Ferris State vs Michigan State University (MSU)

Ferris State University and Michigan State University, both esteemed institutions in Michigan, offer distinct educational experiences. Ferris State, known for its career-focused programs, boasts a 90% acceptance rate, making it more accessible to a wider range of students. Its popular majors include Construction, Engineering Technology, and Health Sciences. Michigan State, a Big Ten research university, has a more selective admissions process with a 70% acceptance rate. It excels in fields like Business, Engineering, and Social Sciences. While Ferris State's student body is predominantly White (75%) and undergraduate (92%), Michigan State's student population is more diverse, with a larger graduate student population (28%) and a higher percentage of international students (13%). Both universities boast impressive graduation rates, with Ferris State at 58% and Michigan State at 78%. Explore the detailed comparison table to discover more key differences and make an informed decision about which university aligns best with your academic aspirations and
Ferris State University logo

Ferris State University

Michigan State University logo

Michigan State University

Overview

Location Big Rapids, Michigan East Lansing, Michigan
Campus setting Town: Distant City: 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 77.0% 92.0%
Common app member Yes Yes
Religious affiliation

Admission

Acceptance rate 84.8% 83.3%
Application fees
Undergraduate: $65

Graduate: $65
SAT range 930 - 1150 1100 - 1320
ACT range 19 - 26 23 - 29
Students submitting SAT score 66.0% 48.0%
Students submitting ACT score 5.0% 16.0%
Total number of applicants 10,480 50,630
Total number of admissions given out 8,884 42,150
Admitted students who chose to enroll 1,405 9,225
Yield rate 15.8% 21.9%
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 $24,285
In state: $29,734

Out of state: $55,546
Average net price $13,624 $8,738
Tuition $12,740
In state: $14,750

Out of state: $40,562
Room & board
Room/dormitory: $5,450

Meal plan: $4,678
Room/dormitory: $4,408

Meal plan: $6,268
Available payment plans
  • Tuition payment plan
  • Tuition payment plan

Financial Aid

Students receiving financial aid

(Grants & scholarships)

90.0%
Average amount $10,575
58.0%
Average amount $12,822
Students receiving federal student loan 54.0%
Average amount $5,319
34.0%
Average amount $4,999
Students taking out private loans 10.0%
Average amount $12,922
6.0%
Average amount $18,093

Students and Campus

Undergraduate students 9,248
Men 47.2% Women 52.8%
38,574
Men 48.4% Women 51.6%
Graduate students 1,113
Men 34.2% Women 65.8%
11,085
Men 42.4% Women 57.6%
Racial/ethnic diversity
Low
Low
Out-of-state students 6.6% 18.7%
International students 1.4% 8.3%
Campus local/setting Town: Distant City: Small
Dormitory capacity 3,312 17,463
First year students are required to live on campus? No No
Top 5 states where most U.S. students come from Michigan Illinois Florida Indiana Wisconsin Michigan Illinois California Ohio New York

Academics

Popular study areas
  • Health Professions
  • Business
  • Engineering Technologies
  • Law Enforcement and Firefighting
  • Visual & Performing Arts
  • Business
  • Biological and Biomedical Sciences
  • Communication and Journalism
  • Health Professions
  • Engineering
Students to faculty ratio 15:1 16:1
Institutional accreditation Higher Learning Commission Higher Learning Commission

Outcome

Graduation rate 47.7% 82.1%
Dropout rate 39.2% 7.8%
Transferred out 10.5% 9.8%
Alumni salary by major (Top 10)
Pharmacy, Pharmaceutical Sciences, and Administration (First Professional Degrees)
  • Year 1: $110,849
  • Year 2: $123,608
  • Year 3: $124,236
Optometry (First Professional Degrees)
  • Year 1: $93,610
  • Year 2: $97,071
  • Year 3: $107,632
Industrial Production Technologies/Technicians (Bachelor's Degrees)
  • Year 1: $70,938
  • Year 2: $74,122
  • Year 3: $77,998
Business Administration, Management and Operations (Graduate/Professional Certificates)
  • Year 1: $65,051
  • Year 2: $81,498
  • Year 3: $77,389
Quality Control and Safety Technologies/Technicians (Undergraduate Certificates or Diplomas)
  • Year 1: N/A
  • Year 2: $74,576
  • Year 3: $75,822
Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Master's Degrees)
  • Year 1: $82,062
  • Year 2: $76,460
  • Year 3: $75,775
Construction Management (Bachelor's Degrees)
  • Year 1: $62,334
  • Year 2: $64,837
  • Year 3: $75,354
Electrical Engineering Technologies/Technicians (Bachelor's Degrees)
  • Year 1: $67,507
  • Year 2: $67,240
  • Year 3: $71,530
Mechanical Engineering Related Technologies/Technicians (Bachelor's Degrees)
  • Year 1: $64,480
  • Year 2: $69,535
  • Year 3: $70,863
Heavy/Industrial Equipment Maintenance Technologies (Bachelor's Degrees)
  • Year 1: $61,397
  • Year 2: $65,905
  • Year 3: $70,419
Business/Commerce, General (Master's Degrees)
  • Year 1: $126,500
  • Year 2: $123,886
  • Year 3: $132,790
Business Administration, Management and Operations (Master's Degrees)
  • Year 1: $101,863
  • Year 2: $98,481
  • Year 3: $108,546
Human Resources Management and Services (Master's Degrees)
  • Year 1: $90,313
  • Year 2: $89,435
  • Year 3: $101,511
Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Master's Degrees)
  • Year 1: $92,361
  • Year 2: $96,183
  • Year 3: $100,492
Educational Administration and Supervision (First Professional Degrees)
  • Year 1: N/A
  • Year 2: $101,072
  • Year 3: $97,714
Veterinary Medicine (First Professional Degrees)
  • Year 1: $79,294
  • Year 2: N/A
  • Year 3: $93,263
Management Sciences and Quantitative Methods (Master's Degrees)
  • Year 1: $84,609
  • Year 2: $83,915
  • Year 3: $92,316
Educational Administration and Supervision (Doctoral Degrees)
  • Year 1: $83,457
  • Year 2: $86,129
  • Year 3: $91,721
Food Science and Technology (Master's Degrees)
  • Year 1: $81,178
  • Year 2: $83,915
  • Year 3: $89,761
Computer Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees)
  • Year 1: $75,462
  • Year 2: $80,133
  • Year 3: $84,869

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