Western Kentucky University (WKU) vs Eastern Kentucky University (EKU)

Nestled in the heart of Kentucky, Western Kentucky University (WKU) and Eastern Kentucky University (EKU) stand as two distinct beacons of higher education, each offering a unique blend of academic excellence and vibrant campus life. While both universities share a commitment to providing students with a transformative educational experience, they differ in several key aspects, including acceptance rates, popular majors, student body demographics, and graduation rates. Explore our comprehensive comparison table to discover the nuances that set these two institutions apart and make an informed decision about your academic journey.

	Eastern Kentucky University	Western Kentucky University
Overview
Location	Richmond, Kentucky	Bowling Green, Kentucky
Campus setting	Town: Distant	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	74.0%	73.0%
Common app member	No	Yes
Religious affiliation

Admission
Acceptance rate	98.3%	98.5%
Application fees		Undergraduate: $45 Graduate: $65
SAT range	950 - 1180	N/A
ACT range	18 - 24	N/A
Students submitting SAT score	4.0%
Students submitting ACT score	88.0%
Total number of applicants	7,251	7,255
Total number of admissions given out	7,131	7,145
Admitted students who chose to enroll	2,493	2,832
Yield rate	35.0%	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: $23,762 Out of state: $34,034	In state: $27,895 Out of state: $43,903
Average net price	$14,271	$12,395
Tuition	In state: $9,452 Out of state: $19,724	In state: $10,992 Out of state: $27,000
Room & board	Room/dormitory: $5,416 Meal plan: $3,994	Room/dormitory: $6,744 Meal plan: $3,964
Available payment plans	Guaranteed tuition plan Tuition payment plan	Tuition payment plan

Financial Aid
Students receiving financial aid (Grants & scholarships)	98.0% Average amount $9,891	98.0% Average amount $9,576
Students receiving federal student loan	49.0% Average amount $4,950	47.0% Average amount $5,128
Students taking out private loans	5.0% Average amount $10,455	5.0% Average amount $9,983

Students and Campus
Undergraduate students	11,684 Men 40.6% Women 59.4%	14,729 Men 37.8% Women 62.2%
Graduate students	2,300 Men 30.0% Women 70.0%	2,021 Men 34.1% Women 65.9%
Racial/ethnic diversity	Very Low	Low
Out-of-state students	N/A	N/A
International students	1.1%	1.1%
Campus local/setting	Town: Distant	City: Small
Dormitory capacity	4,479	4,942
First year students are required to live on campus?	No	No
Top 5 states where most U.S. students come from	Ohio Illinois Indiana West Virginia	Tennessee Indiana Illinois Ohio

Academics
Popular study areas	Health Professions Education Law Enforcement and Firefighting Liberal Arts Engineering Technologies	Health Professions Business Education Kinesiology & Leisure Studies Public Administration and Social Service
Students to faculty ratio	15:1	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	47.8%	53.6%
Dropout rate	48.5%	22.1%
Transferred out	1.6%	22.9%
Alumni salary by major (Top 10)	Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Graduate/Professional Certificates) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $110,878 Year 3: $113,532 Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $94,123 Year 2: $90,291 Year 3: $95,519 Quality Control and Safety Technologies/Technicians (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $67,935 Year 2: $69,338 Year 3: $78,046 Homeland Security, Law Enforcement, Firefighting and Related Protective Services, Other (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $73,209 Year 2: $74,105 Year 3: $74,692 Construction Management (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $59,585 Year 2: $57,318 Year 3: $71,030 Educational Administration and Supervision (First Professional Degrees) Year 1: $54,959 Year 2: $60,523 Year 3: $62,961 Computer and Information Sciences, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $50,605 Year 2: $49,019 Year 3: $62,600 Rehabilitation and Therapeutic Professions (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $56,959 Year 2: $60,523 Year 3: $61,708 Fire Protection (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $48,702 Year 2: $49,787 Year 3: $58,036 Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $58,745 Year 2: $57,318 Year 3: $57,935	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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