UNC Charlotte vs California State University-Northridge (CSUN)

Envision yourself pursuing higher education in either the vibrant city of Charlotte, North Carolina, or the sun-kissed valley of Northridge, California. University of North Carolina at Charlotte (UNCC) and California State University-Northridge (CSUN) stand as prominent institutions, each offering a unique blend of academic excellence and diverse student life. While both universities share a commitment to providing quality education, they differ in several aspects, including acceptance rates, popular majors, student demographics, and graduation rates. Explore the comprehensive comparison table below to discover which university aligns best with your academic aspirations, personal preferences, and future goals.

	California State University-Northridge	University of North Carolina at Charlotte
Overview
Location	Northridge, California	Charlotte, North Carolina
Campus setting	City: Large	City: Large
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%	85.0%
Common app member	No	Yes
Religious affiliation

Admission
Acceptance rate	88.1%	79.4%
Application fees	Undergraduate: $70 Graduate: $70	Undergraduate: $75 Graduate: $75
SAT range	N/A	1120 - 1320
ACT range	N/A	21 - 26
Students submitting SAT score		21.0%
Students submitting ACT score		54.0%
Total number of applicants	23,656	20,366
Total number of admissions given out	20,842	16,180
Admitted students who chose to enroll	4,716	4,256
Yield rate	22.6%	26.3%
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	Required

Tuition and Fees
Sticker price	In state: $31,857 Out of state: $43,737	In state: $23,716 Out of state: $37,150
Average net price	$8,708	$15,682
Tuition	In state: $5,742 Out of state: $17,622	In state: $3,812 Out of state: $17,246
Room & board	Room/dormitory: $7,316 Meal plan: $4,506	Room/dormitory: $7,322 Meal plan: $4,420
Available payment plans	Tuition payment plan	Guaranteed tuition plan Tuition payment plan

Financial Aid
Students receiving financial aid (Grants & scholarships)	82.0% Average amount $10,882	61.0% Average amount $7,807
Students receiving federal student loan	14.0% Average amount $4,779	49.0% Average amount $5,311
Students taking out private loans	1.0% Average amount $12,360	7.0% Average amount $14,942

Students and Campus
Undergraduate students	34,496 Men 45.0% Women 55.0%	24,116 Men 52.5% Women 47.5%
Graduate students	5,612 Men 33.0% Women 67.0%	6,332 Men 39.4% Women 60.6%
Racial/ethnic diversity	Moderate	Moderate
Out-of-state students	1.7%	8.8%
International students	6.0%	5.7%
Campus local/setting	City: Large	City: Large
Dormitory capacity	4,029	5,983
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	North Carolina South Carolina Virginia New York New Jersey

Academics
Popular study areas	Health Professions Engineering Kinesiology & Leisure Studies Public Administration and Social Service Computer and Information Science	Education Engineering Health Professions Business Computer and Information Science
Students to faculty ratio	26:1	20:1
Institutional accreditation	Western Association of Schools and Colleges Senior Colleges and University Commission	Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges

Outcome
Graduation rate	54.2%	65.7%
Dropout rate	33.7%	8.6%
Transferred out	5.6%	23.1%
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	Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $99,028 Year 2: $123,527 Year 3: $120,396 Business Administration, Management and Operations (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $76,492 Year 2: $84,653 Year 3: $90,016 Multi/Interdisciplinary Studies, Other (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $88,922 Year 2: $78,343 Year 3: $88,416 Computer Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $58,378 Year 2: $70,829 Year 3: $79,712 Engineering Technologies/Technicians, Other (Master's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $71,575 Year 3: $74,196 Civil Engineering (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $61,022 Year 2: $65,387 Year 3: $73,734 Electrical, Electronics and Communications Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $67,160 Year 2: $63,898 Year 3: $73,656 Management Information Systems and Services (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $52,433 Year 2: $60,920 Year 3: $72,989 Computer Science (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $61,034 Year 2: $60,335 Year 3: $70,327 Mechanical Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $63,768 Year 2: $62,666 Year 3: $69,749

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