Cal Poly vs California State University-San Bernardino (CSUSB)

California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo (Cal Poly SLO) and California State University-San Bernardino (CSUSB) are two distinct universities within the California State University system, each offering unique educational experiences. Cal Poly SLO, known for its strong engineering and agriculture programs, boasts a lower acceptance rate and a higher graduation rate compared to CSUSB. On the other hand, CSUSB offers a more diverse student body and a wider range of undergraduate majors, including popular fields like business, psychology, and criminal justice. To help you make an informed decision about your higher education journey, we've compiled a comprehensive comparison table highlighting key differences between these two institutions, including acceptance rates, popular majors, student body demographics, and graduation rates. Dive into the table to discover which university aligns best with your academic aspirations and personal preferences.

	California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo	California State University-San Bernardino
Overview
Location	San Luis Obispo, California	San Bernardino, California
Campus setting	Suburb: Small	City: Midsize
College type	4 year	4 year
Control/business model	Public	Public
Calendar system	Quarter	Semester
Degrees offered	Undergraduate and Graduate	Undergraduate and Graduate
Students retention rate	95.0%	78.0%
Common app member	No	No
Religious affiliation

Admission
Acceptance rate	33.0%	91.0%
Application fees	Undergraduate: $70 Graduate: $70	Undergraduate: $70 Graduate: $70
SAT range	N/A	N/A
ACT range	N/A	N/A
Students submitting SAT score
Students submitting ACT score
Total number of applicants	54,570	13,057
Total number of admissions given out	18,008	11,878
Admitted students who chose to enroll	4,884	2,001
Yield rate	27.1%	16.8%
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)	Not required	Not required

Tuition and Fees
Sticker price	In state: $29,680 Out of state: $47,590	In state: $28,409 Out of state: $40,289
Average net price	$20,708	$3,254
Tuition	In state: $5,742 Out of state: $17,622	In state: $5,742 Out of state: $17,622
Room & board	Room/dormitory: $9,642 Meal plan: $6,138	Room/dormitory: $7,644 Meal plan: $3,000
Available payment plans		Tuition payment plan

Financial Aid
Students receiving financial aid (Grants & scholarships)	55.0% Average amount $5,988	87.0% Average amount $10,157
Students receiving federal student loan	24.0% Average amount $5,023	12.0% Average amount $4,553
Students taking out private loans	1.0% Average amount $22,714	1.0% Average amount $8,949

Students and Campus
Undergraduate students	21,128 Men 51.2% Women 48.8%	16,858 Men 37.6% Women 62.4%
Graduate students	1,103 Men 50.4% Women 49.6%	2,656 Men 32.9% Women 67.1%
Racial/ethnic diversity	Moderate	Low
Out-of-state students	20.6%	0.6%
International students	2.3%	5.4%
Campus local/setting	Suburb: Small	City: Midsize
Dormitory capacity	8,147	1,482
First year students are required to live on campus?	No	No
Top 5 states where most U.S. students come from	California Washington Colorado Oregon Texas	California Arizona Hawaii Minnesota

Academics
Popular study areas	Engineering Business Agriculture Architecture Biological and Biomedical Sciences	Public Administration and Social Service Liberal Arts Health Professions Kinesiology & Leisure Studies Education
Students to faculty ratio	21:1	25:1
Institutional accreditation	Western Association of Schools and Colleges Senior Colleges and University Commission	Western Association of Schools and Colleges Senior Colleges and University Commission

Outcome
Graduation rate	85.4%	57.0%
Dropout rate	12.5%	36.1%
Transferred out	1.2%	1.2%
Alumni salary by major (Top 10)	Computer and Information Sciences, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $88,197 Year 2: $120,462 Year 3: $143,849 Electrical, Electronics and Communications Engineering (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $104,015 Year 2: $101,964 Year 3: $116,606 Computer Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $91,493 Year 2: $93,964 Year 3: $106,798 Fire Protection (Master's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $97,071 Year 3: $103,907 Construction Engineering Technologies (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $79,656 Year 2: $82,780 Year 3: $96,152 Industrial Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $72,643 Year 2: $73,562 Year 3: $90,242 Engineering, General (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $74,873 Year 2: $78,971 Year 3: $90,194 Aerospace, Aeronautical and Astronautical Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $74,220 Year 2: $76,460 Year 3: $89,378 Accounting and Related Services (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $66,920 Year 2: $70,886 Year 3: $87,984 Electrical, Electronics and Communications Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $79,454 Year 2: $79,647 Year 3: $87,345	Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $79,025 Year 2: $88,739 Year 3: $91,007 Educational Administration and Supervision (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $91,100 Year 2: $86,356 Year 3: $89,781 Business Administration, Management and Operations (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $76,052 Year 2: $72,214 Year 3: $79,205 Special Education and Teaching (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $63,968 Year 2: $65,066 Year 3: $71,975 Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Subject Areas (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $67,962 Year 2: $64,358 Year 3: $68,388 Computer Science (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $40,267 Year 2: $58,221 Year 3: $66,764 Public Administration (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $55,496 Year 2: $52,524 Year 3: $66,429 Student Counseling and Personnel Services (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $54,356 Year 2: $56,867 Year 3: $64,336 Social Work (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $55,681 Year 2: $58,503 Year 3: $63,478 Computer and Information Sciences, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $39,337 Year 2: $46,966 Year 3: $58,366

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Cal Poly vs California State University-San Bernardino (CSUSB)

California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo

California State University-San Bernardino

Overview

Admission

Tuition and Fees

Financial Aid

Students and Campus

Academics

Outcome

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