Cal Poly vs Chico State

California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo (Cal Poly SLO) and California State University-Chico (Chico State) are two of the most sought-after public universities in California, each offering unique strengths and opportunities. Cal Poly SLO boasts a lower acceptance rate (28%) compared to Chico State (58%), indicating its highly competitive admissions process. While Cal Poly SLO is renowned for its engineering, architecture, and agriculture programs, Chico State excels in business, communication, and education majors. Cal Poly SLO's student body is slightly larger, with an undergraduate population of over 20,000 compared to Chico State's 17,000. Both universities boast impressive graduation rates, with Cal Poly SLO's four-year rate at 68% and Chico State's at 62%. To help you make an informed decision, we've compiled a comprehensive comparison table highlighting key differences between these two esteemed institutions. Explore the table to discover which university

	California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo	California State University-Chico
Overview
Location	San Luis Obispo, California	Chico, California
Campus setting	Suburb: Small	City: Midsize
College type	4 year	4 year
Control/business model	Public	Public
Calendar system	Quarter	Semester
Degrees offered	Undergraduate and Graduate	Undergraduate and Graduate
Students retention rate	95.0%	81.0%
Common app member	No	No
Religious affiliation

Admission
Acceptance rate	33.0%	85.5%
Application fees	Undergraduate: $70 Graduate: $70	Undergraduate: $70 Graduate: $70
SAT range	N/A	N/A
ACT range	N/A	N/A
Students submitting SAT score
Students submitting ACT score
Total number of applicants	54,570	19,990
Total number of admissions given out	18,008	17,086
Admitted students who chose to enroll	4,884	1,929
Yield rate	27.1%	11.3%
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)	Not required	Not required

Tuition and Fees
Sticker price	In state: $29,680 Out of state: $47,590	In state: $23,984 Out of state: $35,864
Average net price	$20,708	$13,749
Tuition	In state: $5,742 Out of state: $17,622	In state: $5,742 Out of state: $17,622
Room & board	Room/dormitory: $9,642 Meal plan: $6,138	Room/dormitory: $8,609 Meal plan: $3,881
Available payment plans		Tuition payment plan

Financial Aid
Students receiving financial aid (Grants & scholarships)	55.0% Average amount $5,988	63.0% Average amount $8,691
Students receiving federal student loan	24.0% Average amount $5,023	29.0% Average amount $4,637
Students taking out private loans	1.0% Average amount $22,714	1.0% Average amount $11,369

Students and Campus
Undergraduate students	21,128 Men 51.2% Women 48.8%	14,462 Men 45.5% Women 54.5%
Graduate students	1,103 Men 50.4% Women 49.6%	1,240 Men 33.6% Women 66.4%
Racial/ethnic diversity	Moderate	Moderate
Out-of-state students	20.6%	1.3%
International students	2.3%	2.9%
Campus local/setting	Suburb: Small	City: Midsize
Dormitory capacity	8,147	2,323
First year students are required to live on campus?	No	No
Top 5 states where most U.S. students come from	California Washington Colorado Oregon Texas	California Oregon Washington Arizona Colorado

Academics
Popular study areas	Engineering Business Agriculture Architecture Biological and Biomedical Sciences	Liberal Arts Health Professions Public Administration and Social Service Kinesiology & Leisure Studies Engineering Technologies
Students to faculty ratio	21:1	22:1
Institutional accreditation	Western Association of Schools and Colleges Senior Colleges and University Commission	Western Association of Schools and Colleges Senior Colleges and University Commission

Outcome
Graduation rate	85.4%	65.4%
Dropout rate	12.5%	27.4%
Transferred out	1.2%	4.8%
Alumni salary by major (Top 10)	Computer and Information Sciences, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $88,197 Year 2: $120,462 Year 3: $143,849 Electrical, Electronics and Communications Engineering (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $104,015 Year 2: $101,964 Year 3: $116,606 Computer Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $91,493 Year 2: $93,964 Year 3: $106,798 Fire Protection (Master's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $97,071 Year 3: $103,907 Construction Engineering Technologies (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $79,656 Year 2: $82,780 Year 3: $96,152 Industrial Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $72,643 Year 2: $73,562 Year 3: $90,242 Engineering, General (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $74,873 Year 2: $78,971 Year 3: $90,194 Aerospace, Aeronautical and Astronautical Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $74,220 Year 2: $76,460 Year 3: $89,378 Accounting and Related Services (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $66,920 Year 2: $70,886 Year 3: $87,984 Electrical, Electronics and Communications Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $79,454 Year 2: $79,647 Year 3: $87,345	Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $94,107 Year 2: $95,797 Year 3: $96,478 Construction Management (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $78,190 Year 2: $83,091 Year 3: $93,961 Computer Science (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $72,808 Year 2: $74,241 Year 3: $91,563 Electrical Engineering Technologies/Technicians (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $71,244 Year 2: $70,176 Year 3: $79,499 Civil Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $67,761 Year 2: $69,617 Year 3: $79,308 Engineering, Other (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $68,803 Year 2: $66,355 Year 3: $76,389 Computer and Information Sciences, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $63,879 Year 2: $59,350 Year 3: $74,258 Mechanical Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $68,880 Year 2: $66,222 Year 3: $74,116 Communication Disorders Sciences and Services (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $67,298 Year 2: $68,499 Year 3: $69,321 Engineering-Related Fields (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $60,812 Year 2: $57,318 Year 3: $68,680

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Cal Poly vs Chico State

California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo

California State University-Chico

Overview

Admission

Tuition and Fees

Financial Aid

Students and Campus

Academics

Outcome

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