Cal Poly Humboldt vs California State University-Northridge (CSUN)

California State Polytechnic University-Humboldt (Cal Poly Humboldt) and California State University-Northridge (CSUN) are two distinct universities within the California State University system, each offering unique educational experiences. Cal Poly Humboldt, nestled in the scenic redwood forests of Arcata, boasts a strong focus on environmental studies and natural resources, while CSUN, located in the vibrant San Fernando Valley, excels in the arts, business, and education. With varying acceptance rates, popular majors, student body demographics, and graduation rates, these universities cater to diverse student populations and academic interests. Explore the comprehensive comparison table below to discover which institution aligns best with your aspirations and goals, considering factors such as location, academic offerings, and campus culture.

	California State University-Northridge	California State Polytechnic University-Humboldt
Overview
Location	Northridge, California	Arcata, California
Campus setting	City: Large	Town: Remote
College type	4 year	4 year
Control/business model	Public	Public
Calendar system	Semester	Semester
Degrees offered	Undergraduate and Graduate	Undergraduate and Graduate
Students retention rate	82.0%	74.0%
Common app member	No	No
Religious affiliation

Admission
Acceptance rate	88.1%	91.5%
Application fees	Undergraduate: $70 Graduate: $70	Undergraduate: $70 Graduate: $70
SAT range	N/A	N/A
ACT range	N/A	N/A
Students submitting SAT score
Students submitting ACT score
Total number of applicants	23,656	7,013
Total number of admissions given out	20,842	6,414
Admitted students who chose to enroll	4,716	629
Yield rate	22.6%	9.8%
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: $31,857 Out of state: $43,737	In state: $25,668 Out of state: $37,548
Average net price	$8,708	$13,904
Tuition	In state: $5,742 Out of state: $17,622	In state: $5,742 Out of state: $17,622
Room & board	Room/dormitory: $7,316 Meal plan: $4,506	Room/dormitory: $6,638 Meal plan: $5,600
Available payment plans	Tuition payment plan	Tuition payment plan

Financial Aid
Students receiving financial aid (Grants & scholarships)	82.0% Average amount $10,882	75.0% Average amount $9,716
Students receiving federal student loan	14.0% Average amount $4,779	36.0% Average amount $4,831
Students taking out private loans	1.0% Average amount $12,360	1.0% Average amount $12,255

Students and Campus
Undergraduate students	34,496 Men 45.0% Women 55.0%	5,354 Men 41.6% Women 58.4%
Graduate students	5,612 Men 33.0% Women 67.0%	554 Men 30.0% Women 70.0%
Racial/ethnic diversity	Moderate	Moderate
Out-of-state students	1.7%	7.0%
International students	6.0%	1.3%
Campus local/setting	City: Large	Town: Remote
Dormitory capacity	4,029	2,069
First year students are required to live on campus?	No	No
Top 5 states where most U.S. students come from	California Washington Hawaii Nevada Texas	California Oregon Washington Colorado Hawaii

Academics
Popular study areas	Health Professions Engineering Kinesiology & Leisure Studies Public Administration and Social Service Computer and Information Science	Natural Resources and Conservation Psychology Kinesiology & Leisure Studies Liberal Arts Social Sciences
Students to faculty ratio	26:1	16:1
Institutional accreditation	Western Association of Schools and Colleges Senior Colleges and University Commission	Western Association of Schools and Colleges Senior Colleges and University Commission

Outcome
Graduation rate	54.2%	47.5%
Dropout rate	33.7%	42.0%
Transferred out	5.6%	7.8%
Alumni salary by major (Top 10)	Electrical, Electronics and Communications Engineering (Master's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $95,739 Year 3: $108,158 Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $89,831 Year 2: $92,124 Year 3: $98,535 Taxation (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $72,745 Year 2: $86,867 Year 3: $97,852 Business Administration, Management and Operations (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $83,455 Year 2: $88,907 Year 3: $96,626 Construction Engineering Technologies (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $79,863 Year 2: $75,204 Year 3: $92,559 Engineering-Related Fields (Master's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $80,493 Year 3: $92,252 Allied Health Diagnostic, Intervention, and Treatment Professions (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $83,281 Year 2: $83,669 Year 3: $89,964 Computer Science (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $64,782 Year 2: $75,047 Year 3: $84,221 Electrical, Electronics and Communications Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $68,859 Year 2: $73,070 Year 3: $82,977 Educational Administration and Supervision (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $78,180 Year 2: $76,863 Year 3: $82,194	Computer Science (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $40,497 Year 2: $53,775 Year 3: $69,150 Environmental/Environmental Health Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $51,856 Year 2: $48,265 Year 3: $60,145 Psychology, General (Master's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $52,941 Year 3: $58,243 Social Work (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $52,405 Year 2: $53,045 Year 3: $57,583 Forestry (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $40,805 Year 2: $38,289 Year 3: $46,240 Natural Resources Conservation and Research (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $49,362 Year 2: $41,565 Year 3: $45,717 Social Work (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $26,892 Year 2: $28,236 Year 3: $42,797 Business Administration, Management and Operations (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $32,215 Year 2: $36,294 Year 3: $41,528 History (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $20,882 Year 2: $25,967 Year 3: $39,496 Sociology (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $22,867 Year 2: $25,194 Year 3: $37,639

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