James Madison University (JMU) vs California State University-Northridge (CSUN)

Envision yourself immersed in the vibrant college towns of Harrisonburg, Virginia, and Northridge, California, home to James Madison University (JMU) and California State University-Northridge (CSUN), respectively. While both universities offer a wealth of opportunities, they possess distinct characteristics that may influence your academic journey. JMU boasts a higher acceptance rate, welcoming a more diverse student body, while CSUN offers a broader range of undergraduate programs, including popular majors like Business, Psychology, and Engineering. Discover the nuances that set these institutions apart by delving into our comprehensive comparison table, meticulously crafted to assist you in finding the ideal educational haven that aligns with your aspirations and goals.

	California State University-Northridge	James Madison University
Overview
Location	Northridge, California	Harrisonburg, Virginia
Campus setting	City: Large	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	82.0%	91.0%
Common app member	No	Yes
Religious affiliation

Admission
Acceptance rate	88.1%	86.3%
Application fees	Undergraduate: $70 Graduate: $70	Undergraduate: $70 Graduate: $60
SAT range	N/A	1140 - 1310
ACT range	N/A	24 - 29
Students submitting SAT score		26.0%
Students submitting ACT score		5.0%
Total number of applicants	23,656	21,176
Total number of admissions given out	20,842	18,265
Admitted students who chose to enroll	4,716	4,767
Yield rate	22.6%	26.1%
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: $31,857 Out of state: $43,737	In state: $29,293 Out of state: $46,219
Average net price	$8,708	$18,528
Tuition	In state: $5,742 Out of state: $17,622	In state: $7,460 Out of state: $23,800
Room & board	Room/dormitory: $7,316 Meal plan: $4,506	Room/dormitory: $5,564 Meal plan: $5,986
Available payment plans	Tuition payment plan	Prepaid tuition plan Tuition payment plan

Financial Aid
Students receiving financial aid (Grants & scholarships)	82.0% Average amount $10,882	31.0% Average amount $9,594
Students receiving federal student loan	14.0% Average amount $4,779	33.0% Average amount $5,199
Students taking out private loans	1.0% Average amount $12,360	8.0% Average amount $18,776

Students and Campus
Undergraduate students	34,496 Men 45.0% Women 55.0%	20,070 Men 42.3% Women 57.7%
Graduate students	5,612 Men 33.0% Women 67.0%	2,096 Men 29.4% Women 70.6%
Racial/ethnic diversity	Moderate	Low
Out-of-state students	1.7%	N/A
International students	6.0%	1.4%
Campus local/setting	City: Large	City: Small
Dormitory capacity	4,029	6,513
First year students are required to live on campus?	No	No
Top 5 states where most U.S. students come from	California Washington Hawaii Nevada Texas	N/A

Academics
Popular study areas	Health Professions Engineering Kinesiology & Leisure Studies Public Administration and Social Service Computer and Information Science	Health Professions Business Education Kinesiology & Leisure Studies Visual & Performing Arts
Students to faculty ratio	26:1	16:1
Institutional accreditation	Western Association of Schools and Colleges Senior Colleges and University Commission	Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges

Outcome
Graduation rate	54.2%	81.8%
Dropout rate	33.7%	17.4%
Transferred out	5.6%	N/A
Alumni salary by major (Top 10)	Electrical, Electronics and Communications Engineering (Master's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $95,739 Year 3: $108,158 Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $89,831 Year 2: $92,124 Year 3: $98,535 Taxation (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $72,745 Year 2: $86,867 Year 3: $97,852 Business Administration, Management and Operations (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $83,455 Year 2: $88,907 Year 3: $96,626 Construction Engineering Technologies (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $79,863 Year 2: $75,204 Year 3: $92,559 Engineering-Related Fields (Master's Degrees) Year 1: N/A Year 2: $80,493 Year 3: $92,252 Allied Health Diagnostic, Intervention, and Treatment Professions (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $83,281 Year 2: $83,669 Year 3: $89,964 Computer Science (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $64,782 Year 2: $75,047 Year 3: $84,221 Electrical, Electronics and Communications Engineering (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $68,859 Year 2: $73,070 Year 3: $82,977 Educational Administration and Supervision (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $78,180 Year 2: $76,863 Year 3: $82,194	Allied Health Diagnostic, Intervention, and Treatment Professions (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $106,893 Year 2: $116,083 Year 3: $116,887 Business Administration, Management and Operations (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $103,590 Year 2: $91,744 Year 3: $105,768 Computer and Information Sciences, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $73,457 Year 2: $72,659 Year 3: $85,951 Information Science/Studies (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $70,020 Year 2: $72,290 Year 3: $82,877 Finance and Financial Management Services (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $65,544 Year 2: $67,380 Year 3: $80,406 Accounting and Related Services (Master's Degrees) Year 1: $64,052 Year 2: $66,377 Year 3: $77,982 Systems Science and Theory (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $57,389 Year 2: $60,623 Year 3: $75,407 Economics (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $53,331 Year 2: $49,270 Year 3: $69,797 Engineering, General (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $64,114 Year 2: $57,943 Year 3: $69,218 International Business (Bachelor's Degrees) Year 1: $45,708 Year 2: $55,964 Year 3: $68,304

Compare Similar Colleges

The list of suggested college comparisons provided below is generated automatically by our system, utilizing statistics gathered from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) and various online sources. If you don't find the colleges you wish to compare, please visit our comparison page. There, you can search for the specific colleges and initiate your comparison.