Western Kentucky University (WKU) vs Arkansas Tech University (ATU)

Western Kentucky University and Arkansas Tech University, both esteemed institutions of higher learning, offer unique educational experiences to their students. Western Kentucky University, located in Bowling Green, Kentucky, boasts a higher acceptance rate of 86% compared to Arkansas Tech University's 79% in Russellville, Arkansas. While Western Kentucky University's student body is more diverse, with a larger population of undergraduate students, Arkansas Tech University has a higher graduation rate of 53% compared to Western Kentucky University's 48%. Explore the comprehensive comparison table below to delve into further details about these universities, including popular majors, student demographics, and additional factors that may influence your decision in choosing the best fit for your academic journey.

	Arkansas Tech University	Western Kentucky University
Overview
Location	Russellville, Arkansas	Bowling Green, Kentucky
Campus setting	Town: Remote	City: Small
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%	73.0%
Common app member	No	Yes
Religious affiliation

Admission
Acceptance rate	94.4%	98.5%
Application fees	$40	Undergraduate: $45 Graduate: $65
SAT range	N/A	N/A
ACT range	N/A	N/A
Students submitting SAT score
Students submitting ACT score
Total number of applicants	6,218	7,255
Total number of admissions given out	5,868	7,145
Admitted students who chose to enroll	1,396	2,832
Yield rate	23.8%	39.6%
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: $27,895 Out of state: $43,903
Average net price	$11,097	$12,395
Tuition	In state: $5,736 Out of state: $11,472	In state: $10,992 Out of state: $27,000
Room & board	Room/dormitory: $4,996 Meal plan: $4,000	Room/dormitory: $6,744 Meal plan: $3,964
Available payment plans	Tuition payment plan	Tuition payment plan

Financial Aid
Students receiving financial aid (Grants & scholarships)	94.0% Average amount $8,425	98.0% Average amount $9,576
Students receiving federal student loan	43.0% Average amount $6,090	47.0% Average amount $5,128
Students taking out private loans	4.0% Average amount $8,627	5.0% Average amount $9,983

Students and Campus
Undergraduate students	8,901 Men 43.8% Women 56.2%	14,729 Men 37.8% Women 62.2%
Graduate students	739 Men 36.3% Women 63.7%	2,021 Men 34.1% Women 65.9%
Racial/ethnic diversity	Low	Low
Out-of-state students	6.2%	N/A
International students	2.2%	1.1%
Campus local/setting	Town: Remote	City: Small
Dormitory capacity	2,100	4,942
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	Tennessee Indiana Illinois Ohio

Academics
Popular study areas	Health Professions Liberal Arts Education Business Law Enforcement and Firefighting	Health Professions Business Education Kinesiology & Leisure Studies Public Administration and Social Service
Students to faculty ratio	18:1	18:1
Institutional accreditation	Higher Learning Commission	Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges

Outcome
Graduation rate	45.8%	53.6%
Dropout rate	30.2%	22.1%
Transferred out	22.2%	22.9%
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: $76,015 Year 2: $86,696 Year 3: $95,431 Rehabilitation and Therapeutic Professions (Doctoral Degrees) Year 1: $71,960 Year 2: $76,998 Year 3: $77,293 Electrical, Electronics and Communications Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $62,199 Year 2: $70,009 Year 3: $77,197 Industrial Production Technologies/Technicians (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $53,704 Year 2: $57,318 Year 3: $68,358 Mechanical Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $65,193 Year 2: $63,005 Year 3: $66,850 Construction Engineering Technologies (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $49,992 Year 2: $63,005 Year 3: $65,815 Business Administration, Management and Operations (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $52,607 Year 2: $61,144 Year 3: $65,553 Civil Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $50,759 Year 2: $51,551 Year 3: $57,443 Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Associate's Degrees) Year 1: $53,729 Year 2: $52,897 Year 3: $56,104 Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $56,172 Year 2: $56,281 Year 3: $55,609

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