Eastern Washington University vs Western Carolina University (WCU)

Eastern Washington University (EWU) and Western Carolina University (WCU) are two public universities located in the Pacific Northwest and the Appalachian Mountains, respectively. Both institutions offer a wide range of undergraduate and graduate programs, but there are some key differences between the two. EWU has a higher acceptance rate (84%) compared to WCU (73%), and its student body is more diverse, with a larger percentage of international students. WCU, on the other hand, has a higher graduation rate (62%) compared to EWU (58%). To help you make an informed decision about which university is the best fit for you, we've compiled a comprehensive comparison table that delves into these differences in more detail, including popular majors, student body demographics, and financial aid options.

	Eastern Washington University	Western Carolina University
Overview
Location	Cheney, Washington	Cullowhee, North Carolina
Campus setting	Town: Fringe	Town: Distant
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	67.0%	75.0%
Common app member	Yes	Yes
Religious affiliation

Admission
Acceptance rate	97.1%	79.4%
Application fees	Undergraduate: $60 Graduate: $75	Undergraduate: $65 Graduate: $65
SAT range	N/A	1060 - 1230
ACT range	N/A	19 - 25
Students submitting SAT score		12.0%
Students submitting ACT score		43.0%
Total number of applicants	4,232	12,308
Total number of admissions given out	4,108	9,775
Admitted students who chose to enroll	1,305	1,729
Yield rate	31.8%	17.7%
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	Required

Tuition and Fees
Sticker price	In state: $22,889 Out of state: $40,715	In state: $19,349 Out of state: $23,349
Average net price	$13,650	$13,082
Tuition	In state: $6,896 Out of state: $24,722	In state: $1,000 Out of state: $5,000
Room & board	Room/dormitory: $7,210 Meal plan: $5,850	Room/dormitory: $6,403 Meal plan: $5,029
Available payment plans	Tuition payment plan	Tuition payment plan

Financial Aid
Students receiving financial aid (Grants & scholarships)	92.0% Average amount $8,167	73.0% Average amount $5,772
Students receiving federal student loan	33.0% Average amount $4,615	56.0% Average amount $4,850
Students taking out private loans	3.0% Average amount $11,314	9.0% Average amount $9,396

Students and Campus
Undergraduate students	8,217 Men 42.6% Women 57.4%	10,145 Men 43.6% Women 56.4%
Graduate students	2,675 Men 30.7% Women 69.3%	1,732 Men 32.1% Women 67.9%
Racial/ethnic diversity	Low	Very Low
Out-of-state students	N/A	17.7%
International students	0.9%	1.7%
Campus local/setting	Town: Fringe	Town: Distant
Dormitory capacity	1,788	3,815
First year students are required to live on campus?	No	No
Top 5 states where most U.S. students come from	N/A	North Carolina South Carolina Georgia Florida Tennessee

Academics
Popular study areas	Business Education Health Professions Psychology Biological and Biomedical Sciences	Health Professions Education Business Public Administration and Social Service Engineering Technologies
Students to faculty ratio	20:1	15:1
Institutional accreditation	Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities	Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges

Outcome
Graduation rate	49.6%	61.4%
Dropout rate	47.2%	10.2%
Transferred out	N/A	27.5%
Alumni salary by major (Top 10)	Rehabilitation and Therapeutic Professions (Doctoral Degrees) Year 1: $71,516 Year 2: $75,130 Year 3: $76,175 Electrical, Electronics and Communications Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $62,738 Year 2: $63,335 Year 3: $70,016 Dental Support Services and Allied Professions (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $63,361 Year 2: $62,707 Year 3: $67,620 Computer and Information Sciences, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $59,357 Year 2: $56,979 Year 3: $67,340 Rehabilitation and Therapeutic Professions (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $69,595 Year 2: $66,355 Year 3: $64,552 Mechanical Engineering Related Technologies/Technicians (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $52,107 Year 3: $63,074 Mechanical Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $56,780 Year 2: $55,770 Year 3: $62,367 Engineering Technologies/Technicians, Other (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $59,875 Year 2: $52,107 Year 3: $61,920 Clinical, Counseling and Applied Psychology (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $55,800 Year 2: $54,331 Year 3: $59,835 Education, General (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $49,118 Year 2: $53,894 Year 3: $59,009	Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $97,321 Year 2: $103,913 Year 3: $103,661 Human Resources Management and Services (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $55,207 Year 2: $64,990 Year 3: $72,372 Computer Science (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $54,769 Year 2: $53,775 Year 3: $72,367 Rehabilitation and Therapeutic Professions (Doctoral Degrees) Year 1: $65,460 Year 2: $67,324 Year 3: $68,635 Construction Engineering Technologies (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $57,202 Year 2: $58,221 Year 3: $64,334 Engineering Technology, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $57,173 Year 2: $54,996 Year 3: $63,171 Business Administration, Management and Operations (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $64,798 Year 2: $55,286 Year 3: $61,637 Accounting and Related Services (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $53,571 Year 2: $55,512 Year 3: $59,030 Educational Administration and Supervision (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $55,835 Year 2: $52,107 Year 3: $58,930 Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $58,362 Year 2: $57,318 Year 3: $57,003

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