Jackson State vs Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU)

Jackson State University and Virginia Commonwealth University, two distinct institutions of higher learning, offer unique educational experiences to their students. Jackson State, a historically Black university in Mississippi, boasts a 90% acceptance rate and a diverse student body, with African American students comprising over 80% of the population. VCU, a public research university in Virginia, has a more selective admissions process, with an acceptance rate of 68%. Both universities offer a wide range of undergraduate and graduate programs, with popular majors including nursing, business, and engineering. While Jackson State has a higher graduation rate, VCU offers a more diverse range of student life activities and a larger alumni network. Explore the detailed comparison table below to discover which university better aligns with your academic aspirations and personal preferences.

	Jackson State University	Virginia Commonwealth University
Overview
Location	Jackson, Mississippi	Richmond, Virginia
Campus setting	City: Midsize	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	77.0%	84.0%
Common app member	Yes	Yes
Religious affiliation

Admission
Acceptance rate	62.1%	92.8%
Application fees	$25	Undergraduate: $70 Graduate: $70
SAT range	940 - 980	1070 - 1300
ACT range	16 - 20	20 - 29
Students submitting SAT score	27.0%	29.0%
Students submitting ACT score	55.0%	5.0%
Total number of applicants	7,889	17,579
Total number of admissions given out	4,900	16,308
Admitted students who chose to enroll	793	4,084
Yield rate	16.2%	25.0%
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	Required

Tuition and Fees
Sticker price	In state: $22,352 Out of state: $23,352	In state: $36,861 Out of state: $58,199
Average net price	$15,477	$19,656
Tuition	$8,270	In state: $12,094 Out of state: $32,742
Room & board	Room/dormitory: $5,744 Meal plan: $4,322	Room/dormitory: $6,953 Meal plan: $5,820
Available payment plans	Tuition payment plan	Tuition payment plan

Financial Aid
Students receiving financial aid (Grants & scholarships)	89.0% Average amount $7,702	78.0% Average amount $13,623
Students receiving federal student loan	84.0% Average amount $6,149	44.0% Average amount $5,174
Students taking out private loans	2.0% Average amount $13,190	8.0% Average amount $17,903

Students and Campus
Undergraduate students	4,763 Men 35.1% Women 64.9%	21,394 Men 36.9% Women 63.1%
Graduate students	2,317 Men 24.4% Women 75.6%	7,200 Men 33.7% Women 66.3%
Racial/ethnic diversity	Very Low	Moderate
Out-of-state students	70.4%	7.0%
International students	2.6%	3.6%
Campus local/setting	City: Midsize	City: Midsize
Dormitory capacity	2,464	5,958
First year students are required to live on campus?	No	No
Top 5 states where most U.S. students come from	Mississippi Illinois Texas Louisiana Georgia	Virginia Maryland North Carolina New Jersey Pennsylvania

Academics
Popular study areas	Education Public Administration and Social Service Business Biological and Biomedical Sciences Health Professions	Health Professions Visual & Performing Arts Business Public Administration and Social Service Multidisciplinary Studies
Students to faculty ratio	15:1	18:1
Institutional accreditation	Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges	Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges

Outcome
Graduation rate	39.0%	67.6%
Dropout rate	58.4%	10.5%
Transferred out	N/A	19.2%
Alumni salary by major (Top 10)	Engineering, General (Master's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $76,460 Year 3: $81,069 Civil Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $53,963 Year 2: $55,338 Year 3: $67,141 Computer Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $68,863 Year 2: $63,005 Year 3: $66,332 Educational Administration and Supervision (Doctoral Degrees) Year 1: $55,403 Year 2: $53,984 Year 3: $61,303 Computer Science (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $47,260 Year 3: $57,064 Communication Disorders Sciences and Services (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $53,212 Year 2: $56,234 Year 3: $55,989 Business Administration, Management and Operations (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $42,514 Year 2: $46,087 Year 3: $50,751 Public Health (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $35,764 Year 2: $35,416 Year 3: $46,573 Environmental Control Technologies/Technicians (Master's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $37,208 Year 3: $42,106 Health and Physical Education/Fitness (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $33,576 Year 2: $46,087 Year 3: $41,525	Advanced/Graduate Dentistry and Oral Sciences (Master's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $234,763 Year 3: $225,432 Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Doctoral Degrees) Year 1: $166,030 Year 2: $181,454 Year 3: $181,915 Dentistry (First Professional Degrees) Year 1: $87,586 Year 2: $106,935 Year 3: $134,578 Pharmacy, Pharmaceutical Sciences, and Administration (First Professional Degrees) Year 1: $101,582 Year 2: $119,256 Year 3: $121,903 Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $94,371 Year 2: $93,178 Year 3: $105,544 Business Administration, Management and Operations (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $94,094 Year 2: $93,467 Year 3: $97,893 Information Science/Studies (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $100,759 Year 2: $86,867 Year 3: $94,244 Health and Medical Administrative Services (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $73,726 Year 2: $82,440 Year 3: $90,664 Educational Administration and Supervision (Doctoral Degrees) Year 1: $77,993 Year 2: $89,305 Year 3: $82,470 Electrical, Electronics and Communications Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $70,920 Year 2: $69,338 Year 3: $82,210

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