Murray State vs Arkansas Tech University (ATU)

Murray State University and Arkansas Tech University, both esteemed institutions of higher learning, offer unique educational experiences to their students. Murray State, located in Kentucky, boasts a higher acceptance rate (86%) compared to Arkansas Tech's 79%. While Murray State's student body is more diverse, with a larger international student population, Arkansas Tech has a slightly higher graduation rate (58% vs. 56%). Both universities offer a wide range of undergraduate programs, with popular majors such as Business, Education, and Nursing. However, Murray State has a stronger focus on liberal arts and sciences, while Arkansas Tech emphasizes career-oriented programs. Explore the detailed comparison table below to discover more distinctions between these two excellent universities and make an informed decision about your academic journey.

	Arkansas Tech University	Murray State University
Overview
Location	Russellville, Arkansas	Murray, Kentucky
Campus setting	Town: Remote	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	63.0%	75.0%
Common app member	No	No
Religious affiliation

Admission
Acceptance rate	94.4%	85.2%
Application fees	$40	Undergraduate: $40 Graduate: $40
SAT range	N/A	960 - 1200
ACT range	N/A	20 - 27
Students submitting SAT score		16.0%
Students submitting ACT score		86.0%
Total number of applicants	6,218	9,144
Total number of admissions given out	5,868	7,787
Admitted students who chose to enroll	1,396	1,395
Yield rate	23.8%	17.9%
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: $27,125 Out of state: $32,861	In state: $26,219 Out of state: $35,495
Average net price	$11,097	$11,237
Tuition	In state: $5,736 Out of state: $11,472	In state: $8,040 Out of state: $17,316
Room & board	Room/dormitory: $4,996 Meal plan: $4,000	Room/dormitory: $5,538 Meal plan: $4,330
Available payment plans	Tuition payment plan	Tuition payment plan

Financial Aid
Students receiving financial aid (Grants & scholarships)	94.0% Average amount $8,425	99.0% Average amount $11,753
Students receiving federal student loan	43.0% Average amount $6,090	47.0% Average amount $6,997
Students taking out private loans	4.0% Average amount $8,627	7.0% Average amount $10,075

Students and Campus
Undergraduate students	8,901 Men 43.8% Women 56.2%	7,651 Men 37.5% Women 62.5%
Graduate students	739 Men 36.3% Women 63.7%	1,763 Men 35.1% Women 64.9%
Racial/ethnic diversity	Low	Very Low
Out-of-state students	6.2%	N/A
International students	2.2%	5.4%
Campus local/setting	Town: Remote	Town: Remote
Dormitory capacity	2,100	3,064
First year students are required to live on campus?	No	No
Top 5 states where most U.S. students come from	Arkansas Texas Oklahoma Missouri Tennessee	Illinois Tennessee Indiana Missouri

Academics
Popular study areas	Health Professions Liberal Arts Education Business Law Enforcement and Firefighting	Health Professions Education Business Agriculture Engineering Technologies
Students to faculty ratio	18:1	16:1
Institutional accreditation	Higher Learning Commission	Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges

Outcome
Graduation rate	45.8%	55.9%
Dropout rate	30.2%	42.8%
Transferred out	22.2%	N/A
Alumni salary by major (Top 10)	Mechanical Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $60,093 Year 2: $54,974 Year 3: $63,833 Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $56,586 Year 2: $57,955 Year 3: $59,678 Electrical, Electronics and Communications Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $64,980 Year 2: $45,808 Year 3: $58,934 Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Associate's Degrees) Year 1: $59,665 Year 2: $52,607 Year 3: $58,602 Computer and Information Sciences, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $43,486 Year 2: $52,107 Year 3: $54,362 Educational Administration and Supervision (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $51,609 Year 2: $49,136 Year 3: $53,009 Teaching English or French as a Second or Foreign Language (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $44,819 Year 2: $38,289 Year 3: $43,990 Student Counseling and Personnel Services (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $36,415 Year 2: $40,222 Year 3: $42,597 Homeland Security (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $35,633 Year 2: $36,668 Year 3: $41,833 Education, General (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $39,931 Year 2: $38,649 Year 3: $41,419	Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Master's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $162,817 Year 3: $178,780 Quality Control and Safety Technologies/Technicians (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $68,792 Year 2: $79,473 Year 3: $88,757 Quality Control and Safety Technologies/Technicians (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $65,448 Year 2: $66,969 Year 3: $69,761 Computer Science (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $43,888 Year 2: $53,775 Year 3: $66,008 Business/Commerce, General (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $53,643 Year 2: $59,485 Year 3: $65,410 Civil Engineering Technologies/Technicians (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $58,121 Year 2: $55,964 Year 3: $59,977 Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $54,148 Year 2: $58,142 Year 3: $55,771 Educational Administration and Supervision (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $44,974 Year 2: $59,485 Year 3: $54,238 Communication Disorders Sciences and Services (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $51,117 Year 2: $56,641 Year 3: $52,217 Information Science/Studies (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $46,964 Year 2: $50,856 Year 3: $50,840

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