San Mateo College vs College of Alameda

College of San Mateo and College of Alameda, both esteemed community colleges in California, offer diverse educational opportunities to students seeking higher education. While they share similarities, each institution possesses unique characteristics that cater to different academic aspirations and preferences. College of San Mateo boasts a higher acceptance rate, allowing more students the chance to pursue their educational goals. College of Alameda, on the other hand, offers a more intimate learning environment with a smaller student body. Both colleges provide a wide range of popular majors, including Liberal Arts, Business, and Health Sciences, but they differ in their graduation rates, with College of San Mateo having a slightly higher success rate. To help you make an informed decision about your educational journey, we have compiled a comprehensive comparison table that delves into these key differences and more. Explore the table to discover which college aligns best with your academic goals and personal preferences.

	College of Alameda	College of San Mateo
Overview
Location	Alameda, California	San Mateo, California
Campus setting	Suburb: Large	City: Midsize
College type	2 year	2 year
Control/business model	Public	Public
Calendar system	Semester	Semester
Degrees offered	Undergraduate	Undergraduate
Students retention rate	51.0%	78.0%
Common app member	No	No
Religious affiliation

Admission
Acceptance rate	Open Admission	Open Admission
Application fees
SAT range	N/A	N/A
ACT range	N/A	N/A
Students submitting SAT score
Students submitting ACT score
Total number of applicants
Total number of admissions given out
Admitted students who chose to enroll
Yield rate
Test scores (SAT/ACT)	Not required	Not required
High school GPA	N/A	N/A
Recommendation letters	N/A	N/A
High school transcript	N/A	N/A
English proficiency test (e.g. TOEFL)	N/A	N/A

Tuition and Fees
Sticker price	In state: $31,734 Out of state: $39,270	In state: $29,201 Out of state: $37,875
Average net price	$12,583	$5,427
Tuition	In state: $1,104 Out of state: $8,472	In state: $1,364 Out of state: $10,016
Room & board
Available payment plans	Tuition payment plan

Financial Aid
Students receiving financial aid (Grants & scholarships)	65.0% Average amount $4,363	54.0% Average amount $5,763
Students receiving federal student loan	1.0% Average amount $4,454	0.0% Average amount $3,464
Students taking out private loans	0.0% Average amount $0	0.0% Average amount $0

Students and Campus
Undergraduate students	4,983 Men 42.3% Women 57.7%	6,894 Men 49.0% Women 51.0%
Graduate students	N/A	N/A
Racial/ethnic diversity	Moderate	Moderate
Out-of-state students	5.9%	0.2%
International students	2.6%	4.5%
Campus local/setting	Suburb: Large	City: Midsize
Dormitory capacity	N/A	N/A
First year students are required to live on campus?	N/A	N/A
Top 5 states where most U.S. students come from	California	California Utah

Academics
Popular study areas	Liberal Arts Automotive Technology Social Sciences Business Psychology	Social Sciences Business Communication and Journalism Law Enforcement and Firefighting Psychology
Students to faculty ratio	25:1	18:1
Institutional accreditation	Western Association of Schools and Colleges Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges	Western Association of Schools and Colleges Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges

Outcome
Graduation rate	29.7%	41.1%
Dropout rate	45.0%	38.4%
Transferred out	13.6%	11.9%
Alumni salary by major (Top 10)	N/A	Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Associate's Degrees) Year 1: $56,787 Year 2: $74,576 Year 3: $98,961 Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and Humanities (Associate's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: N/A Year 3: $45,672 Cosmetology and Related Personal Grooming Services (Associate's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $22,420 Year 3: N/A Criminal Justice and Corrections (Associate's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $46,478 Year 3: N/A

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.

San Mateo College vs College of Alameda

College of Alameda

College of San Mateo

Overview

Admission

Tuition and Fees

Financial Aid

Students and Campus

Academics

Outcome

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