CWU-Ellensburg vs CSU San Marcos

Central Washington University (CWU) and California State University-San Marcos (CSUSM) are two distinct universities with unique offerings. CWU, located in Ellensburg, Washington, boasts a higher acceptance rate (86%) compared to CSUSM's 48%. Both universities offer a diverse range of undergraduate programs, with CWU excelling in fields like Business Administration and Education, while CSUSM shines in areas such as Business and Psychology. CWU's student body is predominantly White (73%), while CSUSM's student population is more diverse, with a significant Hispanic/Latino population (42%). In terms of graduation rates, CSUSM has a slightly higher four-year graduation rate (33%) compared to CWU's 29%. To help you make an informed decision, we've compiled a comprehensive comparison table highlighting these key differences and more. Explore the table to discover which university aligns best with your academic aspirations and personal preferences

	California State University-San Marcos	Central Washington University
Overview
Location	San Marcos, California	Ellensburg, Washington
Campus setting	Suburb: Large	Town: Distant
College type	4 year	4 year
Control/business model	Public	Public
Calendar system	Semester	Quarter
Degrees offered	Undergraduate and Graduate	Undergraduate and Graduate
Students retention rate	79.0%	69.0%
Common app member	No	Yes
Religious affiliation

Admission
Acceptance rate	93.3%	88.4%
Application fees	Undergraduate: $70 Graduate: $70	Undergraduate: $60 Graduate: $75
SAT range	N/A	N/A
ACT range	N/A	N/A
Students submitting SAT score
Students submitting ACT score
Total number of applicants	13,986	10,767
Total number of admissions given out	13,049	9,523
Admitted students who chose to enroll	2,413	1,371
Yield rate	18.5%	14.4%
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)	Not required	Not required

Tuition and Fees
Sticker price	In state: $22,366 Out of state: $34,246	In state: $22,248 Out of state: $38,776
Average net price	$14,296	$17,645
Tuition	In state: $5,742 Out of state: $17,622	In state: $6,656 Out of state: $23,184
Room & board		Room/dormitory: $7,645 Meal plan: $7,957
Available payment plans	Tuition payment plan	Prepaid tuition plan Tuition payment plan

Financial Aid
Students receiving financial aid (Grants & scholarships)	70.0% Average amount $9,298	80.0% Average amount $7,378
Students receiving federal student loan	22.0% Average amount $4,734	41.0% Average amount $4,834
Students taking out private loans	1.0% Average amount $12,988	2.0% Average amount $14,197

Students and Campus
Undergraduate students	14,963 Men 38.4% Women 61.6%	9,566 Men 47.0% Women 53.0%
Graduate students	1,292 Men 28.4% Women 71.6%	610 Men 37.4% Women 62.6%
Racial/ethnic diversity	Moderate	Moderate
Out-of-state students	1.5%	6.7%
International students	3.4%	2.7%
Campus local/setting	Suburb: Large	Town: Distant
Dormitory capacity	1,547	3,755
First year students are required to live on campus?	No	No
Top 5 states where most U.S. students come from	California Colorado Washington Virginia Arizona	Washington California Oregon Hawaii Arkansas

Academics
Popular study areas	Business Health Professions Biological and Biomedical Sciences Computer and Information Science Kinesiology & Leisure Studies	Education Business Social Sciences Health Professions Visual & Performing Arts
Students to faculty ratio	25:1	15:1
Institutional accreditation	Western Association of Schools and Colleges Senior Colleges and University Commission	Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities

Outcome
Graduation rate	59.2%	53.6%
Dropout rate	33.6%	44.0%
Transferred out	2.6%	N/A
Alumni salary by major (Top 10)	Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $107,746 Year 2: $103,555 Year 3: $111,324 Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $90,827 Year 2: $88,074 Year 3: $90,666 Business Administration, Management and Operations (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $72,843 Year 2: $74,576 Year 3: $83,791 Special Education and Teaching (Master's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $66,941 Year 3: $72,765 Computer Science (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $58,962 Year 2: $71,015 Year 3: $71,818 Education, General (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $71,769 Year 2: $63,005 Year 3: $68,571 Physics (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $57,318 Year 3: $65,899 Finance and Financial Management Services (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $45,297 Year 2: $49,520 Year 3: $62,797 Accounting and Related Services (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $59,252 Year 2: $55,286 Year 3: $59,957 Computer and Information Sciences, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $45,864 Year 3: $57,022	Electrical Engineering Technologies/Technicians (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $72,482 Year 3: $86,230 Construction Management (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $73,538 Year 2: $71,168 Year 3: $82,194 Quality Control and Safety Technologies/Technicians (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $68,024 Year 2: $65,486 Year 3: $79,944 Educational Administration and Supervision (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $58,531 Year 2: $61,020 Year 3: $77,665 Computer Science (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $63,052 Year 2: $52,941 Year 3: $69,645 Mechanical Engineering Related Technologies/Technicians (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $59,580 Year 2: $56,979 Year 3: $69,564 Accounting and Related Services (Master's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $55,151 Year 3: $62,577 Management Sciences and Quantitative Methods (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $44,170 Year 3: $61,531 Economics (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $38,008 Year 2: $39,369 Year 3: $58,391 Health and Physical Education/Fitness (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $47,842 Year 2: $50,606 Year 3: $58,240

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