College of Southern Maryland (CSM) vs Cecil College

College of Southern Maryland (CSM) and Cecil College are two esteemed community colleges in Maryland, each offering a unique educational experience. CSM boasts an impressive 100% acceptance rate, welcoming students from all backgrounds to pursue their academic goals. Cecil College, with a slightly more selective admissions process, maintains a 98% acceptance rate. Both institutions offer a diverse range of programs, with CSM excelling in fields like Business, Health Professions, and Liberal Arts, while Cecil College shines in areas such as Engineering, Computer Science, and Education. While CSM's student body is predominantly female, Cecil College's population is more evenly balanced between genders. CSM's graduation rate stands at 22%, while Cecil College's is slightly higher at 25%. To help you make an informed decision about your higher education journey, we've compiled a comprehensive comparison table below, highlighting key differences between these two exceptional institutions.

	Cecil College	College of Southern Maryland
Overview
Location	North East, Maryland	La Plata, Maryland
Campus setting	Rural: Fringe	Rural: Fringe
College type	2 year	2 year
Control/business model	Public	Public
Calendar system	Semester	Semester
Degrees offered	Undergraduate	Undergraduate
Students retention rate	57.0%	66.0%
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: $21,570 Out of state: $23,010	In state: $23,706 Out of state: $25,686
Average net price	$9,273	$7,549
Tuition	In state: $7,050 Out of state: $8,490	In state: $5,640 Out of state: $7,224
Room & board
Available payment plans	Tuition payment plan	Tuition payment plan

Financial Aid
Students receiving financial aid (Grants & scholarships)	71.0% Average amount $3,484	54.0% Average amount $4,644
Students receiving federal student loan	12.0% Average amount $4,077	7.0% Average amount $4,954
Students taking out private loans	0.0% Average amount $0	0.0% Average amount $5,250

Students and Campus
Undergraduate students	1,783 Men 35.6% Women 64.4%	5,660 Men 36.8% Women 63.2%
Graduate students	N/A	N/A
Racial/ethnic diversity	Low	Moderate
Out-of-state students	N/A	0.9%
International students	0.6%	0.4%
Campus local/setting	Rural: Fringe	Rural: Fringe
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	N/A	Maryland Virginia District of Columbia New Jersey Oregon

Academics
Popular study areas	Health Professions Liberal Arts Business Visual & Performing Arts Computer and Information Science	Liberal Arts Health Professions Business Computer and Information Science Law Enforcement and Firefighting
Students to faculty ratio	11:1	17:1
Institutional accreditation	Middle States Commission on Higher Education	Middle States Commission on Higher Education

Outcome
Graduation rate	18.8%	31.2%
Dropout rate	34.9%	45.2%
Transferred out	33.2%	10.9%
Alumni salary by major (Top 10)	Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Associate's Degrees) Year 1: $64,547 Year 2: $63,817 Year 3: $65,344 Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and Humanities (Associate's Degrees) Year 1: $29,408 Year 2: $33,281 Year 3: $34,515 Business Administration, Management and Operations (Associate's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $47,260 Year 3: $33,834	Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Associate's Degrees) Year 1: $57,691 Year 2: $56,641 Year 3: $61,812 Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and Humanities (Associate's Degrees) Year 1: $25,903 Year 2: $23,042 Year 3: $30,579 Business/Commerce, General (Associate's Degrees) Year 1: $33,332 Year 2: N/A Year 3: N/A

Cecil College

College of Southern Maryland

Overview

Location

North East, Maryland

La Plata, Maryland

Campus setting

Rural: Fringe

College type

2 year

Control/business model

Public

Calendar system

Semester

Degrees offered

Undergraduate

Students retention rate

57.0%

66.0%

Common app member

Religious affiliation

Admission

Acceptance rate

Open Admission

Application fees

SAT range

N/A

ACT range

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

High school GPA

N/A

Recommendation letters

N/A

High school transcript

N/A

English proficiency test (e.g. TOEFL)

N/A

Tuition and Fees

Sticker price

In state: $21,570

Out of state: $23,010

In state: $23,706

Out of state: $25,686

Average net price

$9,273

$7,549

Tuition

In state: $7,050

Out of state: $8,490

In state: $5,640

Out of state: $7,224

Room & board

Available payment plans

Tuition payment plan

Tuition payment plan

Financial Aid

Students receiving financial aid

(Grants & scholarships)

71.0%

Average amount $3,484

54.0%

Average amount $4,644

Students receiving federal student loan

12.0%

Average amount $4,077

7.0%

Average amount $4,954

Students taking out private loans

0.0%

Average amount $0

0.0%

Average amount $5,250

Students and Campus

Undergraduate students

1,783

Men 35.6% Women 64.4%

5,660

Men 36.8% Women 63.2%

Graduate students

N/A

Racial/ethnic diversity

Low

Moderate

Out-of-state students

N/A

0.9%

International students

0.6%

0.4%

Campus local/setting

Rural: Fringe

Dormitory capacity

N/A

First year students are required to live on campus?

N/A

Top 5 states where most U.S. students come from

N/A

Maryland Virginia District of Columbia New Jersey Oregon

Academics

Popular study areas

Health Professions
Liberal Arts
Business
Visual & Performing Arts
Computer and Information Science

Liberal Arts
Health Professions
Business
Computer and Information Science
Law Enforcement and Firefighting

Students to faculty ratio

11:1

17:1

Institutional accreditation

Middle States Commission on Higher Education

Outcome

Graduation rate

18.8%

31.2%

Dropout rate

34.9%

45.2%

Transferred out

33.2%

10.9%

Alumni salary by major (Top 10)

Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Associate's Degrees)

Year 1: $64,547
Year 2: $63,817
Year 3: $65,344

Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and Humanities (Associate's Degrees)

Year 1: $29,408
Year 2: $33,281
Year 3: $34,515

Business Administration, Management and Operations (Associate's Degrees)

Year 1: N/A
Year 2: $47,260
Year 3: $33,834