Carnegie Mellon vs RPI Troy

Carnegie Mellon University and Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, two esteemed institutions of higher learning, stand out for their academic excellence and innovative spirit. Carnegie Mellon, nestled in the heart of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, boasts a lower acceptance rate, attracting a highly selective student body with diverse backgrounds. Rensselaer, located in the vibrant city of Troy, New York, offers a more accessible admissions process, welcoming a broader range of students. While both universities excel in various fields, Carnegie Mellon is renowned for its strengths in computer science, engineering, and business, while Rensselaer shines in engineering, science, and management. Explore the detailed comparison table to delve into further distinctions between these prestigious universities, including popular majors, student demographics, graduation rates, and more, to help you make an informed decision about your academic journey.

	Carnegie Mellon University	Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute
Overview
Location	Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania	Troy, New York
Campus setting	City: Large	City: Small
College type	4 year	4 year
Control/business model	Private (Non Profit)	Private (Non Profit)
Calendar system	Semester	Semester
Degrees offered	Undergraduate and Graduate	Undergraduate and Graduate
Students retention rate	97.0%	89.0%
Common app member	Yes	Yes
Religious affiliation

Admission
Acceptance rate	13.5%	53.0%
Application fees	Undergraduate: $75 Graduate: $75	Undergraduate: $70 Graduate: $75
SAT range	1480 - 1560	1360 - 1520
ACT range	33 - 35	32 - 34
Students submitting SAT score	48.0%	43.0%
Students submitting ACT score	22.0%	15.0%
Total number of applicants	32,896	17,498
Total number of admissions given out	4,453	9,277
Admitted students who chose to enroll	1,896	1,322
Yield rate	42.6%	14.3%
Test scores (SAT/ACT)	N/A	N/A
High school GPA	Required	Required
Recommendation letters	Required	Required
High school transcript	Not required	Required
English proficiency test (e.g. TOEFL)	Required	Required

Tuition and Fees
Sticker price	$75,664	$77,763
Average net price	$37,450	$40,070
Tuition	$57,560	$57,100
Room & board	Room/dormitory: $9,614 Meal plan: $6,536	Room/dormitory: $9,119 Meal plan: $7,260
Available payment plans	Tuition payment plan	Tuition payment plan

Financial Aid
Students receiving financial aid (Grants & scholarships)	50.0% Average amount $39,421	97.0% Average amount $35,754
Students receiving federal student loan	37.0% Average amount $4,672	52.0% Average amount $5,116
Students taking out private loans	3.0% Average amount $29,079	10.0% Average amount $24,172

Students and Campus
Undergraduate students	6,932 Men 50.2% Women 49.8%	5,614 Men 69.0% Women 31.0%
Graduate students	8,125 Men 62.3% Women 37.7%	1,160 Men 69.1% Women 30.9%
Racial/ethnic diversity	Moderate	Moderate
Out-of-state students	85.0%	N/A
International students	40.0%	19.5%
Campus local/setting	City: Large	City: Small
Dormitory capacity	3,754	3,930
First year students are required to live on campus?	No	Yes
Top 5 states where most U.S. students come from	California Pennsylvania New Jersey New York Virginia	N/A

Academics
Popular study areas	Engineering Computer and Information Science Business Visual & Performing Arts Physical Science	Engineering Computer and Information Science Business Mathematics and Statistics Physical Science
Students to faculty ratio	5:1	13:1
Institutional accreditation	Middle States Commission on Higher Education	Middle States Commission on Higher Education

Outcome
Graduation rate	92.8%	84.2%
Dropout rate	3.5%	14.9%
Transferred out	2.8%	N/A
Alumni salary by major (Top 10)	Computer Science (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $161,723 Year 2: $160,116 Year 3: $201,541 Business Administration, Management and Operations (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $139,390 Year 2: $133,383 Year 3: $150,136 Computer and Information Sciences, General (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $109,615 Year 2: $107,758 Year 3: $132,201 Electrical, Electronics and Communications Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $116,935 Year 2: $114,223 Year 3: $129,112 Electrical, Electronics and Communications Engineering (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $109,283 Year 2: $120,549 Year 3: $122,667 Finance and Financial Management Services (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $95,295 Year 3: $112,628 Design and Applied Arts (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $85,041 Year 2: $89,859 Year 3: $106,086 Computer/Information Technology Administration and Management (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $91,653 Year 2: $94,940 Year 3: $104,312 Statistics (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $89,636 Year 2: $88,506 Year 3: $103,853 Systems Science and Theory (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $82,123 Year 2: $84,393 Year 3: $103,805	Computer Science (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $112,746 Year 2: $119,061 Year 3: $127,865 Computer Science (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $83,880 Year 2: $92,277 Year 3: $111,450 Computer Engineering Technologies/Technicians (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $76,042 Year 2: $88,933 Year 3: $99,954 Business Administration, Management and Operations (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $71,265 Year 2: $87,973 Year 3: $94,503 Management Sciences and Quantitative Methods (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $71,333 Year 2: $79,284 Year 3: $93,665 Applied Mathematics (Master's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $81,333 Year 3: $90,716 Electrical, Electronics and Communications Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $72,826 Year 2: $76,460 Year 3: $88,913 Mechanical Engineering (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $80,471 Year 2: $81,702 Year 3: $85,953 Mathematics (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $67,066 Year 2: $63,005 Year 3: $84,973 Industrial Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $65,458 Year 2: $77,213 Year 3: $84,039

Compare Similar Colleges

The list of suggested college comparisons provided below is generated automatically by our system, utilizing statistics gathered from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) and various online sources. If you don't find the colleges you wish to compare, please visit our comparison page. There, you can search for the specific colleges and initiate your comparison.

Carnegie Mellon vs RPI Troy

Carnegie Mellon University

Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute

Overview

Admission

Tuition and Fees

Financial Aid

Students and Campus

Academics

Outcome

Compare Similar Colleges

Find Colleges By State

Resources

About