Grand Canyon University (GCU) vs Stanford

Grand Canyon University (GCU) and Stanford 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, Stanford University, a prestigious private research university in Stanford, California, has a highly selective admissions process, with an acceptance rate of only 4%. While GCU offers popular majors in business, education, and nursing, Stanford excels in engineering, computer science, and social sciences. GCU's student body is predominantly undergraduate, with a diverse mix of ethnicities and ages, while Stanford's student population is more balanced between undergraduate and graduate programs, with a higher proportion of international students. GCU's graduation rate stands at 63%, while Stanford boasts a remarkable 95% graduation rate. Explore the comprehensive comparison table below to delve deeper into the key differences between these

	Grand Canyon University	Stanford University
Overview
Location	Phoenix, Arizona	Stanford, California
Campus setting	City: Large	Suburb: Large
College type	4 year	4 year
Control/business model	Private (For Profit)	Private (Non Profit)
Calendar system	Semester	Quarter
Degrees offered	Undergraduate and Graduate	Undergraduate and Graduate
Students retention rate	71.0%	98.0%
Common app member	No	No
Religious affiliation

Admission
Acceptance rate	82.8%	3.9%
Application fees		Undergraduate: $90 Graduate: $125
SAT range	N/A	1470 - 1570
ACT range	N/A	34 - 35
Students submitting SAT score		15.0%
Students submitting ACT score		11.0%
Total number of applicants	36,861	55,471
Total number of admissions given out	30,534	2,190
Admitted students who chose to enroll	7,620	1,757
Yield rate	25.0%	80.2%
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	$78,898
Average net price	$21,644	$14,402
Tuition	$16,500	$55,473
Room & board	Room/dormitory: $5,300 Meal plan: $3,800	Room/dormitory: $11,166 Meal plan: $6,694
Available payment plans	Tuition payment plan

Financial Aid
Students receiving financial aid (Grants & scholarships)	100.0% Average amount $10,225	61.0% Average amount $56,211
Students receiving federal student loan	60.0% Average amount $5,346	5.0% Average amount $5,151
Students taking out private loans	8.0% Average amount $12,937	1.0% Average amount $17,186

Students and Campus
Undergraduate students	65,870 Men 29.3% Women 70.7%	7,645 Men 49.4% Women 50.6%
Graduate students	37,202 Men 22.5% Women 77.5%	10,035 Men 56.5% Women 43.5%
Racial/ethnic diversity	Moderate	Moderate
Out-of-state students	73.1%	58.5%
International students	1.2%	24.4%
Campus local/setting	City: Large	Suburb: Large
Dormitory capacity	15,937	14,621
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	California Texas Washington New York Illinois

Academics
Popular study areas	Health Professions Education Business Psychology Computer and Information Science	Engineering Computer and Information Science Business Biological and Biomedical Sciences Physical Science
Students to faculty ratio	20:1	5:1
Institutional accreditation	Higher Learning Commission	Western Association of Schools and Colleges Senior Colleges and University Commission

Outcome
Graduation rate	44.7%	95.5%
Dropout rate	52.9%	1.7%
Transferred out	N/A	0.6%
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	Law (First Professional Degrees) Year 1: $151,574 Year 2: $170,457 Year 3: $210,837 Computer Science (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $159,729 Year 2: $168,942 Year 3: $203,193 Business Administration, Management and Operations (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $164,734 Year 2: $163,337 Year 3: $187,054 Electrical, Electronics and Communications Engineering (Doctoral Degrees) Year 1: $137,457 Year 2: $150,874 Year 3: $173,548 Computer Science (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $136,126 Year 2: $136,499 Year 3: $165,375 Electrical, Electronics and Communications Engineering (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $128,556 Year 2: $135,709 Year 3: $157,500 Engineering-Related Fields (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $123,354 Year 2: $106,421 Year 3: $139,234 Mechanical Engineering (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $105,326 Year 2: $111,435 Year 3: $126,185 Aerospace, Aeronautical and Astronautical Engineering (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $108,457 Year 2: $90,856 Year 3: $107,477 Economics (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $60,475 Year 2: $85,391 Year 3: $104,592

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