UTC-Chattanooga vs Murray State

Envision yourself as a college student, embarking on a journey of higher education. As you navigate the vast landscape of universities, two prominent institutions emerge: The University of Tennessee-Chattanooga (UTC) and Murray State University (MSU). While both offer exceptional academic opportunities, they possess distinct characteristics that may influence your decision. UTC boasts a higher acceptance rate, welcoming a broader range of students, while MSU maintains a slightly smaller student body, fostering a more intimate learning environment. Explore the comparison table to delve into further details, such as popular majors, student demographics, and graduation rates, to determine which university aligns best with your aspirations and goals.

	Murray State University	The University of Tennessee-Chattanooga
Overview
Location	Murray, Kentucky	Chattanooga, Tennessee
Campus setting	Town: Remote	City: Midsize
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	75.0%	73.0%
Common app member	No	No
Religious affiliation

Admission
Acceptance rate	85.2%	85.7%
Application fees	Undergraduate: $40 Graduate: $40	Undergraduate: $30 Graduate: $35
SAT range	960 - 1200	1030 - 1230
ACT range	20 - 27	20 - 26
Students submitting SAT score	16.0%	5.0%
Students submitting ACT score	86.0%	89.0%
Total number of applicants	9,144	7,607
Total number of admissions given out	7,787	6,518
Admitted students who chose to enroll	1,395	2,074
Yield rate	17.9%	31.8%
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)	Required	Required

Tuition and Fees
Sticker price	In state: $26,219 Out of state: $35,495	In state: $24,798 Out of state: $40,916
Average net price	$11,237	$13,552
Tuition	In state: $8,040 Out of state: $17,316	In state: $7,992 Out of state: $24,110
Room & board	Room/dormitory: $5,538 Meal plan: $4,330	Room/dormitory: $6,348 Meal plan: $4,114
Available payment plans	Tuition payment plan	Tuition payment plan

Financial Aid
Students receiving financial aid (Grants & scholarships)	99.0% Average amount $11,753	96.0% Average amount $9,566
Students receiving federal student loan	47.0% Average amount $6,997	44.0% Average amount $4,907
Students taking out private loans	7.0% Average amount $10,075	4.0% Average amount $10,148

Students and Campus
Undergraduate students	7,651 Men 37.5% Women 62.5%	10,016 Men 41.7% Women 58.3%
Graduate students	1,763 Men 35.1% Women 64.9%	1,441 Men 40.0% Women 60.0%
Racial/ethnic diversity	Very Low	Low
Out-of-state students	N/A	11.5%
International students	5.4%	1.2%
Campus local/setting	Town: Remote	City: Midsize
Dormitory capacity	3,064	3,488
First year students are required to live on campus?	No	No
Top 5 states where most U.S. students come from	Illinois Tennessee Indiana Missouri	Tennessee Georgia Alabama Virgin Islands California

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

Outcome
Graduation rate	55.9%	53.7%
Dropout rate	42.8%	44.3%
Transferred out	N/A	N/A
Alumni salary by major (Top 10)	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	Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $146,119 Year 2: $145,898 Year 3: $147,996 Business Administration, Management and Operations (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $74,736 Year 2: $76,041 Year 3: $80,605 Electrical, Electronics and Communications Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $67,245 Year 2: $72,883 Year 3: $78,427 Mechanical Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $63,841 Year 2: $63,005 Year 3: $74,942 Psychology, General (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $40,600 Year 2: $63,005 Year 3: $73,667 Civil Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $57,404 Year 2: $62,012 Year 3: $71,084 Chemical Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $65,427 Year 2: $67,324 Year 3: $70,983 Engineering, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $54,615 Year 2: $69,338 Year 3: $69,556 Rehabilitation and Therapeutic Professions (Doctoral Degrees) Year 1: $68,269 Year 2: $71,255 Year 3: $69,322 Computer Science (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $46,241 Year 2: $57,318 Year 3: $61,753

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