Elon University vs The Citadel

Elon University and Citadel Military College of South Carolina, two distinct institutions with unique offerings, stand side by side in this comprehensive comparison. Elon, a private university in North Carolina, boasts a higher acceptance rate and a more diverse student body, while Citadel, a public military college in South Carolina, offers a structured military environment and a strong focus on leadership development. With Elon's popular majors in business, communications, and education, and Citadel's strengths in engineering, criminal justice, and nursing, students can explore their academic interests in different ways. While Elon's higher graduation rate may appeal to some, Citadel's emphasis on discipline and character-building might resonate with others. Dive into the comparison table to discover more details about these institutions and make an informed decision that aligns with your aspirations and goals.

	Citadel Military College of South Carolina	Elon University
Overview
Location	Charleston, South Carolina	Elon, North Carolina
Campus setting	City: Midsize	Suburb: Midsize
College type	4 year	4 year
Control/business model	Public	Private (Non Profit)
Calendar system	Semester	4-1-4
Degrees offered	Undergraduate and Graduate	Undergraduate and Graduate
Students retention rate	86.0%	88.0%
Common app member	Yes	Yes
Religious affiliation

Admission
Acceptance rate	86.4%	77.7%
Application fees	Undergraduate: $40 Graduate: $40	Undergraduate: $60 Graduate: $60
SAT range	N/A	N/A
ACT range	N/A	N/A
Students submitting SAT score
Students submitting ACT score
Total number of applicants	2,470	17,834
Total number of admissions given out	2,134	13,859
Admitted students who chose to enroll	566	1,591
Yield rate	26.5%	11.5%
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	Required

Tuition and Fees
Sticker price	In state: $48,551 Out of state: $71,807	$55,647
Average net price	$19,473	$40,366
Tuition	In state: $8,356 Out of state: $30,857	$38,218
Room & board	$7,593	Room/dormitory: $6,593 Meal plan: $6,829
Available payment plans		Tuition payment plan

Financial Aid
Students receiving financial aid (Grants & scholarships)	79.0% Average amount $11,451	67.0% Average amount $13,677
Students receiving federal student loan	49.0% Average amount $5,200	30.0% Average amount $5,259
Students taking out private loans	17.0% Average amount $26,781	7.0% Average amount $25,192

Students and Campus
Undergraduate students	2,718 Men 86.4% Women 13.6%	6,302 Men 40.2% Women 59.8%
Graduate students	975 Men 50.1% Women 49.9%	825 Men 36.5% Women 63.5%
Racial/ethnic diversity	Low	Very Low
Out-of-state students	44.0%	80.6%
International students	1.1%	2.0%
Campus local/setting	City: Midsize	Suburb: Midsize
Dormitory capacity	2,372	4,192
First year students are required to live on campus?	No	No
Top 5 states where most U.S. students come from	South Carolina Georgia North Carolina Florida New York	North Carolina New Jersey New York Pennsylvania Virginia

Academics
Popular study areas	Business Engineering Education Kinesiology & Leisure Studies Psychology	Business Legal Profession Health Professions Communication and Journalism Education
Students to faculty ratio	11:1	12:1
Institutional accreditation	Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges	Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges

Outcome
Graduation rate	73.1%	83.3%
Dropout rate	9.1%	16.7%
Transferred out	16.0%	N/A
Alumni salary by major (Top 10)	Business Administration, Management and Operations (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $74,909 Year 2: $82,123 Year 3: $97,617 Engineering-Related Fields (Graduate/Professional Certificates) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $86,129 Year 3: $95,438 Electrical, Electronics and Communications Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $66,390 Year 2: $63,692 Year 3: $73,572 Civil Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $54,512 Year 2: $59,071 Year 3: $68,635 History (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $37,853 Year 2: $40,017 Year 3: $57,251 Business Administration, Management and Operations (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $43,394 Year 2: $48,617 Year 3: $55,395 Health and Physical Education/Fitness (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $38,673 Year 2: $41,342 Year 3: $55,155 Psychology, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $37,273 Year 2: $39,009 Year 3: $52,597 Political Science and Government (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $38,924 Year 2: $37,856 Year 3: $49,110 Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Subject Areas (Graduate/Professional Certificates) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $45,696 Year 3: $46,799	Allied Health Diagnostic, Intervention, and Treatment Professions (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $101,556 Year 2: $104,061 Year 3: $105,320 Business Administration, Management and Operations (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $64,803 Year 2: $71,854 Year 3: $78,720 Accounting and Related Services (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $58,320 Year 2: $60,016 Year 3: $77,567 Business, Management, Marketing, and Related Support Services, Other (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $46,276 Year 2: $54,192 Year 3: $77,220 Finance and Financial Management Services (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $58,564 Year 2: $62,154 Year 3: $76,604 Rehabilitation and Therapeutic Professions (First Professional Degrees) Year 1: $68,888 Year 2: $69,629 Year 3: $70,208 Marketing (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $50,091 Year 2: $50,022 Year 3: $64,255 Economics (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $44,189 Year 3: $59,817 Political Science and Government (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $39,293 Year 2: $36,674 Year 3: $58,053 Law (First Professional Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $44,055 Year 3: $55,617

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