MSU Bulldogs vs Iowa State

Mississippi State University and Iowa State University, both public land-grant research universities, offer distinct educational experiences. Mississippi State, located in Starkville, Mississippi, has a lower acceptance rate (70%) compared to Iowa State's 84% in Ames, Iowa. Mississippi State's student body is more diverse, with 30% minority enrollment compared to Iowa State's 17%. Iowa State, however, boasts a higher graduation rate (79%) than Mississippi State's 68%. While both universities offer a wide range of undergraduate programs, Mississippi State excels in engineering, agriculture, and business, while Iowa State is renowned for its science, technology, and agriculture programs. Explore the detailed comparison table to discover more key differences and make an informed decision about which university aligns best with your academic aspirations and goals.

	Iowa State University	Mississippi State University
Overview
Location	Ames, Iowa	Mississippi State, Mississippi
Campus setting	City: Small	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	88.0%	81.0%
Common app member	Yes	No
Religious affiliation

Admission
Acceptance rate	91.1%	76.1%
Application fees	Undergraduate: $40 Graduate: $60	Undergraduate: $40 Graduate: $60
SAT range	1083 - 1330	1030 - 1280
ACT range	21 - 28	21 - 30
Students submitting SAT score	13.0%	9.0%
Students submitting ACT score	63.0%	91.0%
Total number of applicants	20,357	17,707
Total number of admissions given out	18,550	13,478
Admitted students who chose to enroll	5,387	3,388
Yield rate	29.0%	25.1%
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)	Required	Required

Tuition and Fees
Sticker price	In state: $22,152 Out of state: $37,964	In state: $26,460 Out of state: $42,140
Average net price	$15,422	$16,175
Tuition	In state: $8,324 Out of state: $24,136	In state: $9,110 Out of state: $24,790
Room & board	Room/dormitory: $4,590 Meal plan: $4,498	Room/dormitory: $6,612 Meal plan: $4,200
Available payment plans	Tuition payment plan	Tuition payment plan

Financial Aid
Students receiving financial aid (Grants & scholarships)	87.0% Average amount $8,833	97.0% Average amount $12,948
Students receiving federal student loan	47.0% Average amount $5,202	42.0% Average amount $5,388
Students taking out private loans	11.0% Average amount $11,630	6.0% Average amount $14,099

Students and Campus
Undergraduate students	25,808 Men 56.1% Women 43.9%	18,584 Men 49.6% Women 50.4%
Graduate students	4,900 Men 50.6% Women 49.4%	4,502 Men 45.3% Women 54.7%
Racial/ethnic diversity	Very Low	Low
Out-of-state students	N/A	41.2%
International students	8.2%	3.4%
Campus local/setting	City: Small	Town: Remote
Dormitory capacity	9,400	5,333
First year students are required to live on campus?	No	No
Top 5 states where most U.S. students come from	N/A	Mississippi Tennessee Alabama Georgia Louisiana

Academics
Popular study areas	Engineering Agriculture Education Business Biological and Biomedical Sciences	Engineering Education Business Agriculture Kinesiology & Leisure Studies
Students to faculty ratio	18:1	17:1
Institutional accreditation	Higher Learning Commission	Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges

Outcome
Graduation rate	76.0%	59.7%
Dropout rate	6.1%	38.5%
Transferred out	16.7%	N/A
Alumni salary by major (Top 10)	Electrical, Electronics and Communications Engineering (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $85,739 Year 2: $94,408 Year 3: $101,292 Mechanical Engineering (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $80,956 Year 2: N/A Year 3: $95,081 Industrial Engineering (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $99,120 Year 2: $89,059 Year 3: $92,521 Veterinary Medicine (First Professional Degrees) Year 1: $77,573 Year 2: N/A Year 3: $85,108 Electrical, Electronics and Communications Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $74,299 Year 2: $73,321 Year 3: $83,452 Computer Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $72,598 Year 2: $73,839 Year 3: $83,292 Computer Science (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $71,184 Year 2: $71,734 Year 3: $81,196 Business Administration, Management and Operations (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $83,223 Year 2: $70,680 Year 3: $79,916 Construction Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $71,580 Year 2: $70,083 Year 3: $77,479 Chemical Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $70,534 Year 2: $67,156 Year 3: $76,113	Business Administration, Management and Operations (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $75,348 Year 2: $88,527 Year 3: $99,184 Veterinary Medicine (First Professional Degrees) Year 1: $84,211 Year 2: N/A Year 3: $90,129 Chemical Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $70,757 Year 2: $74,307 Year 3: $82,587 Mechanical Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $67,632 Year 2: $73,852 Year 3: $79,309 Electrical, Electronics and Communications Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $69,768 Year 2: $74,405 Year 3: $78,161 Industrial Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $63,878 Year 2: $69,710 Year 3: $76,651 Aerospace, Aeronautical and Astronautical Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $54,741 Year 2: $63,005 Year 3: $69,725 Civil Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $56,809 Year 2: $56,776 Year 3: $68,041 Accounting and Related Services (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $55,551 Year 2: $58,334 Year 3: $66,010 Computer and Information Sciences, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $57,870 Year 2: $52,733 Year 3: $64,799

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