CSU San Marcos vs CSU Stan

California State University-San Marcos (CSUSM) and California State University-Stanislaus (CSUS) are two distinct universities within the California State University system, each offering unique educational experiences. CSUSM, located in the vibrant city of San Marcos, boasts a higher acceptance rate (73%) compared to CSUS (64%), making it a more accessible option for prospective students. CSUS, on the other hand, is situated in the charming city of Turlock and offers a more diverse student body, with a higher percentage of Hispanic and Asian students. While both universities share similarities in their popular majors, such as Business Administration and Psychology, CSUSM excels in the fields of Criminal Justice and Homeland Security, while CSUS stands out in the areas of Agricultural Business and Food Science. Explore the comprehensive comparison table below to delve deeper into the key differences between these two esteemed institutions and discover which one aligns best with your academic aspirations and personal preferences.

	California State University-San Marcos	California State University-Stanislaus
Overview
Location	San Marcos, California	Turlock, California
Campus setting	Suburb: Large	Suburb: Small
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%	79.0%
Common app member	No	No
Religious affiliation

Admission
Acceptance rate	93.3%	94.8%
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	13,986	5,740
Total number of admissions given out	13,049	5,439
Admitted students who chose to enroll	2,413	951
Yield rate	18.5%	17.5%
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: $22,366 Out of state: $34,246	In state: $28,160 Out of state: $40,040
Average net price	$14,296	$7,230
Tuition	In state: $5,742 Out of state: $17,622	In state: $5,742 Out of state: $17,622
Room & board		Room/dormitory: $6,970 Meal plan: $3,800
Available payment plans	Tuition payment plan	Tuition payment plan

Financial Aid
Students receiving financial aid (Grants & scholarships)	70.0% Average amount $9,298	85.0% Average amount $9,785
Students receiving federal student loan	22.0% Average amount $4,734	12.0% Average amount $4,375
Students taking out private loans	1.0% Average amount $12,988	0.0% Average amount $4,631

Students and Campus
Undergraduate students	14,963 Men 38.4% Women 61.6%	9,198 Men 32.9% Women 67.1%
Graduate students	1,292 Men 28.4% Women 71.6%	1,283 Men 24.4% Women 75.6%
Racial/ethnic diversity	Moderate	Low
Out-of-state students	1.5%	0.4%
International students	3.4%	3.5%
Campus local/setting	Suburb: Large	Suburb: Small
Dormitory capacity	1,547	722
First year students are required to live on campus?	No	No
Top 5 states where most U.S. students come from	California Colorado Washington Virginia Arizona	California Arizona Texas Washington

Academics
Popular study areas	Business Health Professions Biological and Biomedical Sciences Computer and Information Science Kinesiology & Leisure Studies	Business Liberal Arts Health Professions Education Biological and Biomedical Sciences
Students to faculty ratio	25:1	20:1
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	59.2%	57.6%
Dropout rate	33.6%	33.4%
Transferred out	2.6%	3.7%
Alumni salary by major (Top 10)	Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $107,746 Year 2: $103,555 Year 3: $111,324 Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $90,827 Year 2: $88,074 Year 3: $90,666 Business Administration, Management and Operations (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $72,843 Year 2: $74,576 Year 3: $83,791 Special Education and Teaching (Master's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $66,941 Year 3: $72,765 Computer Science (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $58,962 Year 2: $71,015 Year 3: $71,818 Education, General (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $71,769 Year 2: $63,005 Year 3: $68,571 Physics (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $57,318 Year 3: $65,899 Finance and Financial Management Services (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $45,297 Year 2: $49,520 Year 3: $62,797 Accounting and Related Services (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $59,252 Year 2: $55,286 Year 3: $59,957 Computer and Information Sciences, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $45,864 Year 3: $57,022	Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $98,218 Year 2: $99,447 Year 3: $104,737 Educational Administration and Supervision (Doctoral Degrees) Year 1: $93,421 Year 2: $88,527 Year 3: $94,937 Business Administration, Management and Operations (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $67,732 Year 2: $73,949 Year 3: $71,868 Education, General (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $62,896 Year 2: $59,688 Year 3: $70,122 Social Work (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $60,242 Year 2: $57,796 Year 3: $62,660 Computer Science (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $38,765 Year 2: $49,918 Year 3: $62,129 Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and Humanities (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $25,287 Year 2: $26,353 Year 3: $46,936 Business Administration, Management and Operations (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $39,749 Year 2: $39,205 Year 3: $45,861 Social Sciences, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $26,464 Year 2: $32,925 Year 3: $43,627 Criminal Justice and Corrections (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $31,743 Year 2: $34,942 Year 3: $43,440

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CSU San Marcos vs CSU Stan

California State University-San Marcos

California State University-Stanislaus

Overview

Admission

Tuition and Fees

Financial Aid

Students and Campus

Academics

Outcome

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