Alvernia University vs Susquehanna University

Alvernia University and Susquehanna University, both esteemed institutions of higher learning, offer distinct educational experiences. Alvernia, a private Catholic university, boasts a 90% acceptance rate, while Susquehanna, a private liberal arts university, has a more selective 75% acceptance rate. Alvernia's student body is predominantly female (63%), while Susquehanna's is more evenly balanced (52% female, 48% male). Both universities offer a wide range of undergraduate programs, with popular majors at Alvernia including Nursing, Business Administration, and Education, and popular majors at Susquehanna including Business Administration, Psychology, and Biology. With graduation rates of 68% and 76% respectively, both universities are committed to student success. Explore the detailed comparison table below to discover more key differences and find the university that best aligns with your academic aspirations and personal preferences.

	Alvernia University	Susquehanna University
Overview
Location	Reading, Pennsylvania	Selinsgrove, Pennsylvania
Campus setting	City: Small	Town: Distant
College type	4 year	4 year
Control/business model	Private (Non Profit)	Private (Non Profit)
Calendar system	Semester	Semester
Degrees offered	Undergraduate and Graduate	Undergraduate and Graduate
Students retention rate	73.0%	87.0%
Common app member	Yes	Yes
Religious affiliation	Catholic	Evangelical

Admission
Acceptance rate	57.8%	76.6%
Application fees	$50
SAT range	N/A	N/A
ACT range	N/A	N/A
Students submitting SAT score
Students submitting ACT score
Total number of applicants	5,371	5,384
Total number of admissions given out	3,103	4,126
Admitted students who chose to enroll	403	555
Yield rate	13.0%	13.5%
Test scores (SAT/ACT)	N/A	N/A
High school GPA	Required	Required
Recommendation letters	Not required	Required
High school transcript	Not required	Not required
English proficiency test (e.g. TOEFL)	Not required	Required

Tuition and Fees
Sticker price	$49,480	$70,800
Average net price	$24,917	$28,130
Tuition	$37,780	$52,380
Room & board	Room/dormitory: $6,930 Meal plan: $6,750	Room/dormitory: $7,680 Meal plan: $6,670
Available payment plans	Tuition payment plan	Prepaid tuition plan Tuition payment plan

Financial Aid
Students receiving financial aid (Grants & scholarships)	95.0% Average amount $26,065	96.0% Average amount $38,565
Students receiving federal student loan	94.0% Average amount $4,652	69.0% Average amount $5,424
Students taking out private loans	20.0% Average amount $18,154	20.0% Average amount $15,830

Students and Campus
Undergraduate students	2,032 Men 34.0% Women 66.0%	2,197 Men 43.7% Women 56.3%
Graduate students	504 Men 31.0% Women 69.0%	5 Men 0.0% Women 100.0%
Racial/ethnic diversity	Low	Very Low
Out-of-state students	27.8%	N/A
International students	4.0%	1.2%
Campus local/setting	City: Small	Town: Distant
Dormitory capacity	1,079	2,088
First year students are required to live on campus?	No	No
Top 5 states where most U.S. students come from	Pennsylvania New Jersey Maryland New Mexico Virginia	N/A

Academics
Popular study areas	Health Professions Business Education Public Administration and Social Service Psychology	Business Communication and Journalism Biological and Biomedical Sciences Education Visual & Performing Arts
Students to faculty ratio	13:1	15:1
Institutional accreditation	Middle States Commission on Higher Education	Middle States Commission on Higher Education

Outcome
Graduation rate	65.3%	74.3%
Dropout rate	6.2%	25.5%
Transferred out	27.9%	N/A
Alumni salary by major (Top 10)	Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $66,956 Year 2: $64,553 Year 3: $70,009 Rehabilitation and Therapeutic Professions (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $66,528 Year 2: $63,600 Year 3: $69,944 Business Administration, Management and Operations (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $65,042 Year 2: $60,878 Year 3: $68,491 Business Administration, Management and Operations (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $66,259 Year 2: $42,682 Year 3: $54,161 Accounting and Related Services (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $45,308 Year 2: $45,500 Year 3: $50,326 Mental and Social Health Services and Allied Professions (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $39,968 Year 2: $42,682 Year 3: $47,691 Criminal Justice and Corrections (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $36,786 Year 2: $39,832 Year 3: $46,290 Psychology, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $31,572 Year 2: $31,941 Year 3: $42,891 Communication and Media Studies (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $29,208 Year 2: $38,289 Year 3: $40,464 Social Work (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $36,850 Year 2: $35,060 Year 3: $39,539	Accounting and Related Services (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $60,280 Year 2: $58,221 Year 3: $65,753 Finance and Financial Management Services (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $53,032 Year 2: $47,846 Year 3: $62,846 Marketing (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $48,954 Year 2: $46,478 Year 3: $59,114 Design and Applied Arts (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $39,369 Year 3: $48,172 Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Levels and Methods (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $25,616 Year 2: $37,424 Year 3: $43,781 Public Relations, Advertising, and Applied Communication (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $34,056 Year 2: $35,060 Year 3: $41,344 Radio, Television, and Digital Communication (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $22,192 Year 3: $36,709 Psychology, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $27,088 Year 2: $26,353 Year 3: $28,686 Rhetoric and Composition/Writing Studies (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $18,654 Year 2: $23,538 Year 3: $28,559 Political Science and Government (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $29,898 Year 2: N/A Year 3: N/A

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