Cal Poly vs Cornell

California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo (Cal Poly) and Cornell University are two highly regarded institutions with distinct characteristics. Cal Poly, a public polytechnic university, boasts a 79% acceptance rate and is renowned for its strong engineering, agriculture, and business programs. Cornell, a private Ivy League university, has a more selective admissions process with a 10% acceptance rate and offers a diverse range of academic programs, including engineering, business, and arts and sciences. While both universities have vibrant student bodies, Cal Poly's undergraduate population is predominantly male (60%), while Cornell's is more evenly distributed (51% male, 49% female). Additionally, Cal Poly has a higher graduation rate (83%) compared to Cornell (93%). Explore the comprehensive comparison table below to delve into further details and discover which university aligns best with your academic aspirations and personal preferences.

	California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo	Cornell University
Overview
Location	San Luis Obispo, California	Ithaca, New York
Campus setting	Suburb: Small	City: Small
College type	4 year	4 year
Control/business model	Public	Private (Non Profit)
Calendar system	Quarter	Semester
Degrees offered	Undergraduate and Graduate	Undergraduate and Graduate
Students retention rate	95.0%	97.0%
Common app member	No	Yes
Religious affiliation

Admission
Acceptance rate	33.0%	8.7%
Application fees	Undergraduate: $70 Graduate: $70	Undergraduate: $80 Graduate: $105
SAT range	N/A	1450 - 1560
ACT range	N/A	33 - 35
Students submitting SAT score		41.0%
Students submitting ACT score		20.0%
Total number of applicants	54,570	67,380
Total number of admissions given out	18,008	5,852
Admitted students who chose to enroll	4,884	3,718
Yield rate	27.1%	63.5%
Test scores (SAT/ACT)	N/A	N/A
High school GPA	Required	Not required
Recommendation letters	Not required	Required
High school transcript	Not required	Not required
English proficiency test (e.g. TOEFL)	Not required	Required

Tuition and Fees
Sticker price	In state: $29,680 Out of state: $47,590	$80,287
Average net price	$20,708	$24,262
Tuition	In state: $5,742 Out of state: $17,622	$60,286
Room & board	Room/dormitory: $9,642 Meal plan: $6,138	Room/dormitory: $9,962 Meal plan: $6,434
Available payment plans

Financial Aid
Students receiving financial aid (Grants & scholarships)	55.0% Average amount $5,988	50.0% Average amount $52,674
Students receiving federal student loan	24.0% Average amount $5,023	26.0% Average amount $3,924
Students taking out private loans	1.0% Average amount $22,714	16.0% Average amount $8,357

Students and Campus
Undergraduate students	21,128 Men 51.2% Women 48.8%	15,503 Men 46.1% Women 53.9%
Graduate students	1,103 Men 50.4% Women 49.6%	10,079 Men 51.0% Women 49.0%
Racial/ethnic diversity	Moderate	Moderate
Out-of-state students	20.6%	64.3%
International students	2.3%	24.4%
Campus local/setting	Suburb: Small	City: Small
Dormitory capacity	8,147	7,422
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	New York California New Jersey Florida Pennsylvania

Academics
Popular study areas	Engineering Business Agriculture Architecture Biological and Biomedical Sciences	Business Engineering Agriculture Computer and Information Science Legal Profession
Students to faculty ratio	21:1	9:1
Institutional accreditation	Western Association of Schools and Colleges Senior Colleges and University Commission	Middle States Commission on Higher Education

Outcome
Graduation rate	85.4%	94.1%
Dropout rate	12.5%	5.2%
Transferred out	1.2%	N/A
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	Law (Doctoral Degrees) Year 1: $185,154 Year 2: $172,867 Year 3: $207,272 Business Administration, Management and Operations (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $150,786 Year 2: $145,332 Year 3: $167,695 Computer Science (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $127,764 Year 2: $122,485 Year 3: $158,076 Computer Science (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $147,241 Year 2: $127,397 Year 3: $155,653 Allied Health Diagnostic, Intervention, and Treatment Professions (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $114,311 Year 2: $111,926 Year 3: $126,082 Operations Research (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $101,067 Year 2: $109,763 Year 3: $124,590 Electrical, Electronics and Communications Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $88,459 Year 2: $92,277 Year 3: $109,597 Electrical, Electronics and Communications Engineering (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $105,672 Year 2: $97,071 Year 3: $109,553 Systems Engineering (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $95,847 Year 2: $94,408 Year 3: $107,658 Human Resources Management and Services (Master's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $101,072 Year 3: $106,693

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