Alcorn State vs Philander Smith College

Alcorn State University and Philander Smith College, both historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs), offer unique educational experiences to their students. Alcorn State, located in Lorman, Mississippi, is a public university with an acceptance rate of 88%, while Philander Smith, situated in Little Rock, Arkansas, is a private institution with a more selective acceptance rate of 58%. Alcorn State boasts a larger student body, with over 3,000 undergraduates compared to Philander Smith's approximately 1,000. Both institutions offer a range of undergraduate programs, with popular majors at Alcorn State including education, business, and agriculture, while Philander Smith's strengths lie in the liberal arts, social sciences, and natural sciences. While Alcorn State has a slightly higher graduation rate, both universities are committed to providing their students with the tools and support they need to succeed. To help you make an informed decision about your higher education journey, we

	Alcorn State University	Philander Smith College
Overview
Location	Alcorn State, Mississippi	Little Rock, Arkansas
Campus setting	Rural: Remote	City: Midsize
College type	4 year	4 year
Control/business model	Public	Private (Non Profit)
Calendar system	Semester	Semester
Degrees offered	Undergraduate and Graduate	Undergraduate
Students retention rate	75.0%	55.0%
Common app member	No	No
Religious affiliation		Methodism

Admission
Acceptance rate	38.9%	Open Admission
Application fees	$10	$25
SAT range	853 - 1073	N/A
ACT range	17 - 26	N/A
Students submitting SAT score	10.0%
Students submitting ACT score	90.0%
Total number of applicants	4,819
Total number of admissions given out	1,875
Admitted students who chose to enroll	402
Yield rate	21.4%
Test scores (SAT/ACT)	N/A
High school GPA	Required	N/A
Recommendation letters	Not required	N/A
High school transcript	Not required	N/A
English proficiency test (e.g. TOEFL)	Required	N/A

Tuition and Fees
Sticker price	$27,448	$31,724
Average net price	$14,595	$14,396
Tuition	$7,566	$11,804
Room & board	Room/dormitory: $7,360 Meal plan: $3,427	Room/dormitory: $5,192 Meal plan: $3,058
Available payment plans	Tuition payment plan	Tuition payment plan

Financial Aid
Students receiving financial aid (Grants & scholarships)	99.0% Average amount $8,381	98.0% Average amount $11,505
Students receiving federal student loan	77.0% Average amount $6,255	57.0% Average amount $5,451
Students taking out private loans	0.0% Average amount $0	0.0% Average amount $0

Students and Campus
Undergraduate students	2,533 Men 33.7% Women 66.3%	710 Men 36.1% Women 63.9%
Graduate students	541 Men 24.4% Women 75.6%	N/A
Racial/ethnic diversity	Very Low	Very Low
Out-of-state students	N/A	N/A
International students	3.2%	5.4%
Campus local/setting	Rural: Remote	City: Midsize
Dormitory capacity	2,067	522
First year students are required to live on campus?	No	No
Top 5 states where most U.S. students come from	N/A	N/A

Academics
Popular study areas	Biological and Biomedical Sciences Liberal Arts Education Health Professions Agriculture	Business Biological and Biomedical Sciences Psychology Law Enforcement and Firefighting Social Sciences
Students to faculty ratio	15:1	12:1
Institutional accreditation	Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges	Higher Learning Commission

Outcome
Graduation rate	41.9%	28.2%
Dropout rate	56.1%	68.8%
Transferred out	N/A	N/A
Alumni salary by major (Top 10)	Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $57,759 Year 2: $56,157 Year 3: $66,273 Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Associate's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $53,179 Year 3: $59,044 Biology, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $21,945 Year 2: $20,140 Year 3: $37,823 Agricultural Business and Management (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $37,093 Year 2: N/A Year 3: N/A Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Levels and Methods (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $38,397 Year 2: N/A Year 3: N/A Human Development, Family Studies, and Related Services (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $21,684 Year 2: N/A Year 3: N/A Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and Humanities (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $19,216 Year 2: N/A Year 3: N/A Basic Skills and Developmental/Remedial Education (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $23,932 Year 2: N/A Year 3: N/A Psychology, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $23,657 Year 2: N/A Year 3: N/A Criminal Justice and Corrections (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $26,633 Year 2: N/A Year 3: N/A	Business, Management, Marketing, and Related Support Services, Other (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $36,677 Year 2: $46,087 Year 3: $34,628 Business Administration, Management and Operations (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $23,231 Year 2: $25,194 Year 3: $28,884 Biological and Physical Sciences (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $25,774 Year 3: N/A Health and Physical Education/Fitness (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $20,140 Year 3: N/A

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Alcorn State vs Philander Smith College

Alcorn State University

Philander Smith College

Overview

Admission

Tuition and Fees

Financial Aid

Students and Campus

Academics

Outcome

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