of state: $7,050	In state: $6,162 Out of state: $18,436
Room & board	Room/dormitory: $9,256 Meal plan: $4,576	Room/dormitory: $8,020 Meal plan: $5,856
Available payment plans	Tuition payment plan	Tuition payment plan

Financial Aid
Students receiving financial aid (Grants & scholarships)	74.0% Average amount $7,617	78.0% Average amount $6,312
Students receiving federal student loan	81.0% Average amount $3,681	58.0% Average amount $7,417
Students taking out private loans	13.0% Average amount $12,080	5.0% Average amount $12,388

Students and Campus
Undergraduate students	8,369 Men 40.7% Women 59.3%	4,172 Men 47.6% Women 52.4%
Graduate students	1,573 Men 23.2% Women 76.8%	630 Men 25.4% Women 74.6%
Racial/ethnic diversity	Low	Moderate
Out-of-state students	N/A	28.6%
International students	0.6%	0.4%
Campus local/setting	Suburb: Large	City: Small
Dormitory capacity	3,304	1,315
First year students are required to live on campus?	No	No
Top 5 states where most U.S. students come from	Mississippi Rhode Island Connecticut New Hampshire Maine	Connecticut New York New Jersey Mississippi Maine

Academics
Popular study areas	Education Health Professions Public Administration and Social Service Business Psychology	Business Psychology Health Professions Law Enforcement and Firefighting Visual & Performing Arts
Students to faculty ratio	19:1	11:1
Institutional accreditation	New England Commission on Higher Education	New England Commission on Higher Education

Outcome
Graduation rate	62.4%	52.9%
Dropout rate	35.1%	12.0%
Transferred out	N/A	31.0%
Alumni salary by major (Top 10)	Accounting and Related Services (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $70,437 Year 2: $68,858 Year 3: $78,114 Computer Science (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $52,602 Year 2: $60,623 Year 3: $66,570 Social Work (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $51,446 Year 2: $54,053 Year 3: $58,775 Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Subject Areas (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $47,202 Year 2: $53,775 Year 3: $58,619 Accounting and Related Services (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $44,074 Year 2: $46,869 Year 3: $55,780 Air Transportation (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $39,151 Year 2: $41,565 Year 3: $53,648 Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Levels and Methods (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $45,960 Year 2: $45,383 Year 3: $53,145 Special Education and Teaching (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $50,152 Year 2: $50,161 Year 3: $53,025 Management Sciences and Quantitative Methods (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $42,273 Year 2: $44,371 Year 3: $50,098 Chemistry (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $42,643 Year 2: $44,170 Year 3: $49,769	Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $75,081 Year 2: $75,104 Year 3: $76,468 Accounting and Related Services (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $51,332 Year 2: $57,995 Year 3: $70,455 Management Information Systems and Services (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $44,994 Year 2: $57,318 Year 3: $65,192 Education, General (Master's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $56,867 Year 3: $58,464 Finance and Financial Management Services (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $49,944 Year 2: $46,321 Year 3: $51,949 Management Sciences and Quantitative Methods (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $43,260 Year 2: $41,464 Year 3: $50,288 Student Counseling and Personnel Services (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $47,672 Year 2: $46,087 Year 3: $49,639 Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Subject Areas (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $42,963 Year 2: $45,340 Year 3: $47,607 Marketing (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $40,029 Year 2: $41,441 Year 3: $44,462 Criminal Justice and Corrections (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $32,205 Year 2: $35,877 Year 3: $43,291

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Bridgewater State vs Western Connecticut State University (WCSU)

Bridgewater State University

Western Connecticut State University

Overview

Admission

Tuition and Fees

Financial Aid

Students and Campus

Academics

Outcome

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