Columbia vs University of Pennsylvania (UPenn)

Columbia University and the University of Pennsylvania, two prestigious Ivy League institutions, offer students a world-class education and a vibrant campus experience. While they share many similarities, there are also some key differences between the two schools. Columbia, located in the heart of New York City, boasts a lower acceptance rate, a more diverse student body, and a wider range of academic programs. Penn, situated in Philadelphia, has a higher graduation rate, a stronger emphasis on undergraduate research, and a more generous financial aid program. To help you make an informed decision about which school is the right fit for you, we've compiled a comprehensive comparison table that delves into these differences in greater detail.

	Columbia University	University of Pennsylvania
Overview
Location	New York, New York	Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Campus setting	City: Large	City: 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	99.0%	98.0%
Common app member	Yes	Yes
Religious affiliation

Admission
Acceptance rate	4.1%	5.9%
Application fees	Undergraduate: $85 Graduate: $120	Undergraduate: $75 Graduate: $90
SAT range	1470 - 1570	1480 - 1570
ACT range	34 - 35	33 - 35
Students submitting SAT score	43.0%	49.0%
Students submitting ACT score	28.0%	30.0%
Total number of applicants	61,110	56,332
Total number of admissions given out	2,524	3,304
Admitted students who chose to enroll	1,641	2,418
Yield rate	65.0%	73.2%
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)	Not required	Not required

Tuition and Fees
Sticker price	$90,882	$80,496
Average net price	$12,411	$14,578
Tuition	$60,514	$54,652
Room & board	Room/dormitory: $9,450 Meal plan: $6,000	Room/dormitory: $11,358 Meal plan: $5,946
Available payment plans	Prepaid tuition plan Tuition payment plan	Prepaid tuition plan Tuition payment plan

Financial Aid
Students receiving financial aid (Grants & scholarships)	53.0% Average amount $57,726	52.0% Average amount $50,778
Students receiving federal student loan	7.0% Average amount $5,511	9.0% Average amount $5,030
Students taking out private loans	2.0% Average amount $34,119	2.0% Average amount $27,160

Students and Campus
Undergraduate students	8,832 Men 50.6% Women 49.4%	11,292 Men 44.7% Women 55.3%
Graduate students	24,944 Men 44.8% Women 55.2%	16,746 Men 43.8% Women 56.2%
Racial/ethnic diversity	Moderate	Moderate
Out-of-state students	N/A	82.7%
International students	37.0%	22.8%
Campus local/setting	City: Large	City: Large
Dormitory capacity	13,071	6,400
First year students are required to live on campus?	No	No
Top 5 states where most U.S. students come from	N/A	Pennsylvania New York California New Jersey Florida

Academics
Popular study areas	Business Health Professions Engineering Computer and Information Science Public Administration and Social Service	Health Professions Business Education Legal Profession Computer and Information Science
Students to faculty ratio	6:1	6:1
Institutional accreditation	Middle States Commission on Higher Education	Middle States Commission on Higher Education

Outcome
Graduation rate	97.4%	96.2%
Dropout rate	1.7%	2.8%
Transferred out	0.7%	N/A
Alumni salary by major (Top 10)	Law (First Professional Degrees) Year 1: $193,362 Year 2: $180,752 Year 3: $230,020 Business Administration, Management and Operations (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $162,427 Year 2: $170,426 Year 3: $179,305 Management Information Systems and Services (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $153,730 Year 2: $160,605 Year 3: $167,216 Computer Science (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $133,851 Year 2: $143,033 Year 3: $166,695 Operations Research (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $111,312 Year 2: $114,503 Year 3: $148,040 Computer Science (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $108,903 Year 2: $103,078 Year 3: $135,658 Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Doctoral Degrees) Year 1: $115,222 Year 2: $127,993 Year 3: $131,926 Construction Management (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $98,322 Year 2: $110,878 Year 3: $125,926 Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $111,569 Year 2: $109,659 Year 3: $119,899 Computer and Information Sciences, General (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $92,223 Year 2: $100,127 Year 3: $118,332	Finance and Financial Management Services (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $189,905 Year 2: $201,334 Year 3: $249,574 International/Global Studies (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $162,528 Year 2: $182,280 Year 3: $234,875 Management Sciences and Quantitative Methods (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $68,404 Year 2: $198,043 Year 3: $227,605 Real Estate (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $119,383 Year 2: $169,894 Year 3: $224,847 Law (First Professional Degrees) Year 1: $186,571 Year 2: $177,119 Year 3: $218,410 Advanced/Graduate Dentistry and Oral Sciences (Undergraduate Certificates or Diplomas) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $245,155 Year 3: $214,930 Health Professions and Related Clinical Sciences, Other (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $177,203 Year 2: $202,922 Year 3: $214,927 Health and Medical Administrative Services (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $169,238 Year 2: $174,994 Year 3: $208,033 Computer and Information Sciences, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $102,195 Year 2: $138,932 Year 3: $197,810 Business Administration, Management and Operations (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $179,063 Year 2: $175,674 Year 3: $186,790

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Columbia vs University of Pennsylvania (UPenn)

Columbia University

University of Pennsylvania

Overview

Admission

Tuition and Fees

Financial Aid

Students and Campus

Academics

Outcome

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