Iowa State vs North Dakota State University-Main Campus (NDSU)

Iowa State University and North Dakota State University-Main Campus, both esteemed public research universities, offer distinct educational experiences. Iowa State, located in Ames, Iowa, boasts a higher acceptance rate of 84% compared to North Dakota State's 80%. While Iowa State excels in engineering, agriculture, and veterinary medicine, North Dakota State shines in fields like pharmacy, nursing, and education. Iowa State's student body is more diverse, with international students comprising 11% of the population, while North Dakota State's international student population stands at 2%. With a slightly higher graduation rate of 78% compared to North Dakota State's 76%, Iowa State offers a well-rounded education that prepares students for successful careers. 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 personal preferences.

	Iowa State University	North Dakota State University-Main Campus
Overview
Location	Ames, Iowa	Fargo, North Dakota
Campus setting	City: Small	City: Midsize
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	88.0%	76.0%
Common app member	Yes	No
Religious affiliation

Admission
Acceptance rate	91.1%	95.5%
Application fees	Undergraduate: $40 Graduate: $60	Undergraduate: $35 Graduate: $35
SAT range	1083 - 1330	1096 - 1313
ACT range	21 - 28	20 - 26
Students submitting SAT score	13.0%	1.0%
Students submitting ACT score	63.0%	63.0%
Total number of applicants	20,357	8,143
Total number of admissions given out	18,550	7,773
Admitted students who chose to enroll	5,387	2,491
Yield rate	29.0%	32.0%
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	Not required

Tuition and Fees
Sticker price	In state: $22,152 Out of state: $37,964	In state: $23,879 Out of state: $28,354
Average net price	$15,422	$16,677
Tuition	In state: $8,324 Out of state: $24,136	In state: $8,951 Out of state: $13,426
Room & board	Room/dormitory: $4,590 Meal plan: $4,498	Room/dormitory: $4,100 Meal plan: $4,778
Available payment plans	Tuition payment plan	Tuition payment plan

Financial Aid
Students receiving financial aid (Grants & scholarships)	87.0% Average amount $8,833	91.0% Average amount $4,089
Students receiving federal student loan	47.0% Average amount $5,202	60.0% Average amount $5,226
Students taking out private loans	11.0% Average amount $11,630	28.0% Average amount $11,868

Students and Campus
Undergraduate students	25,808 Men 56.1% Women 43.9%	10,199 Men 49.8% Women 50.2%
Graduate students	4,900 Men 50.6% Women 49.4%	2,262 Men 47.4% Women 52.6%
Racial/ethnic diversity	Very Low	Very Low
Out-of-state students	N/A	64.0%
International students	8.2%	5.5%
Campus local/setting	City: Small	City: Midsize
Dormitory capacity	9,400	5,563
First year students are required to live on campus?	No	No
Top 5 states where most U.S. students come from	N/A	Minnesota North Dakota Wisconsin South Dakota California

Academics
Popular study areas	Engineering Agriculture Education Business Biological and Biomedical Sciences	Health Professions Engineering Education Business Agriculture
Students to faculty ratio	18:1	18:1
Institutional accreditation	Higher Learning Commission	Higher Learning Commission

Outcome
Graduation rate	76.0%	64.9%
Dropout rate	6.1%	10.7%
Transferred out	16.7%	22.3%
Alumni salary by major (Top 10)	Electrical, Electronics and Communications Engineering (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $85,739 Year 2: $94,408 Year 3: $101,292 Mechanical Engineering (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $80,956 Year 2: N/A Year 3: $95,081 Industrial Engineering (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $99,120 Year 2: $89,059 Year 3: $92,521 Veterinary Medicine (First Professional Degrees) Year 1: $77,573 Year 2: N/A Year 3: $85,108 Electrical, Electronics and Communications Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $74,299 Year 2: $73,321 Year 3: $83,452 Computer Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $72,598 Year 2: $73,839 Year 3: $83,292 Computer Science (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $71,184 Year 2: $71,734 Year 3: $81,196 Business Administration, Management and Operations (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $83,223 Year 2: $70,680 Year 3: $79,916 Construction Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $71,580 Year 2: $70,083 Year 3: $77,479 Chemical Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $70,534 Year 2: $67,156 Year 3: $76,113	Pharmacy, Pharmaceutical Sciences, and Administration (First Professional Degrees) Year 1: $112,561 Year 2: $117,751 Year 3: $125,733 Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Doctoral Degrees) Year 1: $98,645 Year 2: $101,072 Year 3: $116,073 Computer Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $72,828 Year 3: $93,292 Electrical, Electronics and Communications Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $69,521 Year 2: $66,401 Year 3: $74,017 Construction Management (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $61,785 Year 2: $64,865 Year 3: $72,508 Mechanical Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $64,224 Year 2: $65,409 Year 3: $72,103 Agricultural Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $59,019 Year 2: $67,660 Year 3: $69,536 Industrial Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $62,818 Year 2: $59,576 Year 3: $68,476 Business Administration, Management and Operations (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $67,258 Year 2: $58,673 Year 3: $68,399 Computer Science (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $59,793 Year 2: $58,866 Year 3: $67,481

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