Bridgewater State vs William Paterson

Bridgewater State University and William Paterson University of New Jersey, both public universities with rich histories, offer distinct educational experiences. Bridgewater State, located in Massachusetts, boasts a higher acceptance rate (83%) compared to William Paterson's 73%. While both universities offer a diverse range of undergraduate programs, Bridgewater State excels in fields like Education, Psychology, and Criminal Justice, while William Paterson shines in Business, Nursing, and Communication. Bridgewater State's student body is predominantly female (62%), while William Paterson has a more balanced gender ratio. In terms of graduation rates, Bridgewater State holds a slight edge with a 62% four-year graduation rate compared to William Paterson's 59%. Explore the detailed comparison table below to discover more key differences and make an informed decision about which university aligns best with your academic aspirations and personal preferences.

	Bridgewater State University	William Paterson University of New Jersey
Overview
Location	Bridgewater, Massachusetts	Wayne, New Jersey
Campus setting	Suburb: Large	Suburb: Large
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	79.0%	67.0%
Common app member	Yes	Yes
Religious affiliation

Admission
Acceptance rate	86.4%	83.3%
Application fees	Undergraduate: $50 Graduate: $50	Undergraduate: $50 Graduate: $50
SAT range	1010 - 1200	N/A
ACT range	19 - 28	N/A
Students submitting SAT score	18.0%
Students submitting ACT score	1.0%
Total number of applicants	8,881	9,171
Total number of admissions given out	7,671	7,636
Admitted students who chose to enroll	1,382	995
Yield rate	18.0%	13.0%
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	Not required

Tuition and Fees
Sticker price	In state: $29,164 Out of state: $35,304	In state: $29,636 Out of state: $38,374
Average net price	$12,744	$15,762
Tuition	In state: $910 Out of state: $7,050	In state: $13,778 Out of state: $22,516
Room & board	Room/dormitory: $9,256 Meal plan: $4,576	Room/dormitory: $8,062 Meal plan: $4,672
Available payment plans	Tuition payment plan	Tuition payment plan

Financial Aid
Students receiving financial aid (Grants & scholarships)	74.0% Average amount $7,617	73.0% Average amount $10,710
Students receiving federal student loan	81.0% Average amount $3,681	49.0% Average amount $5,171
Students taking out private loans	13.0% Average amount $12,080	6.0% Average amount $12,281

Students and Campus
Undergraduate students	8,369 Men 40.7% Women 59.3%	7,219 Men 40.9% Women 59.1%
Graduate students	1,573 Men 23.2% Women 76.8%	2,150 Men 24.6% Women 75.4%
Racial/ethnic diversity	Low	Moderate
Out-of-state students	N/A	5.7%
International students	0.6%	1.3%
Campus local/setting	Suburb: Large	Suburb: Large
Dormitory capacity	3,304	2,605
First year students are required to live on campus?	No	No
Top 5 states where most U.S. students come from	Mississippi Rhode Island Connecticut New Hampshire Maine	New Jersey New York Maryland Pennsylvania Connecticut

Academics
Popular study areas	Education Health Professions Public Administration and Social Service Business Psychology	Business Education Health Professions Psychology Communication and Journalism
Students to faculty ratio	19:1	14:1
Institutional accreditation	New England Commission on Higher Education	Middle States Commission on Higher Education

Outcome
Graduation rate	62.4%	56.0%
Dropout rate	35.1%	33.1%
Transferred out	N/A	7.6%
Alumni salary by major (Top 10)	Accounting and Related Services (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $70,437 Year 2: $68,858 Year 3: $78,114 Computer Science (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $52,602 Year 2: $60,623 Year 3: $66,570 Social Work (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $51,446 Year 2: $54,053 Year 3: $58,775 Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Subject Areas (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $47,202 Year 2: $53,775 Year 3: $58,619 Accounting and Related Services (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $44,074 Year 2: $46,869 Year 3: $55,780 Air Transportation (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $39,151 Year 2: $41,565 Year 3: $53,648 Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Levels and Methods (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $45,960 Year 2: $45,383 Year 3: $53,145 Special Education and Teaching (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $50,152 Year 2: $50,161 Year 3: $53,025 Management Sciences and Quantitative Methods (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $42,273 Year 2: $44,371 Year 3: $50,098 Chemistry (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $42,643 Year 2: $44,170 Year 3: $49,769	Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $75,485 Year 2: $76,946 Year 3: $82,170 Educational Administration and Supervision (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $56,661 Year 2: $64,493 Year 3: $73,341 Business Administration, Management and Operations (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $63,945 Year 2: $65,238 Year 3: $72,250 Communication Disorders Sciences and Services (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $59,792 Year 2: $68,079 Year 3: $71,545 Computer and Information Sciences, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $48,054 Year 2: $51,482 Year 3: $66,449 General Sales, Merchandising and Related Marketing Operations (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $54,414 Year 2: $52,607 Year 3: $64,085 Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Levels and Methods (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $60,998 Year 2: $56,738 Year 3: $61,464 Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Subject Areas (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $46,852 Year 2: $49,491 Year 3: $54,948 Finance and Financial Management Services (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $44,724 Year 2: $46,087 Year 3: $54,359 Business Administration, Management and Operations (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $36,941 Year 3: $53,191

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