Brandeis vs Southern Methodist University (SMU)

Brandeis University and Southern Methodist University, two esteemed institutions of higher learning, offer distinct educational experiences. Brandeis, a private research university in Waltham, Massachusetts, boasts a highly selective admissions process with an acceptance rate of 30.6%. SMU, a private research university in Dallas, Texas, is slightly less selective, with an acceptance rate of 48.6%. Both universities offer a diverse range of undergraduate programs, with popular majors at Brandeis including Economics, Biology, and Psychology, while SMU students commonly pursue degrees in Business, Engineering, and Communication. Brandeis fosters a vibrant intellectual community with a student body comprising 3,648 undergraduates, while SMU's larger student population of 6,586 undergraduates contributes to its lively campus atmosphere. With graduation rates of 92% and 86% respectively, both universities prioritize student success and equip their graduates with the skills and knowledge necessary to thrive in their chosen fields. To help you

	Brandeis University	Southern Methodist University
Overview
Location	Waltham, Massachusetts	Dallas, Texas
Campus setting	City: Small	Suburb: Large
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	91.0%	91.0%
Common app member	Yes	Yes
Religious affiliation		Methodism

Admission
Acceptance rate	39.1%	53.1%
Application fees	Undergraduate: $80 Graduate: $75	Undergraduate: $60 Graduate: $75
SAT range	1370 - 1530	1340 - 1510
ACT range	31 - 34	31 - 34
Students submitting SAT score	40.0%	16.0%
Students submitting ACT score	17.0%	23.0%
Total number of applicants	9,796	15,685
Total number of admissions given out	3,834	8,333
Admitted students who chose to enroll	943	1,572
Yield rate	24.6%	18.9%
Test scores (SAT/ACT)	N/A	N/A
High school GPA	Not required	Required
Recommendation letters	Required	Required
High school transcript	Not required	Not required
English proficiency test (e.g. TOEFL)	Required	Required

Tuition and Fees
Sticker price	$75,006	$72,336
Average net price	$35,147	$41,986
Tuition	$59,408	$53,464
Room & board	Room/dormitory: $9,380 Meal plan: $7,070	Room/dormitory: $10,860 Meal plan: $6,578
Available payment plans	Prepaid tuition plan Tuition payment plan	Prepaid tuition plan Tuition payment plan

Financial Aid
Students receiving financial aid (Grants & scholarships)	83.0% Average amount $29,119	74.0% Average amount $34,940
Students receiving federal student loan	26.0% Average amount $3,948	25.0% Average amount $5,241
Students taking out private loans	3.0% Average amount $22,397	5.0% Average amount $29,055

Students and Campus
Undergraduate students	3,591 Men 40.5% Women 59.5%	6,908 Men 50.5% Women 49.5%
Graduate students	1,967 Men 43.5% Women 56.5%	5,477 Men 52.4% Women 47.6%
Racial/ethnic diversity	Moderate	Low
Out-of-state students	N/A	59.4%
International students	25.4%	8.1%
Campus local/setting	City: Small	Suburb: Large
Dormitory capacity	2,950	3,403
First year students are required to live on campus?	No	No
Top 5 states where most U.S. students come from	Mississippi New York New Jersey California Connecticut	Texas California Florida New York Illinois

Academics
Popular study areas	Social Sciences Business Biological and Biomedical Sciences Mathematics and Statistics Computer and Information Science	Business Engineering Education Legal Profession Computer and Information Science
Students to faculty ratio	10:1	12:1
Institutional accreditation	New England Commission on Higher Education	Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges

Outcome
Graduation rate	87.5%	82.4%
Dropout rate	4.5%	4.7%
Transferred out	7.2%	12.4%
Alumni salary by major (Top 10)	Computer Science (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $84,340 Year 2: $80,309 Year 3: $101,400 Business Administration, Management and Operations (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $66,678 Year 2: $72,214 Year 3: $85,160 Economics (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $55,105 Year 2: $66,401 Year 3: $70,790 Economics (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $50,731 Year 2: $55,840 Year 3: $64,826 Business/Commerce, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $62,010 Year 2: $54,192 Year 3: $63,166 Public Policy Analysis (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $46,126 Year 2: $55,286 Year 3: $59,597 Anthropology (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $32,925 Year 3: $49,902 Political Science and Government (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $42,983 Year 2: $44,356 Year 3: $49,523 History (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $30,142 Year 2: $37,208 Year 3: $47,023 Sociology (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $42,477 Year 2: $38,289 Year 3: $46,669	Entrepreneurial and Small Business Operations (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $100,915 Year 2: $111,196 Year 3: $127,135 Business Administration, Management and Operations (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $118,537 Year 2: $120,363 Year 3: $120,106 Finance and Financial Management Services (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $99,239 Year 2: $101,558 Year 3: $116,891 Systems Engineering (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $104,021 Year 2: $101,072 Year 3: $112,196 Marketing (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $89,842 Year 2: $101,072 Year 3: $107,302 Computer Systems Analysis (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $108,251 Year 2: $81,491 Year 3: $100,026 Engineering-Related Fields (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $101,824 Year 2: $86,867 Year 3: $99,671 Law (First Professional Degrees) Year 1: $81,633 Year 2: $81,554 Year 3: $99,143 Finance and Financial Management Services (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $66,678 Year 2: $73,446 Year 3: $89,611 Operations Research (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $76,460 Year 3: $89,319

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Brandeis

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