Grand Canyon University (GCU) vs Harvard

Grand Canyon University (GCU) and Harvard University stand as two distinct academic institutions, each offering unique opportunities and experiences to their students. GCU, a private Christian university located in Phoenix, Arizona, boasts an acceptance rate of 88%, making it more accessible to a wider range of students. In contrast, Harvard, an Ivy League institution in Cambridge, Massachusetts, has a highly selective admissions process, with an acceptance rate of just 5%. While both universities offer a diverse range of undergraduate and graduate programs, GCU is known for its popular majors in business, education, and nursing, while Harvard excels in fields such as social sciences, humanities, and engineering. GCU's student body is predominantly composed of undergraduate students, with a significant portion being first-generation college students, while Harvard's student body is more evenly distributed between undergraduate and graduate programs. With a graduation rate of 63%, GCU provides ample support to help students complete their degrees, while Harvard boasts a remarkable
Grand Canyon University logo

Grand Canyon University

Harvard University logo

Harvard University

Overview

Location Phoenix, Arizona Cambridge, Massachusetts
Campus setting City: Large City: Midsize
College type 4 year 4 year
Control/business model Private (For Profit) Private (Non Profit)
Calendar system Semester Semester
Degrees offered Undergraduate and Graduate Undergraduate and Graduate
Students retention rate 71.0% 96.0%
Common app member No Yes
Religious affiliation

Admission

Acceptance rate 82.8% 4.0%
Application fees
Undergraduate: $75

Graduate: $105
SAT range N/A 1480 - 1580
ACT range N/A 33 - 36
Students submitting SAT score 54.0%
Students submitting ACT score 31.0%
Total number of applicants 36,861 57,786
Total number of admissions given out 30,534 2,318
Admitted students who chose to enroll 7,620 1,951
Yield rate 25.0% 84.2%
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) Required Not required

Tuition and Fees

Sticker price $32,100 $78,028
Average net price $21,644 $13,910
Tuition $16,500 $51,143
Room & board
Room/dormitory: $5,300

Meal plan: $3,800
Room/dormitory: $11,705

Meal plan: $7,236
Available payment plans
  • Tuition payment plan
  • Prepaid tuition plan
  • Tuition payment plan

Financial Aid

Students receiving financial aid

(Grants & scholarships)

100.0%
Average amount $10,225
56.0%
Average amount $59,840
Students receiving federal student loan 60.0%
Average amount $5,346
3.0%
Average amount $5,180
Students taking out private loans 8.0%
Average amount $12,937
2.0%
Average amount $8,080

Students and Campus

Undergraduate students 65,870
Men 29.3% Women 70.7%
9,579
Men 49.0% Women 51.0%
Graduate students 37,202
Men 22.5% Women 77.5%
21,766
Men 46.3% Women 53.7%
Racial/ethnic diversity
Moderate
Moderate
Out-of-state students 73.1% N/A
International students 1.2% 23.9%
Campus local/setting City: Large City: Midsize
Dormitory capacity 15,937 12,874
First year students are required to live on campus? No Yes
Top 5 states where most U.S. students come from Arizona California Washington Colorado Minnesota New York California Texas Illinois New Jersey

Academics

Popular study areas
  • Health Professions
  • Education
  • Business
  • Psychology
  • Computer and Information Science
  • Business
  • Health Professions
  • Social Sciences
  • Education
  • Legal Profession
Students to faculty ratio 20:1 7:1
Institutional accreditation Higher Learning Commission New England Commission on Higher Education

Outcome

Graduation rate 44.7% 96.7%
Dropout rate 52.9% 2.0%
Transferred out N/A N/A
Alumni salary by major (Top 10)
Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Doctoral Degrees)
  • Year 1: $117,397
  • Year 2: $119,061
  • Year 3: $125,189
Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Master's Degrees)
  • Year 1: $97,451
  • Year 2: $96,705
  • Year 3: $100,941
Computer and Information Sciences, General (Master's Degrees)
  • Year 1: $86,965
  • Year 2: $87,641
  • Year 3: $91,610
Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Bachelor's Degrees)
  • Year 1: $78,940
  • Year 2: $77,476
  • Year 3: $80,825
Educational Administration and Supervision (Doctoral Degrees)
  • Year 1: $75,319
  • Year 2: $66,821
  • Year 3: $68,008
Business Administration, Management and Operations (Master's Degrees)
  • Year 1: $65,248
  • Year 2: $64,265
  • Year 3: $66,703
Accounting and Related Services (Master's Degrees)
  • Year 1: $58,382
  • Year 2: $57,047
  • Year 3: $64,355
Education, General (Master's Degrees)
  • Year 1: $59,308
  • Year 2: $59,621
  • Year 3: $62,793
Homeland Security (Bachelor's Degrees)
  • Year 1: $63,625
  • Year 2: $60,082
  • Year 3: $61,171
Educational Administration and Supervision (Master's Degrees)
  • Year 1: $56,083
  • Year 2: $55,605
  • Year 3: $59,588
Statistics (Bachelor's Degrees)
  • Year 1: $78,193
  • Year 2: $128,716
  • Year 3: $240,408
Law (First Professional Degrees)
  • Year 1: $184,307
  • Year 2: $165,340
  • Year 3: $199,043
Business Administration, Management and Operations (First Professional Degrees)
  • Year 1: $171,333
  • Year 2: $171,907
  • Year 3: $187,553
Computer Science (Bachelor's Degrees)
  • Year 1: $140,072
  • Year 2: $128,737
  • Year 3: $163,896
Advanced/Graduate Dentistry and Oral Sciences (Graduate/Professional Certificates)
  • Year 1: $151,371
  • Year 2: $174,023
  • Year 3: $163,512
Public Health (Master's Degrees)
  • Year 1: $123,508
  • Year 2: $117,916
  • Year 3: $129,281
Ecology, Evolution, Systematics, and Population Biology (Master's Degrees)
  • Year 1: N/A
  • Year 2: $106,421
  • Year 3: $121,832
Applied Mathematics (Bachelor's Degrees)
  • Year 1: $102,707
  • Year 2: $90,856
  • Year 3: $121,771
Education, General (Doctoral Degrees)
  • Year 1: $97,905
  • Year 2: $98,670
  • Year 3: $107,389
Dentistry (First Professional Degrees)
  • Year 1: $68,745
  • Year 2: $71,486
  • Year 3: $106,375

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