California State University-Northridge (CSUN) vs Cal State LA

California State University-Northridge (CSUN) and California State University-Los Angeles (CSULA) are two prominent universities in the heart of Los Angeles, each offering unique educational experiences. While both institutions share the California State University system's commitment to academic excellence, they differ in several key aspects. CSUN boasts a slightly higher acceptance rate, a more diverse student body, and a wider range of undergraduate programs, including popular majors like Business Administration, Psychology, and Computer Science. On the other hand, CSULA has a higher graduation rate, smaller class sizes, and a focus on community engagement. To help you make an informed decision about your higher education journey, we've compiled a comprehensive comparison table highlighting the key differences between these two esteemed universities. Dive into the details and discover which institution aligns best with your academic aspirations and personal preferences.

	California State University-Los Angeles	California State University-Northridge
Overview
Location	Los Angeles, California	Northridge, California
Campus setting	City: Large	City: 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	73.0%	82.0%
Common app member	Yes	No
Religious affiliation

Admission
Acceptance rate	90.5%	88.1%
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	29,223	23,656
Total number of admissions given out	26,459	20,842
Admitted students who chose to enroll	4,095	4,716
Yield rate	15.5%	22.6%
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: $32,619 Out of state: $44,499	In state: $31,857 Out of state: $43,737
Average net price	$2,695	$8,708
Tuition	In state: $5,742 Out of state: $17,622	In state: $5,742 Out of state: $17,622
Room & board	Room/dormitory: $9,712 Meal plan: $4,500	Room/dormitory: $7,316 Meal plan: $4,506
Available payment plans	Tuition payment plan	Tuition payment plan

Financial Aid
Students receiving financial aid (Grants & scholarships)	91.0% Average amount $10,909	82.0% Average amount $10,882
Students receiving federal student loan	11.0% Average amount $4,458	14.0% Average amount $4,779
Students taking out private loans	0.0% Average amount $8,862	1.0% Average amount $12,360

Students and Campus
Undergraduate students	23,536 Men 40.6% Women 59.4%	34,496 Men 45.0% Women 55.0%
Graduate students	3,977 Men 36.4% Women 63.6%	5,612 Men 33.0% Women 67.0%
Racial/ethnic diversity	Low	Moderate
Out-of-state students	1.1%	1.7%
International students	5.9%	6.0%
Campus local/setting	City: Large	City: Large
Dormitory capacity	2,565	4,029
First year students are required to live on campus?	No	No
Top 5 states where most U.S. students come from	California Illinois Minnesota Hawaii Maryland	California Washington Hawaii Nevada Texas

Academics
Popular study areas	Health Professions Education Engineering Psychology Public Administration and Social Service	Health Professions Engineering Kinesiology & Leisure Studies Public Administration and Social Service Computer and Information Science
Students to faculty ratio	25:1	26:1
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	51.9%	54.2%
Dropout rate	39.4%	33.7%
Transferred out	3.1%	5.6%
Alumni salary by major (Top 10)	Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $112,257 Year 2: $103,746 Year 3: $117,496 Business Administration, Management and Operations (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $75,475 Year 2: $106,421 Year 3: $103,691 Electrical, Electronics and Communications Engineering (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $91,250 Year 2: $82,440 Year 3: $99,815 Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $90,684 Year 2: $87,548 Year 3: $93,771 Mechanical Engineering (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $70,852 Year 2: $58,673 Year 3: $83,310 Civil Engineering (Master's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $70,456 Year 3: $82,904 Special Education and Teaching (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $81,004 Year 2: $74,367 Year 3: $80,425 Electrical, Electronics and Communications Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $64,165 Year 2: $59,124 Year 3: $77,214 Civil Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $61,370 Year 2: $61,516 Year 3: $72,371 Health and Medical Administrative Services (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $66,775 Year 2: $57,318 Year 3: $71,643	Electrical, Electronics and Communications Engineering (Master's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $95,739 Year 3: $108,158 Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $89,831 Year 2: $92,124 Year 3: $98,535 Taxation (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $72,745 Year 2: $86,867 Year 3: $97,852 Business Administration, Management and Operations (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $83,455 Year 2: $88,907 Year 3: $96,626 Construction Engineering Technologies (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $79,863 Year 2: $75,204 Year 3: $92,559 Engineering-Related Fields (Master's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $80,493 Year 3: $92,252 Allied Health Diagnostic, Intervention, and Treatment Professions (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $83,281 Year 2: $83,669 Year 3: $89,964 Computer Science (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $64,782 Year 2: $75,047 Year 3: $84,221 Electrical, Electronics and Communications Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $68,859 Year 2: $73,070 Year 3: $82,977 Educational Administration and Supervision (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $78,180 Year 2: $76,863 Year 3: $82,194

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California State University-Northridge (CSUN) vs Cal State LA

California State University-Los Angeles

California State University-Northridge

Overview

Admission

Tuition and Fees

Financial Aid

Students and Campus

Academics

Outcome

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